At 3-0, with wins over Big-12 foes Houston and Kansas, UNLV has been one of the best stories this college football season. But their fairy tale script took a nosedive earlier this week, when starting quarterback Matthew Sluka announced he would no longer be playing for the Rebels.
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In a Twitter/X post detailing his decision, Sluka revealed the choice stemmed from an NIL dispute. Both the school and Sluka’s family have made differing statements on the matter, creating immense confusion in the college football space.
When asked about the situation during his Wednesday appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, sports personality Bomani Jones said he considers what’s happening to be an embarrassment, and joked that the under-the-table deals of yesteryear were a better system than the one the NCAA recently adopted.
“This is such a clown show… it appears that the system moves more efficiently and with more honor when people were literally dropping off bags.”
NIL’s introduction into the sport has always been a polarizing topic, but Sluka’s move sent shockwaves through the industry.
The only certainty is that the overhaul happened extremely quickly and without proper oversight, which has in turn created many of the problems we see today.
UNLV and Sluka family’s contradicting narratives
As soon as Sluka’s post dropped on Monday, fans and analysts alike began craving more information on what all had transpired. Unsurprisingly, the sequence of events is drastically different in the estimation of the involved parties.
One report, from CBS Sports’ Carl Reed Jr., indicated UNLV “completely met all financial commitments” to Sluka, but that his family – following the Rebels’ strong wins – believed his “market value [had] increased”, leading them to hire an agent.
Sluka’s father, Bob, told ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg the family never requested any adjustments to his son’s deal.
The elder Sluka also told Rittenberg his son has actually not received a single payment from UNLV, which is in direct opposition to Reed Jr.’s claim.
Fellow ESPN reporter Pete Thamel, who spoke to Sluka’s NIL representative, stated his news in a five-post Twitter/X thread. Those assertions expectedly aligned with his client’s father’s portrayal of events.
Until a formal resolution is reached, nobody can truly be sure whether the Rebels or Sluka’s family are the ones spinning yarn.
It’s a disappointing development in what was a feel-good narrative, and one that could kick off a tidal wave of similar efforts. The latter aspect isn’t something fans want, but it may just be the new reality we’re all forced to live in.
