Another interesting legal case around the transfer portal

Northwestern Sports Football
1

Another case like the one at Washington:

Duke QB Darian Mensah signed a multi-year NIL contract reported worth about $4 million in 2025, but he wants to enter the transfer portal.

Duke is suing to keep him at Duke, so far he’s been allowed to enter the transfer portal but cannot sign with or take classes at another school until Duke’s request for an injunction is resolved.

Is a contract binding or not?

I wonder what the over/under would be on the number of such lawsuits that will be filed in the next few weeks?

2

I thought NIL was all single year contracts. I explained it to a NFL person that it is a bunch of 1 year contracts and everybody is a free agent every year. Something has to change. Football did a better job of avoiding one-and-done like basketball, but now is one-and-done at each school. I read an Alabama article dismissing 5-star freshmen as they just get a chance to get experience and exposure effectively showcasing their talent for others.

3

From the reports it sounds like this was a two-year deal that expired this coming December.

Looks like Duke and the player have reached some kind of settlement and the player is now free to transfer to Miami (which plays Duke in 2026).

I’m wonder if NIL contracts will start having buyout clauses in them like coach contracts do.

Could be an interesting time to be studying contract law.