Wild Wild Midwest: NIL and the Future of High School Sports in Ohio

Photo via OHSAA Instagram

Michael Oliss | News Editor

Ohio has become the 45th state to allow high school athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL) after a fast-tracked emergency referendum of principals statewide. The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) announced Nov. 24 that the measure passed with an unprecedented number of abstentions. The bylaw includes strict limitations and is already facing looming political and legal challenges.

The vote was held Nov. 17–21 through OHSAA’s online portal, myOHSAA, with each member school’s principal casting one vote. Of the organization’s 818 schools, 447 voted in favor, 121 opposed, and 247 abstained. The abstentions account for roughly 30% of eligible votes — a figure OHSAA officials acknowledged is unusually high for any statewide referendum.

The bylaw goes into effect immediately due to an ongoing lawsuit that prompted the emergency vote.

Jasmine Brown, the mother of Wayne High School junior wide receiver Jamier Brown, filed suit in Franklin County Common Pleas Court on Oct. 15. The complaint argued that OHSAA’s ban was unconstitutional and had already cost her son — who is committed to play for Ohio State — more than $100,000 in potential NIL earnings. On Oct. 20, Judge Jaiza Page issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing the association from enforcing the ban while the case proceeds. Within hours, high school athletes across the state could legally sign endorsement deals for the first time.

Due to the lawsuit, OHSAA moved the NIL referendum up from its original target of May 2026 to November 2025, meaning Ohio’s new policy became active in the middle of high school football season, unlike many states that phased NIL in gradually over multiple years.

Ohio’s NIL framework includes stricter limits than many other states. The emergency bylaw adopted Nov. 24 prevents student-athletes from using school marks or branding in promotions; bars compensation based on specific athletic performance or achievement; prohibits involvement of school affiliated agents or booster-type collectives; bans deals involving alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, gambling, firearms, and sexually explicit content; and requires all NIL contracts to be reported to the OHSAA within 14 days.

The rule barring NIL engagement during official team activities distinguishes Ohio from the other 44 states that allow high school athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness. Athletes cannot promote, display, or pursue NIL deals during practices, meetings, games, tournaments, travel, or other team events. This separation between player and team is unique to Ohio.

A student hypothetically sponsored by Gatorade could not drink or display the beverage during practices, games, or other team events. A student hypothetically sponsored by Nike could run afoul of the rule just by wearing Nike shoes at practice.

This level of restriction will almost certainly affect marketability. A recent study from Penn State found that the average NIL earnings available at a school are a significant predictor of where recruits choose to attend, rivaling the influence of win-loss records. Ohio’s strict limits on school imagery and game-day visibility could reduce deal values, especially in football, where most NIL dollars typically flow.

While these economic consequences are only beginning to take shape, the political response arrived immediately.

Within a day of OHSAA’s announcement, State Rep. Adam Bird (R–New Richmond) said he plans to introduce legislation next year to ban high school NIL entirely. “Earning money is not what Ohio high school sports is about,” Bird said in a statement to reporters, suggesting athletes interested in commercial earnings should seek them “somewhere else.” The legislature returns in early 2026. Bird has indicated a bill could pass by late June, taking effect 90 days later and potentially reversing NIL access by the beginning of the next school year.

At the same time, the underlying lawsuit remains active. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for Dec. 15 in Franklin County. A ruling could alter parts of the new policy, invalidate referendum procedures, or require another emergency vote.

Ohio’s tradition of elite high school athletes underscores the stakes of the new NIL era. Athletes such as Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson at Glenville, LeBron James at St. Vincent–St. Mary, and Jesse Owens at East Technical would have attracted lucrative endorsements had such opportunities existed in the past. Owens, in particular, as a Black teenager in the 1930s, could have shaped culture and positioned himself nationally through NIL earnings.

Roughly 30 percent of schools declined to vote on the referendum, though no definitive explanation exists. OHSAA Director of Media Relations Tim Stried says the association does not release how member schools voted or if they abstained. Flyer News reached out to more than a dozen Dayton-area high schools regarding their votes. Only one, Wayne High School, responded, declining to comment.

Ohio’s NIL era has begun abruptly and under tight restrictions, but high school athletes can now sign endorsement deals for the first time. How long that remains true depends on the courts, the Statehouse, and how 818 high schools in Ohio adapt to the change.