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Max Olson, ESPN writer
After leading his team to a 3-0 start to the season, UNLV starting quarterback Matthew Sluka announced late Tuesday night that he had stopped playing for the Rebels because promises made about his NIL compensation were not kept.
Sluka, a transfer from Holy Cross, plans to sit out the rest of the season as a redshirt and re-enter the transfer portal in December. His sudden decision raises questions about the nature of his financial agreement with UNLV, how the deal fell apart and who ultimately bears responsibility for an undefeated team losing its top quarterback.
Here’s what you need to know as this story continues to develop:
Who is Matthew Sluka?
Sluka joined UNLV this summer after a successful FCS career at Holy Cross. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound senior was a three-year starter and two-time finalist for the Walter Payton Award, which recognizes the FCS’s top offensive player. Sluka earned Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2023 after producing 1,728 passing yards and 1,247 rushing yards with 29 total touchdowns.
After the season, Holy Cross coach Bob Chesney and his staff left to take over at James Madison, and Sluka opted to test his options in the transfer portal. UNLV recruited him after losing starting quarterback Jayden Maiava, the Mountain West’s top freshman, to USC.
After three games, Sluka led all Mountain West quarterbacks in rushing yards per game and had 253 total rushing yards. He threw for 318 yards with seven total touchdowns and one turnover while leading a Rebels offense that ranks fifth in the FBS in rushing yards.
How is UNLV doing this season?
After an impressive 9-5 debut season, coach Barry Odom put the Rebels in contention for a spot in the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff. UNLV started the season 3-0 with upset road wins over Big 12 programs Houston and Kansas. Sluka powered the team to a win over the Jayhawks on September 13 with a team-high 124 rushing yards on 19 carries plus 86 passing yards and a touchdown.
The Rebels climbed to No. 23 in the coaches’ poll this week after their bye week. UNLV and Boise State have emerged as popular choices to earn a spot in the inaugural expanded playoffs. If the Rebels win the Mountain West, they’ll have a strong shot at that spot.
What we know about Sluka’s departure
Sluka’s NIL representative, Marcus Cromartie of Equity Sports, told ESPN that Sluka left the program after being verbally promised a minimum of $100,000 by a UNLV coach and receiving only $3,000.
His father, Bob Sluka, told ESPN that they had a verbal agreement with UNLV offensive coordinator Brennan Marion for what they thought was a “reasonable and fair number,” even if it was far less than what Power 4 programs were offering, but payments were repeatedly delayed and no effort was made to formalize a contract with their collective for that amount.
After UNLV’s win over Kansas, Bob Sluka said Odom and Cromartie spoke on Sept. 19 and the head coach refused to honor the deal, instead offering $3,000 for moving expenses and saying the offer was invalid because it didn’t come from him. Sluka’s camp maintains they never asked Odom for more money, only what they were promised in advance. Marion declined to comment to ESPN.
Rob Sine of Blueprint Sports, the company that manages the UNLV collective, confirmed to ESPN that Sluka did not have a written agreement with the collective and said the collective was not aware of any promise to pay Sluka $100,000. Sine also confirmed that Sluka received a $3,000 payment.
How can Sluka leave during the season?
College football players can’t enter the transfer portal right now, but they can leave a program at any time. The NCAA transfer portal window doesn’t open until Dec. 9, the Monday after the conference championship games. Sluka won’t be able to enter the portal until then and won’t be able to join another team to continue playing in 2024.
Sluka’s decision is not uncommon in the world of transfer recruiting. Every year, many players decide to transfer due to disagreements over NIL value and payouts, and there have been several instances of players returning to the transfer portal this spring seeking more money from another school.
Beyond financial concerns, his motivation for leaving now is to take advantage of the four-game redshirt rule and play an additional college season in 2025.
What is the red shirt rule?
College football players can earn an extra season of eligibility if they play four or fewer games in a year and take a redshirt season. The rule was implemented in 2018 and is traditionally intended for young players who play limited snaps as backups. The NCAA is currently considering expanding that four-game maximum to exempt conference title games, bowl games and the College Football Playoff. Sluka played four seasons at Holy Cross and did not use a redshirt year. Since he began his career in 2020 during COVID-19, he could take advantage of an extra season of eligibility in 2024. By redshirting, he would be eligible to play in 2025.
Are NIL disputes like this common?
Issues like this happen all the time, but are rarely made public. Quarterback Jaden Rashada suing Florida coach Billy Napier and others over a failed $13.85 million contract is by far the most prominent example of a player trying to hold a school accountable for broken promises, but these issues come up frequently in a market where NIL opportunities can often be overblown during the recruiting process.
The agreements players enter into with school NIL collectives are not binding employment contracts. It is common for players and their families or representatives to ask a collective for more money than originally agreed to, especially if they receive better offers from other programs. But it is equally common for players to make less money than they expected or were promised, verbally or in writing.
“We’re a hard-working family,” Bob Sluka told ESPN. “To be able to have an athlete like Matt, we don’t even really care about the money. But there’s a principle to it. He’s not the first athlete that this has happened to. We’ve heard from millions of kids that they’re not getting their money. So maybe Matt needs to be the standard-bearer, but we don’t want him to be. But we’re not going to have Barry Odom stand up and say, ‘Fuck, I’m not paying you, get your ass on the field.’”
What is being said about the state and future of the NIL?
Sluka’s departure from UNLV highlights a troubling issue for all parties at a time when the rules regarding player compensation are about to change dramatically.
If the House-NCAA antitrust settlement is approved, it would usher in a new era of revenue sharing in college sports starting in 2025-26. Schools will be able to pay their athletes directly through NIL agreements up to a limit expected to be between $20 million and $23 million per school next year, with annual increases.
That deal is currently on hold after Judge Claudia Wilken refused to grant preliminary approval on September 5 and ordered lawyers to “go back to the drawing board” regarding restrictions on third-party NIL payments from collecting societies.
In the process of modernizing college sports, the NCAA has long resisted adopting a model that considers its athletes employees of their school and has spent years lobbying Congress for help from the federal legislature to prevent athletes from being considered employees.
What’s next for UNLV?
The Rebels will move forward with seniors Hajj-Malik Williams and Cameron Friel as their top options at quarterback as they enter Mountain West Conference play Saturday against Fresno State.
Williams, an FCS transfer from Campbell, appeared in two games this season and rushed for 88 yards on 10 carries in UNLV’s 72-14 upset win over Utah Tech. He became Campbell’s all-time leading passer with 8,236 yards and 58 touchdowns in his five seasons with the program. Friel earned 10 starts for the Rebels over the past two seasons.
Adam Rittenberg contributed to this report.
