If OU & OSU want to compete for the best talent in the SEC and the Big 12, all you football fans should start lobbying for Oklahoma to become a No-Income tax state! Do you think I’m kidding?
Legendary New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick recently explained that the higher taxes in Massachusetts made it harder to sign NFL free-agent football players. It’s “just another thing you have to contend with up there,” Belichick said on The Pat McAfee Show. “It’s not like Tennessee or Florida or Nevada or some of these teams that have no state income tax. You get hit pretty hard on that with the [player’s] agents.”
Now that all these big-time college recruits have agents for Name, Image & Likeness (NIL) money, pressure against the income tax is coming. Just like more workers and Americans are moving to those no-income tax states, the best players will start gravitating toward teams in more financially-free states so they can keep more of their NIL money.
The 2024 FBS top college recruiting rankings reveal that six of the top 20 schools are from no-income tax states – the Universities of Miami, Texas, Tennessee, Florida, Florida State, and Texas A&M. We predict that number will grow as agents become more focused on how these millionaire college players can retain more of their earnings.
Recent legal rulings and new precedents have also led to college athletes being classified as employees of their respective colleges. Once they see the income tax deductions on their paystubs, they will quickly become more aware of the actual dollar amount being withheld. When the athletes compare this to their friends at other schools in states with no income tax, the proverbial cat will be out of the bag – they’ll know that they could save money playing for a school in a no-income-tax state.
Does that sound too far-fetched for you? Well, just think about how much massive change has come to college sports in the last few years. More change is ahead, and money dominates the reasons for it all.
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