Service Academy Football Player Hit With Bad News About New Video Game
College football players at America's military academies won't be able to cash in on the upcoming college football video game.
EA Sports' first college football game since 2013 will hit shelves at some point this summer, and hype has officially hit a deafening level.
This will be the first ever college football players where the name and likeness of actual players will be used. Players who choose to participate reportedly will be paid $600 and receive a free copy of the game.
Thousands of players have already agreed to opt in, but don't expect to see guys at the service academies cashing checks.
Service academy football players blocked from taking EA Sports' NIL deal.
Unfortunately for football players at America's three service academies, they are banned from taking any NIL deals, including the one from EA Sports.
"Students at the three service academies, (Army, Navy and Air Force) are prohibited from accepting NIL deals or outside payments, but a source at EA told me that the company does except (expect? [sic]) those athletes to be depicted in the game, and that EA is looking for ways to provide benefit to those athletes in a legally compliant way," Matt Brown reported Thursday.
That is a huge bummer for athletes at those schools. Let me know if you agree at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.
The good news is it sounds like all three academies will still have their players in the game. The athletes just won't be able to earn a penny due to existing rules.
Welcome to life in the military. It's an organization not known for bending the rules or making exceptions. Athletes at service academies will still be able to eat, despite not taking EA Sports money.
Anyone who attends one of the three service academies receives money, even if they're athletes. Would an extra $600 be nice? Sure, but they're still being taken care of VERY well. It's not an easy existence to attend a military academy as an athlete, but you're fed incredibly well and there's the guarantee of a job afterwards.
Service academy athletes banned from taking NIL money for new video game. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
Finally, if you ever have the chance to watch a game at the Naval Academy, I suggest you do. It's an incredible atmosphere. I watched an NHL game and football game in Annapolis. You simply can't beat it, and I'm sure the same is true for West Point and the Air Force Academy. Have a fun experience at a service academy? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.