Greg McElroy Responds To The Criticism Directed At Brian Kelly

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“As it relates to the paying players conversation, which is where I think a lot of the negativity around Brian Kelly this offseason has surrounded him? I listened to his comments and I don’t get the sense that he is not supportive of NIL. I see the headlines, I see the stories, I see what people are saying – ‘Oh, he’s going to get sued’, ‘Oh, he’s going to do this’, ‘LSU is not in NIL’. Yeah, they are,” McElroy said. “There are plenty of guys at LSU under Brian Kelly’s leadership that have done really well when it comes to NIL. What he said is he’s not going to be in the business of buying players. I think what that means, the way I interpret it is he is not going to be real excited about bringing in a player that’s number one priority is maximizing his NIL value.”

“NIL will be there for you. If you choose LSU, you will have access to NIL opportunities. But that can’t be the sole reason why you’re choosing to go to LSU over the other places that you’re considering,” McElroy said. “People might see it differently. I respectfully disagree. I know LSU has long been a player in the NIL world since it got thrust into the spotlight a few years back. They’re going to continue to be a player in the NIL world. But Brian Kelly wants to prioritize the players that want to win, that want to do things a certain way, that want to buy into the culture that he’s creating there in Baton Rouge more so than the guys that are looking for the top possible dollars available in NIL via the portal or via recruiting.”

“Brian Kelly is perfectly within his right to say what he said,” said McElroy. “I didn’t view it as a negative. I viewed it more as, ‘Hey, yes, we want you to get as much money as you can. But, if that’s your sole reason for choosing us, then this might not be the place for you.'”

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