Indiana football player offered $1.5 million to transfer elsewhere, Curt Cignetti says
Cignetti told reporters at Big Ten media days that an unnamed Hoosiers player received a $1.5 million offer to transfer during the spring portal window in a blatant example of tampering. The offer came at a time when teams across the country were rushing to sign players to front-loaded deals that avoided having to go through the clearinghouse.
"We're all hoping once we sign these contracts they can hold water," Cignetti said. "There's a difference between an inadvertent phone call and calling him during the spring and offering him $800,000 or $1.5 million, which I had happen this spring."
Indiana's athletic department began directly paying student-athletes on July 1 as part of the House vs. NCAA settlement. The Hoosiers are fully funding the $20.5 million they are allowed to share with athletes as outlined in the court settlement, with the football program accounting for 70-75% of that amount.
Cignetti described revenue-sharing as a potential "equalizer" with the College Sports Commission (CSC), the entity created to police the NIL space, helping to create a more level playing field. It's part of the reason why Cignetti didn't reveal the name of the school that tampered with his player.
"You can go down that road, but right now I've been totally lead to believe there's a new sheriff in town post July 1 and I got to trust the people I believe in," Cignetti said.
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