For a long time, there has been massive criticism about the NCAA's "amatuer" model which basically meant that college athletes were not allowed to receive any compensation from schools and outside interests. In an earlier time, this exchange of a college education for representing the school in competitions made sense. And for many sports that don't generate significant amounts of revenue, it remains a fair trade.

However, now that many collegiate sports such as basketball and football have become multibillion dollar industries, it no longer made sense especially as the school, administrators, and coaches were cashing in. Many athletes were not completing school or weren't able to give it their full attention given the demands of playing a sport on the national stage. Another new development was the advent of social media with many athletes developing followings in the millions. It also led to the booster culture as athletes were taking money under the table from wealthy supporters of the school.

Not letting college athletes make money from their image and likeness became a rare area of bipartisan agreement. The matter reached a boiling point with ex athletes filing a lawsuit against the NCAA for video games and asking to receive a share of the profits. The case eventually reached the Supreme Court where in a 9-0 ruling the Court said that the NCAA rule violated antitrust law.

The justices were pretty dismissive of the NCAA's logic and argument in looking to preserve the system. Justice Kavanaugh remarked: "Nowhere else in America can businesses get away with agreeing not to pay their workers a fair market rate on the theory that their product is defined by not paying their workers a fair market rate. ... The NCAA is not above the law."

In a matter of days, state legislatures and the NCAA made it legal for athletes to get sponsorship deals. And even quicker, many athletes were quick to cash in and are raking in seven-figures. It's natural that the most famous athletes at the highest-profile schools are making significant sums but more encouraging is that athletes at smaller schools are also making deals for three and four figures. Some of the examples of deals that have been signed including autograph signings, sponsored social media posts, and appearing in commercials.