Odell Beckham Handout Brings New Kind of College Pay Drama

(Bloomberg) -- After years of grappling with whether big-money college athletes should be compensated, one school has been confronted with the issue in a high-profile way.

The NFL’s Odell Beckham Jr., a former star wideout at Louisiana State University, handed out wads of cash to the team’s players after they won college football’s national championship on Monday. That sent LSU officials scrambling -- first to find out if the money was real and then to figure out how to handle the situation.

The handout, which occurred on the field after the game, wasn’t Beckham’s only alleged misdeed on Monday. Video was posted of him slapping the behind of a male security guard, and now the New Orleans police department has issued a warrant for his arrest, according to ESPN.

As for the money that athletes may have received, the school says it’s working with the National Collegiate Athletic Association and LSU’s conference, the SEC, to “rectify the situation.” It added that Beckham’s handouts may have put some of its athletes in a “compromising position.”

The school originally thought the cash was fake, but said new information led them to believe it was real. Star quarterback Joe Burrow confirmed as much this week, saying on a national podcast that it was actual money.

NCAA bylaws say players cannot accept cash from alumni. A spokesman for the governing body referred all questions to the school.

It’s unclear how many of the athletes who received cash intend to return to school, or how many -- like Burrow -- are out of eligibility or plan to go pro. The motivation behind Beckham’s gifts is also unclear, beyond his excitement over the victory. The incident with the security guard occurred as the celebrations continued in the locker room.

That said, cash handouts have always been an open secret in top-tier college sports, with boosters, alumni and sometimes even school officials allegedly facilitating payments to star athletes and their families. While the concept of the “bag man” has existed in college sports for years, it rarely happens as openly as it did in New Orleans on Monday night.

Many argue that the underground economy exists because NCAA athletes aren’t compensated for their athletic work beyond scholarships. That, however, appears to be changing.

A few high-profile antitrust lawsuits have forced the NCAA to loosen its rule on what colleges can provide to athletes. Public support also appears to have swung in favor of more concessions, and states across the country are passing or considering laws that would require schools to let athletes market themselves. There also are federal investigations into college sports, and pressure from federal lawmakers to reform.

Which means the conversation around Beckham’s cash and the punishment -- if there is any -- will happen within the wider conversation of the NCAA’s bylaws.

LSU head coach Ed Orgeron, meanwhile, had his own payday after the win. He got an extra $500,000 for the clinching the companionship, per the bonus provision in his contract.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eben Novy-Williams in New York at enovywilliam@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, Kevin Miller

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