Naveau column: Are high schools ready for name, image and likeness?

College athletes being able to be compensated for promoting products or entities with their name, image and likeness has moved faster than expected and has gone to some unanticipated places in the 10 months since the NCAA allowed first allowed it.

Expect the same thing to happen when name, image and likeness deals come to high schools. And they are coming to schools near you sooner rather than later if approved by the member schools of the Ohio High School Athletic Association in voting which runs through May 16.

If the people in charge in college sports were totally honest they would tell you they’re not sure where

name, image and likeness compensation is going and that it is moving more rapidly than they expected. You’d probably get the same thing at the high school level.

When the Louisiana High School Athletic Association changed its rules in March to allow high school athletes to do endorsements, its executive director Eddie Bonine called name, image and likeness “a moving target.”

Regardless of the uncertainty at the college level, the OHSAA appears to be sprinting toward allowing high school athletes to profit from endorsement deals even though there are unknowns about how that will play out.

It’s anyone’s guess how the referendum on changing the OHSAA will go. It would not be surprising to see it pass. A similar proposal by the Colorado High School Activities Association was approved by 88 percent of the schools there last month. But the attitude among school people closer to home seems to lean toward acceptance more than enthusiasm.

The OHSAA’s message to the schools appears to be that the best defense is a good offense. The schools’ response in many cases is, OK, but how are we going to enforce the new rules? The OHSAA says schools will be in charge of making sure name, image and likeness deals comply with the rules.

“We want to get out ahead of it to shape it the way that our member schools want and not some outside group who would come in and put in something that would not be good for our group of schools,” OHSAA executive director Doug Ute said recently.

Translation: If we don’t do something the state legislature will and you might not like it.

There is also the possibility, more like a probability, of facing a lawsuit similar to one filed against the Florida High School Athletic Association in January because of its prohibition of high school athletes “capitalizing on athletic fame.”

Approving the changes proposed by the OHSAA would avoid that.

Ute’s words are very similar to what Robert Bayas, the executive director of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association said in March.

Zayas said, “We wanted to be proactive and drive the direction we wanted to go. We did not want to end up in a situation where we were going to face litigation or have legislation proposed.”

Maybe the most common concern for Ohio school people is that compliance with the rules and determining the legitimacy of name, image and likeness deals will be the responsibility of the schools.

“I like the way the OHSAA is trying to get out front on it. It’s coming down the pike but it’s going to create a lot of issues in the compliance aspect,” Lima Senior athletic director John Zell said.

Elida athletic director Dave Evans said, “It’s going to add some work to athletic departments, especially if you get some kids who are involved in this and have a chance to do some of those things. We have to be sure we’re guiding them down the right path about what they can and can’t do. You’re really going to have to educate the kids and coaches, too, to make sure we’re all on the same page.”

Another big concern is if the process is moving too fast. Some other concerns that have been talked about are recruiting, adults taking advantage of high school players financially in contracts and the effects on teams and team unity if some players are getting something extra but most are not.

After a recent OHSAA meeting about its name, image and likeness proposal, Crestview principal Dave Bowen said his school district was still discussing how it would vote. “I think it is something that needs to be refined a little more. I see it coming, but not yet,” he said.

“It’s small at the high school level and I’d like to keep it there a little while longer while we move forward. I’d really like to have our “i’s” dotted and our “t’s” crossed when we get into it.”

The OHSAA says only a few athletes will be able to get name, image and likeness money.

It’s true only a few athletes, like Arch Manning, the nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning, or Bronny James, oldest son of LeBron James, will be able to get really big money in their home states.

But there will be more than just a few athletes getting deals wherever high school students can make name, image and likeness money. They might not get big money but some will get offers.

There are not many things more popular in small towns and small cities across Ohio than winning high school sports teams. It’s not going to take long for businesses to get endorsements for their pizzas, their clothing lines or their car detailing services or whatever from a star player or possibly the whole team as a group.

If you are an Ohio State football recruit, your fame travels. You are known everywhere in Ohio. Your potential to sign endorsement deals would not be limited to your hometown in another example of what could happen.

Maybe it’s not an earthquake or even a tremor. But it does feel like the winds of change are gusting through high school sports.