Not every college coach is in favor of the Fair Pay to Play Act, which was recently passed in California and is a law that will allow college athletes to earn money off their name, image and likeness.
However, Auburn men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl is among those supporting it.
“I do agree that what they’ve got to do is they’ve got to take the system that they have and make it better,” Pearl said, according to AL.com’s Tom Green. “Find a way to have the athletes be able to benefit from their image and their likeness without changing the whole system. I think there’s a way to make it better. I think they’re on the right track, and I hope they’ll find a way to do that.”
Pearl has a lot of college basketball experience, as he’s been a head coach since 1992. He’s been the leader at Southern Indiana (1992-2001), Milwaukee (2001-05), Tennessee (2005-11) and Auburn (2014-present). So, it’s interesting to see that Pearl is in support of this act, because he has a lot of years to base his opinions off of.
The Fair to Pay to Play Act was signed into law by California governor Gavin Newsom on Sept. 30 and goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2023.
Pearl isn’t the only college basketball coach to be in favor of the act, as Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has also publicly supported it.
If these types of acts continue to get passed — and with the support they’re getting, it seems possible — then it will be interesting to see how things change for college athletes in the future.
Jake Rill contributes to news coverage for Saturday Down South. He has covered the SEC since 2016.
