NIL at Radford University: Changing the Game or Widening the Gap?

By: Davidson Baker

In the ever-changing landscape of collegiate athletics, universities at the Division I level are finding any way they can to avoid being left behind. A decade ago, institutions would supplant their athletic programs with competent coaching staffs, high-end facilities, and the athletes that ultimately win or lose games for your university. This was the recipe for how to succeed in college sports. Solid facilities, great coaching staffs, and of course, great players.

Now? If only it were that simple. Radford University, amongst other low-major Division I institutions, are being left behind in the game of Name, Image, and Likeness (or NIL, for short). NIL allows college athletes to be compensated for their personal brand, which wasn’t allowed in college sports prior to 2021. Radford University supports NIL opportunities for its athletes, as long as they follow NCAA and school rules. 

Does that mean Radford can thrive in this era of arms race for sport? The results are still funneling in.

Each school has its own NIL fund, which most schools refer to as a collective. Radford’s specifically, is known as the ‘Tartan Town’ collective. In the words of Athletic Director Robert Lineburg, “The Tartan Town Collective will help build our student-athletes personal brand, help increase community engagement, and strengthen our position with the ever changing landscape of college athletics.” 

Sounds promising, right? Schools collect the revenue, and third parties that donate money to the University or the collective foot the bill for the athletes. Sounds simple enough. Until you come to the realization that other schools are doing it too, and some, in most cases, are spending bigger than Radford.

In the case of other schools that Radford knows, such as its conference mates High Point, Winthrop, and UNC Asheville, it’s an arms race. Cut and dry; who has the most to spend? Whoever does, normally finds themselves in situations to succeed year in and year out. 

In most cases, it’s a pillaging of low-major talent undergone by the power four and mid-major schools. Once a season ends, it’s become customary for players who performed well at the low-major level to put their name in the transfer portal, the beacon of free agency for college sports, to see what their value is on the open market. Don’t believe me? Ask yourself, how many players on Radford’s 2025-26 men’s basketball team were still around the year prior?

The answer is one. Zion Walker, a sophomore guard who appeared in 27 games last season. The rest of the combined roster appeared in zero games.

Radford didn’t just lose quality players in the portal, either. Most transfers into the University came from high-major schools with rock-solid programs. Brennan Rigsby came from the University of Minnesota, and before his time there he played at Oregon. Dennis Parker Jr., from NC State, was in what ended up being Kevin Keatts final season as head coach. 

Then there’s Del Jones, a shifty, smooth point guard who can get you a bucket from anywhere. He was a Clemson transfer, and a pricy one at that. In a world where the schools with big money tower over the rest of their peers, Radford, in this instance, outbid an ACC suitor in Clemson, and head coach Brad Brownell went so far as to even allude that they were outbid by the Highlanders. 

But what about the impact on other sports? With Men’s basketball as the main revenue driver for the University, opportunities can be limited for certain athletes across all sports. So much so that Radford even allocated its rolodex of sports they offer after the 2024-25 school year. The university cut men’s and women’s tennis to make room for the incumbent women’s flag football program, a future Division I varsity sport set to launch as early as 2028.

NIL is still in its infancy, and time will tell just how much change it creates across the broader landscape of college sports at the high- and low-major levels. In a world where NIL dominates the outcomes of college sports in America, Radford is certainly playing ball. However, where will this new era take us in the New River Valley? Only time will tell.