Legal Strategies for Representing Today’s College Athletes: Drafting NIL Agreements, Navigating Revenue Sharing, and NCAA Reforms

Jason Belzer | Student Athlete NIL (SANIL)

Jason Belzer is the Founder of Student Athlete NIL (SANIL), an agency of record that specializes in assisting brands, universities, and student-athletes navigate the new era of name, image, and likeness. He is also the founder and President of GAME, Inc., an agency that specializes in the career management and marketing of coaches and the creation of collegiate sporting events. In addition, Belzer is co-founder of AthleticDirectorU (ADU), a transformative digital media and professional development platform built for college athletic administrators and coaches. Together, these ventures position him at the center of the business, compensation, and management dimensions of contemporary college athletics.

• Education & Credentials

Belzer graduated from Rutgers University, earning degrees in Sport Management and Political Science. He went on to receive his MBA from the University of Illinois and a JD from Rutgers University School of Law. He is a licensed attorney in both New York and New Jersey.

• Recognition & Leadership

AthleticDirectorU is the No. 1 consumed original content publication in the college sports industry, reflecting Belzer’s influence on how athletic administrators and coaches engage with professional development. Through SANIL, he also hosts the annual NIL Summit at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, convening leaders across the name, image, and likeness space.

• Professional Involvement

Belzer serves as an Adjunct Professor at Rutgers Law School, based at the Rutgers Center for Law and Justice in Newark, where his area of expertise is Sports and Entertainment Law.

• Experience

SANIL manages more than 50 NIL collectives at universities across the country and has negotiated over $75 million in NIL deals. GAME, Inc. has negotiated more than $100 million in contracts to date, spanning coaching career management and collegiate sporting event creation.

Joshua M. Frieser | Frieser Legal

Joshua Frieser is a nationally recognized sports lawyer who leads Frieser Legal’s boutique sports law practice in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With a client-first approach, Josh crafts creative, strategic solutions for elite athletes, sports agents, sports industry businesses, and corporate sponsors. At the core of his work is advocacy for sports clients navigating high-stakes environments—from athletics association regulatory proceedings to complex NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) negotiations. His expertise spans licensing, intellectual property, business structuring, and regulatory compliance, helping athletes capitalize on opportunities, maintain eligibility, and protect their brands. In addition to serving as counsel to college and professional athletes, Josh acts as outside counsel to sports agents and agencies, sports industry ventures, and corporate sponsors of athletes and sports properties.

• Education & Credentials

Josh earned his J.D. from Marquette University Law School in 2021 and his B.S. in Kinesiology, with Distinction, from Indiana University Bloomington in 2018. He is admitted to practice in the State of Wisconsin.

• Recognition & Leadership

Recognized as a leading voice on the legal and regulatory landscape of college athletics, Josh has been quoted by the Associated Press, Front Office Sports, and the Wisconsin State Journal. He frequently speaks at CLEs and industry panels on NIL and the business of college sports.

• Professional Involvement

Josh is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s Sports Advisory Committee, the Sports Lawyers Association, and the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Sports & Entertainment Law Section. His recent speaking engagements include presentations on NIL agreement drafting, the taxation of influencers and student-athlete NIL arrangements, intellectual property in sponsorship and endorsement agreements, NIL arbitration after House v. NCAA, and the professional responsibility issues facing attorneys acting as NIL agents—delivered for organizations including the Federal Bar Association, the American Arbitration Association, the State Bar of Wisconsin, Strafford Publications, and Marquette University Law School.

• Experience

Before founding Frieser Legal, Josh gained experience at the NCAA’s Office of the Committees on Infractions and the National Sports Law Institute, and through judicial internships with judges at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

Christopher M. Brolley | Troutman Pepper Locke LLP

Christopher (“Chris”) Brolley advises higher educational institutions of all sizes, including colleges and universities, on Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) compliance issues. He provides comprehensive guidance on permissible and impermissible NIL activities and on navigating state NIL laws, NCAA Bylaws, and other NCAA policies, and creates and implements tailored strategies for mitigating the risk of NCAA and state attorney general enforcement activity. Beyond NIL, Chris’s diverse practice includes the representation of pharmaceutical, medical device, agricultural, and manufacturing companies in mass tort, personal injury, and wrongful death matters, with experience in federal and state courts across the U.S., including Philadelphia County’s Mass Tort Program. He co-hosts the firm’s “Highway to NIL” podcast and serves as an editor for the NIL Revolution blog.

• Education & Credentials

Chris earned his J.D. from Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law in 2016 and his B.A. in Political Science from Union College in 2010. He is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, before the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Pennsylvania and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and is fluent in Spanish.

• Recognition & Leadership

Chris has been active in the American Bar Association’s leadership, serving on its Leadership Academy Task Force (2024–2026), as vice-chair of the Products Liability General Committee (2024–2025), and as a member of the Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Leadership Academy (2023–2024).

• Professional Involvement

Chris is an active member of the American Bar Association, the Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania, and the Philadelphia Bar Association, where he chairs the Large Law Firm Associate Committee. He speaks and writes frequently on NIL, including engagements for myLawCLE, the Federal Bar Association, and the Cardozo Sports Law & Antitrust Law Society. Chris also maintains an active pro bono practice, representing veterans in appeals before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals alongside the National Veterans Legal Services Program and clients involved with the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project.

• Experience

Before joining the firm, Chris clerked for the Hon. Jeffrey L. Schmehl in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (2017–2019) and served as a judicial extern for the Hon. Mark A. Kearney in the same court while in law school. His representative matters include defending a multinational chemical company in Philadelphia County’s Mass Tort Program and a large pharmaceutical company in MDL and individual litigation involving a popular heartburn medication.

Michael S. Lowe | Troutman Pepper Locke LLP

Michael Lowe is a first-chair trial attorney who has tried more than 20 federal jury trials to verdict, bringing nearly 25 years of experience as a former federal prosecutor to his representation of clients in products liability and class action litigation, federal and state government investigations (including SEC, DOJ, and FTC matters), and civil False Claims Act lawsuits. Michael is experienced in the NIL and higher education space: he currently represents an NCAA Division I athletic conference in connection with the settlement of the House antitrust litigation, as well as NIL issues and conference policies and procedures. He has advised NCAA Division I universities on NIL and conducted investigations into potential NIL violations. He frequently appears on the firm’s “Highway to NIL” podcast and serves as an editor for the NIL Revolution blog.

• Education & Credentials

Michael earned his J.D., magna cum laude, from New York University School of Law in 1993, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif, and his B.A. from Wesleyan University in 1990. He is admitted to practice in California, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, and before numerous federal district and appellate courts, including the Third and Ninth Circuits.

• Recognition & Leadership

Michael has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America for White-Collar Criminal Defense (2025–2026). During his prosecutorial career, he received the U.S. Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award (2008), the California Narcotic Officers’ Association Prosecutor of the Year award (2009), and the Anti-Defamation League’s Sherwood Prize for Combating Hate (2010). He authored the chapter on wiretaps for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Federal Narcotics Prosecution Manual.

• Professional Involvement

Michael frequently writes, speaks, and presents on cutting-edge NIL and college sports issues for organizations including myLawCLE, the Federal Bar Association, and LawPracticeCLE, and is regularly quoted on NIL and antitrust developments by outlets such as Bloomberg Law, the Associated Press, and The Hill. He also taught trial advocacy to fellow federal prosecutors.

• Experience

Michael spent 25 years as a federal prosecutor, including more than 13 years in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California—where he was lead prosecutor on the largest gang prosecution in U.S. history—and 12 years in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, ultimately serving as senior investigation counsel in the Economic Crimes Section. In private practice, his notable results include securing summary judgment and dismissal with prejudice in a qui tam PPP-loan False Claims Act case (U.S. ex rel. Miller v. ManPow LLC).

Stephen E. Vanyo | Law Office of Lloyd Z. Remick

Stephen E. Vanyo is a registered Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) Agent for NCAA and high school athletes in several states, and a certified contract advisor and agent with the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA). His practice supports athletes and talent across sports, social media, and entertainment, with work that includes intellectual property protection and registration, IP licensing, and the drafting and negotiation of contracts in music, film, video games, fashion, literature, social media, and sports.

• Education & Credentials

Stephen graduated from Temple University Beasley School of Law in Philadelphia and is licensed to practice in Pennsylvania. Prior to law school, he attended Loyola University Maryland, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and served as Local Music Director for WLOY Loyola Radio.

• Recognition & Leadership

Stephen has been selected to the Super Lawyers “Rising Star” list (2023–2026), an honor reserved for only 2.5% of attorneys following a rigorous peer-reviewed nomination process. He is regularly sought out for media commentary by organizations such as the Philadelphia Inquirer and is a featured speaker at various entertainment industry organizations and events.

• Professional Involvement

Stephen speaks regularly at entertainment and sports industry events and is frequently quoted in the press on issues in his field.

• Experience

Stephen has successfully negotiated NIL, media, and branding agreements across major platforms, including the Hulu docuseries GRAILS, the Amazon Prime docuseries Spy High, and Channel 5 UK’s Back from the Dead: Who Kidnapped Me, as well as the films HeBGB TV and Impurauts. He has also negotiated a digital distribution agreement with a major record company, advised on the acquisition of a UGC game on the Roblox platform, drafted “beat leases,” and secured trademark registration for a rock band’s name.

SESSION 1 – How NIL and the Courts are Transforming the NCAA | 1:00pm – 2:00pm

Examine the $2.5 billion House v. NCAA settlement and its findings on roster limits, athlete employment status, antitrust compliance, and Title IX. Understand enforcement, the college sports commission, and the June 13, 2025 guidance shaping NIL’s future.

BREAK | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

SESSION 2 – Negotiating and Drafting NIL Agreements: Protecting IP, Preserving Value, and Navigating Legal Risk | 2:10pm – 3:10pm

Draft NIL agreements that protect long-term brand and IP value. Identify red-flag clauses, structure enforceable terms, and advise clients on valuation, licensing, and compliance—while spotting the legal pitfalls and risks hidden in third-party deal structures.

BREAK | 3:10pm – 3:20pm

SESSION 3 – Compensating College Athletes: NIL, Revenue Sharing, and the Legal Landscape Ahead | 3:20pm – 3:50pm

Structure athlete revenue-share agreements around employment status, Title IX, tax, and collective bargaining considerations. Assess House’s fallout for schools and conferences, the rise of collectives and marketplaces, and the conflicts attorneys face balancing institutional and athlete interests.

SESSION 4 – Representing the Modern-Day Athlete: NIL’s Impact on the Legal Industry | 3:50pm – 4:20pm

Distinguish real NIL from inflated deals, and apply restrictions governing high school athletes. Master negotiation tactics, fee structures, and Uniform Athlete Agency Act risks, then build smart deals that properly represent today’s NCAA and HS athletes on and off the field.