Coastal Carolina coach Gary Gilmore rips 'messed up' NIL system in final press conference
CLEMSON — As Gary Gilmore's legendary career at Coastal Carolina came to a close, he couldn't stress enough how much he would miss his players.
One day, Gilmore said, he'll hear Brooks & Dunn playing "Red Dirt Road" and he will probably cry.
But there is one thing Gilmore will absolutely not miss: Dealing with roster management in an era with name, image, and likeness (NIL) pay and a transfer portal where athletes can so easily jump from one school to the next.
"I think it's a complete mess, to be honest with you," Gilmore said. "I'm not against the NIL. The way it's been done, I'm completely against it."
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In his final press conference, after losing to Clemson in NCAA tournament play, Gilmore gave an extensive rebuke of "free agency" in college athletics.
In the professional ranks, players have multi-year contracts. But in college, student-athletes aren't employees and nothing has been collectively bargained.
"If Major League Baseball, the NBA, and the NFL had a system where everyone was a free agent every year, do you realize what chaos there would be? It would go away," Gilmore said. "I mean, there's not a level playing field. And it's just ridiculous to me. As much as I'm gonna miss the kids — and I'm gonna miss the heck out of them — dealing with that mess ...
"I'm telling you right now, the fact there are teams in college baseball giving $2 million-plus dollars of NIL money away? I mean, come on, man."
Gilmore reiterated that he's not completely against NIL, citing a conversation this past week with former Clemson coach Jack Leggett about ex-Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence and all the money he could have made.
And rightfully so, in Gilmore's view.
But the fact that a fourth-string offensive tackle on a football team can also command a salary via NIL? Gilmore doesn't get it.
"They turned every booster and everything all loose."
The NCAA has attempted to enforce rules against "pay-for-play" and recruiting inducements since NIL prohibitions went away in 2021, but the association's antitrust vulnerabilities have made it impossible to follow through.
Last month, the NCAA and its power conferences agreed to settle three antitrust cases, which could, potentially, allow for more rules when athletes are paid directly by schools. The settlement will also reportedly end scholarship limits, replacing them with roster caps, which would allow a sport like baseball to have all of its athletes on full scholarships rather than partial ones.
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"A real system would be one where they get a little bit of money, and then they put money in a trust, and this and that, so that you don't have the horror stories you see in the NFL and in different places," Gilmore said. "Major League Baseball gives big signing bonuses and boom, five, ten years later, they're broke. They don't have a dime. They don't have an education. They don't have anything.
"There has to be a better way than who can raise the most money and give it away."
Gilmore isn't alone in his feelings, even among fans. Clemson coach Erik Bakichrecently admitted his program's donor base would be "more receptive" to providing money for scholarships than NIL.
With the NCAA's recent settlement, there will be more scholarships to fund, but NIL isn't going away. And neither will concerns about player retention.
"This becomes the new relative thing," Bakich said of increased scholarships, along with NIL, "so making sure we can retain our players will probably still be an area of high focus."
Gilmore, on his way out the door, did not hold back. He said professional sports would "go in the toilet in a hurry" if they used the college system.
"You were held accountable, coach. You had to honor that scholarship you gave me. But now I'm gonna go in the portal and leave you hanging," Gilmore said. "That's a messed up system. I hope somebody fixes it."
"I'm being honest with you," he added, "that part I'm gonna enjoy (not dealing with) it."
CLEMSON — As Gary Gilmore's legendary career at Coastal Carolina came to a close, he couldn't stress enough how much he would miss his players.
One day, Gilmore said, he'll hear Brooks & Dunn playing "Red Dirt Road" and he will probably cry.
"I've put my heart and soul in this for 39 years, and I'm proud of what we've done," said Gilmore, who led Coastal Carolina to a national title in 2016.But there is one thing Gilmore will absolutely not miss: Dealing with roster management in an era with name, image, and likeness (NIL) pay and a transfer portal where athletes can so easily jump from one school to the next.
"I think it's a complete mess, to be honest with you," Gilmore said. "I'm not against the NIL. The way it's been done, I'm completely against it."
Clemson takes 'beer shower' at Cajun Cafe after winning first NCAA regional since 2010
In his final press conference, after losing to Clemson in NCAA tournament play, Gilmore gave an extensive rebuke of "free agency" in college athletics.
Courts have ruled there can't be restrictions on student-athletes' ability to transfer from one school to the next, and booster-funded collectives have allegedly been active in floating promises of NIL deals to said transfers.In the professional ranks, players have multi-year contracts. But in college, student-athletes aren't employees and nothing has been collectively bargained.
"If Major League Baseball, the NBA, and the NFL had a system where everyone was a free agent every year, do you realize what chaos there would be? It would go away," Gilmore said. "I mean, there's not a level playing field. And it's just ridiculous to me. As much as I'm gonna miss the kids — and I'm gonna miss the heck out of them — dealing with that mess ...
"I'm telling you right now, the fact there are teams in college baseball giving $2 million-plus dollars of NIL money away? I mean, come on, man."
Gilmore reiterated that he's not completely against NIL, citing a conversation this past week with former Clemson coach Jack Leggett about ex-Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence and all the money he could have made.
And rightfully so, in Gilmore's view.
But the fact that a fourth-string offensive tackle on a football team can also command a salary via NIL? Gilmore doesn't get it.
"I mean, NIL's supposed to be because you actually did something, you know? And I just don't think that's what it's about, personally," Gilmore said. "I think it should be for the guys that actually accomplished something and not just everyone across the board."They turned every booster and everything all loose."
The NCAA has attempted to enforce rules against "pay-for-play" and recruiting inducements since NIL prohibitions went away in 2021, but the association's antitrust vulnerabilities have made it impossible to follow through.
Last month, the NCAA and its power conferences agreed to settle three antitrust cases, which could, potentially, allow for more rules when athletes are paid directly by schools. The settlement will also reportedly end scholarship limits, replacing them with roster caps, which would allow a sport like baseball to have all of its athletes on full scholarships rather than partial ones.
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Gilmore and his fellow baseball coaches are pleased by the latter development, obviously. But much like Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney, who has said he is pro-NIL but remains against the professionalization of college sports, many in the trade are concerned about large amounts of money being put in student-athletes' hands while their focus veers away from education."A real system would be one where they get a little bit of money, and then they put money in a trust, and this and that, so that you don't have the horror stories you see in the NFL and in different places," Gilmore said. "Major League Baseball gives big signing bonuses and boom, five, ten years later, they're broke. They don't have a dime. They don't have an education. They don't have anything.
"There has to be a better way than who can raise the most money and give it away."
Gilmore isn't alone in his feelings, even among fans. Clemson coach Erik Bakichrecently admitted his program's donor base would be "more receptive" to providing money for scholarships than NIL.
With the NCAA's recent settlement, there will be more scholarships to fund, but NIL isn't going away. And neither will concerns about player retention.
"This becomes the new relative thing," Bakich said of increased scholarships, along with NIL, "so making sure we can retain our players will probably still be an area of high focus."
Gilmore, on his way out the door, did not hold back. He said professional sports would "go in the toilet in a hurry" if they used the college system.
He then posed a hypothetical: A coach renews a scholarship, which binds him to an athlete for another year. The next month, that athlete is playing summer ball in Cape Cod and he receives a NIL offer from another program."You were held accountable, coach. You had to honor that scholarship you gave me. But now I'm gonna go in the portal and leave you hanging," Gilmore said. "That's a messed up system. I hope somebody fixes it."
"I'm being honest with you," he added, "that part I'm gonna enjoy (not dealing with) it."
