Oklahoma State football’s Mike Gundy fires shot at NCAA after helmet QR code decision
Oklahoma State football thought they had devised a fresh way to raise funds for their players: putting 1.5-inch QR codes on the backs of their helmets. When scanned, these codes would allow fans to contribute directly to the athletes’ NIL funds. Unfortunately, just before their first game against South Dakota State, the NCAA banned the Cowboys from doing so. In response, Oklahoma football head coach Mike Gundy lashed out at the NCAA’s decision when speaking to Rick Neuheisel and Chris Childers on The Show Pony on Sirius XM College Sports Radio.
"Basically if you can't walk and chew gum at the same time, then it's tough to lead, and that's what you're getting right now from the NCAA."@CoachGundy had some harsh words for the NCAA after the QR code initiative was shut down.@ChildersRadio @CoachNeuheisel pic.twitter.com/4kyg1ATkPi
— College Sports on SiriusXM (@SXMCollege) September 6, 2024
“Basically if you can’t walk and chew gum at the same time, then it’s tough to lead, and that’s what you’re getting right now from the NCAA.”
Harsh words but that’s just the tip of the iceberg from Gundy who put his frustration on display.
“I think they [NCAA do] everything they can do now to show they have a little bit of power. This was an opportunity for them to say, ‘OK we have a little power, we’re gonna make a statement.’ When in theory, you and I both know they don’t have any power anymore.”
What could have effectively functioned as fundraising through their fanbase was shut down and a grassroots NIL expansion will have to wait.
Oklahoma State football’s NIL revolution halted, Mike Gundy is right to be upset
The NCAA still wants to maintain some effective control of NIL. Opening up the wallets and purses of different fanbases would open a whole new can of worms that would be difficult to monitor. For example, what if the school or a payment processor took a piece of every donation? Where does that money go? That doesn’t make NIL advances wrong. It just shows how complicated NIL can be.
Gundy continued to speak on the issue with Neuheisel and Childers.
“What I did was, I said, “OK, I’m gonna be a solider. I’m gonna listen. I’m gonna do what I’m told.” And they reason why is this. They [NCAA] have told me that they would punish the player that went on the field with the QR code on their helmet. I tried to get them to punish me because then we would roll with it. I would say punish me, I don’t care. … I’m very disappointed in the fact that we’re trying to migrate to more revenue sharing. … So we’re trying to reward them [the players]. And the NCAA is trying to go the other way. That’s why we’re in this situation in the first place.”
The No. 16 Oklahoma State Cowboys host the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday, September 7 at 12:00 p.m. EST.
The post Oklahoma State football’s Mike Gundy fires shot at NCAA after helmet QR code decision appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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