Coming out of high school Jaden Rashada was one of the top quarterback prospects in the country and during his recruitment some huge NIL numbers were floating around to land him on campus.
He initially committed to Miami after he was promised an NIL deal of $9.5 million. That led to a bidding war where Florida reportedly stepped up to the plate with a promise of $13.85 million.
Rashada de-committed from Miami and pledged to the Gators and Billy Napier, but things went sour and he ended up at Arizona State for a season, and has since transferred to Georgia.
Now that reported NIL deal with Florida is the basis of a lawsuit that was filed yesterday, where Rashada is suing Gators head coach Billy Napier and a prominent booster as well as others, alleging that they defrauded him out of millions of dollars by not following through on their word, according to a report this morning by ESPN.
The report shares that Napier promised Rashada's father a $1 million partial payment upon the signing of his National Letter of Intent. That money was never received.
In fact, the only money that Rashada says he ever got from Florida was a $150k wire so that Rashada could pay back a Miami booster to avoid litigation stemming from the $9.5 million the 'Canes had offered.
Rashada's attorney Rustin Hardin calls what transpired a con job.
"It's a classic con game on a 19-year-old," Hardin told ESPN.
"We've taken away our commitment in writing to you, but, trust us, not only is the check in the mail, but you can be comfortable you're going to get X. ... And it never happened. ... And he leaves not for the money, but because he can no longer trust them."
Rashada becomes the first college athlete to sue his coach or boosters over a NIL dispute.
The case has been filed in US District Court in the Northern District of Florida, and will surely be a landmark case on the NIL front as the landscape around Name, Image and Likeness continues to evolve.
Over the last year or so there has been a lot of chatter among coaches that what players were being offered has not been delivered, or has not been completely truthful once they get to campus. This lawsuit may be the first, but it likely won't be the last one of its kind if what is being promised to land commitments isn't being followed through on.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for all the latest.