Opinion: Santa already paid his visit to college athletes this year

I know the real Christmas is later this week, but another Christmas arrived this past July.

The one for college athletes.

On July 1, the NCAA began permitting college athletes to make money off their name, image and likeness. Nicknamed “NIL,” the rule has, quite simply, changed college sports forever.

You want to do a commercial now? Go for it. You want to get paid for a podcast? Talk away. You want money for showing up somewhere, pumping up a party, endorsing a cologne, wearing a certain clothing or jewelry line? Sky’s the limit.

And some athletes went straight to the stratosphere.