In an ever-changing landscape, coaches have had to make adjustments while running their respective programs. To Syracuse coach Fran Brown, it’s the only way to get better. In 2021, NIL came to be in college sports, and the transfer portal became an important part of the space shortly thereafter. Now, there’s the revenue-sharing component following […]
In an ever-changing landscape, coaches have had to make adjustments while running their respective programs. To Syracuse coach Fran Brown, it’s the only way to get better.
In 2021, NIL came to be in college sports, and the transfer portal became an important part of the space shortly thereafter. Now, there’s the revenue-sharing component following approval of the House v. NCAA settlement, paving the way for schools to directly share dollars with athletes.
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Through the changes, Brown preached the need to evolve and adjust with the times. If coaches don’t do so, they could wind up behind the times.
“I like it. I like where it’s at,” Brown said on The Rich Eisen Show when asked about the NIL era. “It’s a part of what it is. You know why I like it? Because it makes everyone have to adjust. You’ve got to be able to evolve with the time. Everyone wants it to just be the same and be the same, but everything in our world is changing. Our whole country’s constantly changing daily. So for that to just stay the same when all this stuff is going on on social media, the amount of money that people are making in the world, you’ve just got to be able to evolve. You’ve got to be able to adapt.
“I think that people that adapt and are open to the change and are excited about the change, they’ll keep evolving and becoming better. And the guys that don’t want to do it and think you’re going to stick to it and do it your own way and saying this is how it should be done, that’s just not the era of it anymore.”
Fran Brown: ‘It’s important’ to understand financial literacy
During his time at Syracuse – his first head coaching job – Fran Brown has seen players use their NIL dollars for good. Some help their families while others give back to the community.
But he also knows it’s important to teach them how to set themselves up for the future. That’s why financial literacy is an key component of Brown’s approach at Syracuse. He wants to make sure the players know how to manage their money so they have a plan when they get to the next level.
“For us, we put up at least 40% of our pay, so these guys will still be good when they leave college,” Brown said. “But if they can help out at home or do different things – I’d rather them mess the money up now than mess it up when they get to the league. We’ll have less of those stories of NFL players going broke and things happening because guys are starting to do it a little bit earlier. So now that they may mess it up between 18 and 22 [years old], we don’t have to read about such-and-such who had $65 million, who has nothing now because he was able to go through it as a kid now and teach him the ropes and show them the way.
“And I think it’s up to us as coaches to put down those individualized financial plans for every kid. Make sure you’re involved with it. Show them. These our are kids. They’re my little brothers. I’ve learned about the financial literacy. It’s our job to teach them that. It’s our job to be able to show them that – not just score touchdowns for us. There’s so much that they’re doing to help me and my family … that I’m going to make sure that I give them the game. It’s important they’re understanding that they get the game.”
Category: General Sports
