Oregon State defensive back Trey Glasper (19) lines up against defensive back Jalil Tucker (22) during warmups of the Oregon State Spring football scrimmage at Reser Stadium on April 19, 2025. (John Lariviere/Portland Tribune)

House Bill 3694 is back in the news. But while the state has again approved the newly amended bill, its purpose remains little more than a symptom of what continues to be a big problem for what’s no longer your dad or granddad’s collegiate sport.

If you’re unfamiliar with House Bill 3694, allow me to give you the Cliff’s Notes explanation as to what it is, along with what it hopes to accomplish.

In a nutshell, the bill protects NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) contracts from public disclosure and will allow universities like the University of Oregon and Oregon State University to pay athletes directly, opposed to under the ruse of services rendered.

The bill was originally passed earlier this year but was amended prior to the June 2 Oregon Senate vote, with the amendment removing language which would have restricted athletes from signing NIL deals for “alcohol, drugs, gambling, firearms, sexual entertainment, hate speech, violence, or other topics prohibited by the higher education institution.”

Said amendment allegedly stemmed from concerns over First Amendment rights infringement.

So, bring on the weed, booze and strip club endorsements for our college athletes who while previously destitute, can now eat three square meals due to the money that’s now on the table opposed to under it.

If you sense a cynical tone, you’re not wrong.

I’ve never been a proponent of the pay-for-play model we’re currently living under, for the very reasons we’re now seeing come to fruition.

People can scream from the rooftops about the benefits of NIL, but the now famously mainstream acronym is nothing more than a legal conduit used to launder what was previously dirty booster money.

NIL was supposed to offer athletes the option of benefitting financially from the use of their names, image and likeness. But for every commercial or product you see either featuring or promoting a college athlete, I’ll show you a hundred more of those athletes who are just cashing a check or checks from “collectives” assigned to allocate the money raised by alumni to buy talent.

While technically above board, it’s not what was originally intended regarding NIL, and House Bill 3694 will simply allow schools to cut to the chase when it comes to coercing…errrr…enticing athletes to wear their favorite school’s colors.

Oregon’s not alone in their endeavor, in fact, other states have already passed such or similar legislation and it’s this state’s contention that HB 3694 is merely protection for the Ducks, Beavers, Pilots and Vikings when it comes to “keeping up with the Jones.’” But I’d argue the problem is not keeping up, but rather the idea that you have to by way of a system that managed to go from bad to worse.

While I’m no fan of what we’re now seeing regarding the millions of dollars colleges are using to buy recruits, I was behind the idea of getting the athletes more in a world of college athletics that was getting richer by the day.

Yes, contrary to what’s become popular belief, I maintain that a scholarship is exceptionally valuable, and the world class coaching and training athletes receive while part of a college football, softball, basketball or any other athletic program is invaluable to their endeavor during and beyond their time on campus.

But “advocates” for the kids have and continue to tell you there’s no value in a free education, despite the millions of kids hamstrung by six figures of student loan debt who’d argue otherwise.

But at the same time, what and how much the athletes were getting in return was antiquated, and “more” was certainly a reasonable response in the wake of years of rising revenue generated from the games getting more popular by the day.

Yet, what we now have versus what should be can’t be one in the same, and HB3694 is nothing more than a counteraction to a flawed and unsustainable system.

Do I have an issue with HB3694? I mean, not really. After-all, it’s in all likelihood a necessary evil in what’s become the wild wild west. But I have, do and will continue to take umbrage with the people that made it a necessity, and the asinine system they nonsensically adopted to further compensate the athletes worthy of something more.

The legislation isn’t the problem, it’s the lack of such. Can we vote on that?