In recent news, the Florida High School Athletics Association voted to approve athletes to profit from NIL, becoming the 36th state to do so.

For those not familiar with what I am talking about, essentially, high school athletes will now be able to make money on their names and likeness. It was not until the last decade that college athletes were able to profit off themselves, and high school have jumped on board even more recently.

Although I am totally for college athletes being able to make these profits, I am perplexed by the wide support that high school athletics associations are receiving in this conversation.

The difference is that college athletes are adults and high schoolers are kids. Sure, many seniors in high school are 18 years old, but making it age-dependent would be messy. Plain and simple, if you are a high school athlete, you should not be able to make money on yourself.

The reason I disagree with the transaction has more to do with the parents rather than the athletes.

Time and time again, we hear stories of overzealous parents that try to make money off the talents of their children. The majority of parents support their kids for the right reasons, but when it reaches this level, the water becomes murky.

Money affects everyone and everything. Although it can bring out the best in people, it can also bring out the worst. Having a teenage kid make money, potentially a lot of money, and have parents run the show just seems like a conflict waiting to happen. Whether it is parents collecting the money for themselves or manipulating their kids into focusing more on the dollars rather than the performance on the field. At the high school level, it is about having fun and preparing for college if the athlete intends on going to the next level.

When it comes to college students, these kids are at least 18 years of age. They are adults. Sure, college students are kids, but there is a clear and obvious maturation gap between a 14 year old and a 22 year old. Parents are usually pretty involved through college, but they are no longer holding their kids hands’ and calling the shots.

Think about child actors and musicians, for example. It is extraordinary the rate in which you see fractured relationships in families of child stars. More often than not, it comes down to money, and these issues are typically ugly. Parents see the green, realize they have the power to profit, then lose sight of the fact that their children are young, developing human beings. Not show ponies or fully functional adults that can process the big picture.

Beyond the conversation regarding parents, there is just the fundamental concept of kids focusing on the right things when in high school. Kids at that level should not be concerned about selling themselves as a brand. They should be concerned about their classroom performance and proving to prospective college programs that they will be dedicated in the classroom and to the team. If I was a college recruiter, I would actually be inclined to rescind my interest if I got the sense that a high schooler already felt that he or she was a businessperson rather than a student-athlete.

That is a huge issue in professional athletes these days. The days of Tom Brady and Michael Jordan are over. Young professionals are much less concerned about winning and competition. So much of their focus is on their marketability.

Pro sports are a business and these careers are short. I am all for athletes making theirs while they can. It is just disheartening that we no longer celebrate winners the way we used to. We now celebrate personalities and characters.

Back to the NIL situation, though.

One detail in Florida that has been used in most of the other 36 states, is that when the athletes are making deals, they are not allowed to associate themselves with their schools or the athletic association.

Clearly, the league and the schools in the state are weary of it all and are trying to distance themselves from the whole gig. Well, the easy solution would be to shoot down the proposal and continue business as usual.

Keep money out of high school sports, plain and simple. I’m not even totally convinced that college athletes should be allowed this, but I can at least see the arguments for.

But high schoolers? No, keep it about the classroom and field.