The following could be titled the Teague Egan (student-agent) provision:

I see absolutely nothing wrong with the policy itself, and I would assume that we will see many more universities follow Southern California’s role in developing literature that puts athletes and agents at notice regarding disciplinary action as a result of violations of university policy.

University of Southern California Sends Athletes And Agents Memo To Students And Faculty from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Drew Rosenhaus

Casey decided to forgo his senior season at USC when he originally signed with Impact Sports, which is based in Boca Raton, Florida.  His new NFLPA Certified Contract Advisor, Drew Rosenhaus, is located only a little over 50 miles south.

As far as we know, Allen Bradford, who is also a former USC Trojan, is still with Impact Sports and continues to train at the same Athletes Performance Los Angeles facility as Jurrell Casey.

On To The Next One: Jurrell Casey from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

• Jimmy Sexton – Co-Founder, SportsTrust Advisors
• Tom Condon – Football Agent, CAA
• Rick Smith – Agent, Priority Sports
• Mark Levin – Director of Salary Cap and Agent Administration, NFLPA
• Ray Anderson – VP of Football Operations, NFL
• Julie Roe Lach – VP Enforcement, NCAA
• Rachel Newman Baker – Director of Agent, Gambling and Amateurism Activities, NCAA
• Stacey Osburn – Associate Director of Public and Media Relations, NCAA
• Mike Slive – SEC Commisioner
• Larry Scott – Pac-10 Conference Commissioner
• Multiple Pac-10 Athletic Directors
• Pat Haden – Athletic Director, USC
• Dave Roberts – VP Athletic Compliance, USC

I believe the most forward thinking idea proposed by Haden at the Summit was to hire a recent graduate “to act as an ombudsman who can be a counselor and be viewed as independent.”  If Haden and other Athletic Directors want this particular plan to be effective, they will have to choose someone for each campus who is close enough with the players to gain access when appropriate, but cannot be afraid to report violations.  Furthermore, I think the last thing this person would provide is newfound trust between student-athletes and school administrators.  How can a department claim that someone it employs is also independent?  Instead, the new ombudsman may further the divide and cause student-athletes to become more wary of administrators’ motives.  However, I agree that something must be done to curb violations, and this particular idea may be a good starting point.  Haden also talked a bit about using “extenders.”

Dave Roberts also talked about the use of “extenders” to help educate players.  And he recognizes that the education needs to occur at a very early stage.

Talk is great.  Actions are better.

University of Southern California’s Agent Summit from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Now that this all happened, I have to watch myself and stay within the rules even tighter, but I am not going to sit back.

While I have not heard much at all from or about Egan since his NFLPA certification was revoked, his company, 1st Round Entertainment, made a few stories at the end of last week for allegedly being associated with a Las Vegas party being thrown by former USC DE Everson Griffen.  Was this an attempt for 1st Round to be proactive and not “sit back?”  Administrators at the University of Southern California told their football team that they were not permitted to attend the party.  Specifically, USC Athletic Director Pat Haden and VP for Athletic Compliance David Roberts,wrote the following in an email to the team:

“Because of the NCAA rules concerning gambling, impermissible extra benefits and the conduct of agents, we believe that there is a significant chance that the eligibility of any student-athlete who participates in such a trip would be jeopardized.  Therefore, you are not permitted to partake or participate in the Super Bowl Weekend trip that has been arranged and promoted by Mr. Griffen or Mr. Campbell under any circumstances.”

Mr. Campbell is Jordan Campbell, a former LB at USC.  Campbell and Egan were pledge brothers at the Phi Psi Fraternity, and Campbell currently holds some sort of role at 1st Round Entertainment.  However, Egan and Griffen have claimed that 1st Round had absolutely no association with the proposed Super Bowl party.

Griffen ended up cancelling the Super Bowl party and apparently blamed the NFL for putting an end to the extravaganza.  It’s probably a good idea that Griffen stay away from the nightlife scene for a bit anyway, after getting arrested twice in the span of one week (for public intoxication and battery).

But what about Egan and 1st Round getting their name in the Sports section again?  Will we see those names anytime again soon, and for what reason?

Southern California Gets A Scare When 1st Round Pops Up Again from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Wichard was suspended for having impermissible communication with UNC’s Marvin Austin prior to Austin being eligible for the NFL Draft.  Wichard waived his right to appeal the suspension.  Egan’s certification was revoked for “violating numerous provisions of the NFLPA’s Agent Regulations when he provided an improper benefit under NCAA rules by giving University of Southern California player Dillon Baxter a ride in his company’s golf cart, resulting in Baxter being suspended for USC’s game against Oregon State in November…He also is alleged to have placed misleading information on his agency’s website about his relationship with a Southern California attorney.”

Many NFLPA certified Contract Advisors had called for the revocation of Teague Egan’s certification since his name started popping up in connection with football players at the University of Southern California.  People were upset that the NFLPA granted certification to someone who had not only lacked a post-graduate degree, but had not yet even finished his undergraduate education.  Egan, who calls himself a student-agent, was the focus of an interview on Sports Agent Blog.  Egan wrapped up my interview with the following line, “It’s not the grades you make, it’s the hands you shake.”  Since publishing the interview, most people have been talking about this embarrassing Campus Cribs video featuring Egan.

Whereas Egan has never signed his name on a Uniform Player’s Contract, Gary Wichard runs a successful football company named Pro Tect Management.  The company has been around for 30 years and represents Jason Taylor, Dwight Freeney, Terrell Suggs, Keith Bulluck, Antonio Cromartie, Elvis Dumervil, Darren Sproles, Arrelious Benn, Jimmy Clausen, Everson Griffen, Taylor Mays, C.J. Spiller…the list goes on.

After the media reported on Wichard’s close ties with former UNC associate head coach John Blake, and Marvin Austin, the defensive tackle that Blake used to coach, was subpoenaed by investigators from the office of North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, Wichard’s phone was ringing with people asking questions about his recruiting of UNC athletes.

On July 17, 2010, Wichard said the following to the News and Observer,

“I’ve never talked to him [Marvin Austin] about representing him. I’ve never gone down there, and I never will.”

Yet, Wichard has no intention to appeal the nine month suspension for impermissible communication.  I guess the fact that there is proof that Austin has stayed at a hotel in California under his own name along with Wichard’s company name, Pro Tect Management, does not help his cause.

While no one other than Egan and his immediate family is complaining about the revocation of his certification, there are quite a few agents who are very displeased with the NFLPA’s action taken against Wichard.  They think it was way too light; a slap on the wrist.  I, for one, am not surprised at all with the NFLPA’s disciplinary action.

As I wrote on October 4, 2010, I am more interested in the State of North Carolina’s reaction than the NFLPA’s response.  The NFLPA’s suspension does not really do anything other than give rival agents ammo against Wichard when recruiting potential new clients.  Wichard will continue to earn money on clients represented by Pro Tect, and will likely continue to be involved in his client’s lives.  His name will not appear on any new Uniform Player’s Contracts, but Pro Tect has another employee by the name of Jason Chinn, who will probably take over representation duties for all Pro Tect clients.  You know that C.J. Spiller is not going anywhere.  High profile agent David Dunn of Athletes First received an 18 month suspension from the NFLPA in the past.  A few years later, he just happens to run one of the most powerful football agencies in the country.

Word on the street is that North Carolina’s Secretary of State, Elaine Marshall, has been “missing in action” as of late.  She was not very involved with the NFLPA as it decided the proper discipline of Wichard.  Is she busy conducting her own investigation, or is it case closed on Wichard?

Gary Wichard Suspended; Teague Egan’s Certification Revoked; What Now? from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to speak at length with Teague Michael Egan, who was rather receptive to speaking to me on the record.  After letting the media talk for the past week or so, Egan was ready to tell his story.  Egan was home for the Thanksgiving holiday, and was not taking a break from trying to build his company, 1st Round.  In fact, he was headed to Pine Crest High School, one of the two high schools in South Florida that he attended prior to enrolling at USC.  Pine Crest has an exceptionally talented basketball program; University of Kentucky freshman Brandon Knight is a graduate of Pine Crest.  Later that day, Egan planned on visiting St. Thomas Aquinas, the second South Florida high school he attended.  He was on the school’s golf and track team; St. Thomas is known nationwide as having one of, if not the, toughest football programs.

Egan was born on July 6, 1988, making him 22-years-young at the date of this article being published.  I believe that Egan felt comfortable speaking with me, as I had also started my own sports agency at the age of 22, as an undergraduate at the University of Florida.  The following contains the parts of our discussion that have not yet been mentioned.

Darren Heitner: Why did you transfer from Pine Crest to St. Thomas Aquinas in high school?

Teague Egan: I transfered from Pine Crest to St. Thomas Aquinas in my Junior Year.  My brother [Riley Egan] wanted to transfer because St. Thomas had a much better track team, which ended up winning the state championship after the transfer.  I was and still am very close with my brother, and I wanted to go where he went.  My brother runs the Pictures Division of 1st Round.

Heitner: What gave you the idea to start 1st Round?

Egan: I was in between businesses.  I had started a couple businesses in high school and college.  These were big business ideas.  I felt like like I was over my head, though.  I had just pledged a fraternity called Phi Psi.  Sterling Brewster was in my pledge class; he became a partner in 1st Round.  A couple of football players also pledged the same fraternity.  Daniel Harper, Everson Griffen (drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the 4th round, but Egan referenced him as a projected 1st round pick), Spencer Spiegel, and Jordan Campbell all pledged with me.  I became great friends with Everson, Daniel, and Jordan.

In the Spring of Sophomore year, I went to Jordan and said that should start a business.  I came up with the name “1st Round” because a lot of my boys were going to be drafted in the 1st Round, and I thought it was cool.  I grew up with signed helmets, footballs, and jerseys all over my room.  I played 5 sports in high school.  I had season tickets to the Heat and Dolphins.  I loved sports.

I started throwing parties with Jordan.  We went head-to-head with 28th Street Entertainment (Egan stated that this was USC’s top nightlife promotion group).  We threw an entire party for free, but negotiated a huge percentage of the bar.  We provided free transportation to club, free admission, and blew 28th Street out of the water.  The party was packed with hundreds of kids from USC, UCLA, and LMU.  We lost money on the party, but 1st Round Entertainment was officially established.  I was busy throwing parties, having great times with friends, and had an “in” with all the cutest girls.  All of Jordan’s friends on the USC football team started coming to my parties as well.

That summer, I was up on Nantucket Island on the beach hanging out on the 4th of July.  One of the guys I brought out to the beach was the best freestyle rapper I knew.  It suddenly hit me that that I wanted to start a record label.  At the time, I was questioning the success of 1st Round Entertainment, because I was throwing fun parties, but losing money.  But I  had a good name.  I started the record label and signed Sam Adams (the freestyler who accompanied him to the beach).

I first named my record label “Lazy Boy Records.”  I decided to change it, though, and make all of my companies reflect the 1st Round Brand.  I made the decision to do so after reading a book about branding that was written by Richard Branson.  I liked the whole “Virgin” idea and keeping everything under the same brand.  In the near future, I will be doing a management deal with Lady Gaga’s management, for Sam Adams.

Anyway, when Jordan transferred to Louisville, we started the sports agency.  The division is far bigger than negotiating 3% for the athletes we represent.  We want the sports division to be the next Nike.  We don’t want to just deal with contract negotiation.  Instead, we want to manufacture merchandise and apparel.  I structured 1st Round after Nike.  Nike has the swoosh, 1st Round has the wings; easily identifiable.  The slogan is also based after Nike.  Theirs – “Just Do It” vs. ours – “Go Higher” – everyone can identify and relate to it.

Heitner: But it does seem like you also want to represent athletes, no?

Egan: I officially became certified by the NFLPA on October 1, 2010.  My Nike goal is down the road.  I want 1st Round to be a “full service sports franchise.”  The word “agent” has such a negative connotation.  We will provide anything the athlete can want.  I want to do a lot of athlete branding.

Heitner: What is the make-up of your company?

Egan: I structured my company with 6 different divisions.  Each division has a different President.  I also incorporated the “crossover effect,” where each division can help out the others.   Sports, records, pictures, entertainment (parties, but I eventually plan to own restaurants, clubs, entertainment venues), capital, and philanthropic.

Heitner: Tell me a little more about your capital division.

Egan: This division began based on my and my dad’s background.  I have has several investments in many fields, stocks and bonds (he says that Apple is his biggest holding), money in BlackRock, global allocation funds.  The main area that I am looking at is venture capital and investments into small, upcoming businesses that have huge potential for growth.

Heitner: What are your thoughts on what has been written about you thus far?

Egan: What I have done is almost revolutionary. I have gone into unchartered waters. I am one of, if not the youngest certified agent, and I am an undergraduate student at a university.  Everything that has happened is absolutely ridiculous.  It is such a unique situation.  The rules are in place to prevent people like Cam Newton from getting $180,000 or Reggie Bush from having houses bought for his parents, not to prevent students from getting rides in golf carts from other students.  They try to stress “student” coming before “athlete” in almost everything.  If you want to claim that, then I am a “student” first and then an “agent”.  Call me a “student-agent.”

Heitner: People are calling out the NFLPA for granting you certification while you are a still a student.  What do you have to say about that?

Egan: Athletes should be able to have whoever they want represent them, as long as the person has experience and capability to represent properly. The fact that I am a student should not prevent me from representing an athlete. If a student has sufficient negotiating experience that meets the qualifications the NFLPA deems acceptable, there is no reason he should be denied.  I am a born negotiator.  I have a lot of negotiating experience.

Heitner: What about the criticism regarding Jordan Campbell, a current student-athlete, being a part of your organization?

Egan: Jordan never actually signed the LLC documents.  I believed that it was a bad idea and a potential conflict.  I am going to wait until after his eligibility to make him an official partner.

Heitner: What is your plan for 1st Round Sports in the immediate future? Are you going to wait until the criticism subsides before you go out and recruit players?

Egan: Now that this all happened, I have to watch myself and stay within the rules even tighter, but I am not going to sit back.  The #1 thing was to make sure that my friends did not get hurt.  Now that they are back and reinstated, I feel free to talk with the media.  I will be putting the golf cart up on Ebay and will have some of the proceeds go back to USC Football.  I am looking at baseball and basketball on top of football, and already represent an MMA fighter (Ryan McMahon) and have connections to the UFC.

Heitner: What about the threat of getting in trouble for rules violations?

Egan: Rides to clubs, free entry to clubs, and golf rides around campus were given to everybody.  There was no special treatment being given to athletes.

Heitner: What kind of advice would you like to give people who dream of becoming sports agents?

Egan: It’s all about relationships.  How is anyone supposed to be a sports agent if he is not friends with the athletes and is some random 30 or 40 year old guy?  It is all about trust.  I have amazing relationships with the guys.  They know and trust me.  It’s not the grades you make, it’s the hands you shake.

Interview With The Agent: Teague Egan from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

The golf cart displayed a 1st Round Enterprises logo.  A USC student named Teague Egan is the CEO of 1st Round, which seems to be a start-up agency that works with sports, entertainment, movies, and music, but also includes a financial and philanthropic wing.  Egan seems to already have some experience on the music side of the biz.  He and his company represent an artist named Sam Adams.  This is what Alex Monroe of a website titled, “GetYourBizSavvy” had to say about Egan (written August 20, 2010):

To tell you a little more about Teague, he’s a serious entrepreneur. He started his first business in high school and prior to starting 1st Round Records, he was working on 1st Round Entertainment full time, which is a company that promotes and throws parties in the Los Angeles area. Teague actually made 1st Round Records a branch off of his entire 1st Round company. In addition to the 1st Round Records branch there is 1st Round Sports, 1st Round Capital, 1st Round Pictures, and 1st Round Entertainment. Pretty intelligent of Teague to form a whole plethora of companies around the main one. We asked Teague his goals for 1st Round: “What were really going after with 1st Round is to make it a lifestyle brand where the term 1st Round is all about being in the winners circle.”

Lets hope that Egan’s connections to student-athletes at USC begins and ends with Baxter; USC really does not need to find its name mentioned by the media for any more agent-related activities.

Another red flag - Jordan Campbell is a partner at 1st Round.  Campbell, a “founding father” at 1st Round, is a student-athlete (linebacker) who transfered from USC to Louisville.  Conflict of interest?

Is Southern California Going To Receive A 1st Round Knockout? from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

In addition, through a conversation with a notable Athletic Director, I posed the question: Where are all our Sports Management grads go going to go? Each year thousands (more like tens of thousands) of students walk the stage with a Sport Management Degree – yet the number of available jobs are declining.

According to The New York Times, nearly all of the big pro leagues are dumping jobs and looking to shore out the bottom-line during the current economic cycle; add to the fact that it is nearly impossible to find steady employment on the client representation/management side, especially as someone with limited experience.

While some sport(s) management programs offer an emphasis on core business principles, many do not. According to several studies, many sport(s) management departments prefer to be entirely separate from business programs.

To me, this robs students of the most important aspect of the industry – Business.  Even at the University of Florida, with a ‘top-notch program,’ the offering of business related courses within the department is very limited (maybe two legitimate business courses).

So why limit yourself to one path? Even if the sports or entertainment industry was flourishing, the chance of you switching careers (or burnout) more than five times in your lifetime is relatively high.

It is my belief that you have to be highly marketable and as ‘well rounded’ as possible in order to compete as an agent or even as a manager on the other side of the coin.

So before you graduate or enroll for the summer or fall, look into marketing, management, finance, advertising, public relations, entrepreneurship courses, or even take some online MBA classes – these will prepare you well for an internship or an entry-level job in sports or entertainment.

If you’re a freshman or sophomore (actually any level of school), think about pursuing internships in areas outside of sports such as finance, public relations, or marketing – these will enable you to jump right into real tasks when you find the right sports opportunity.

Also, if you think writing is ‘left at the door’ of the sports world, think again – the more effective and ‘well-written’ you are, the greater chance of advancement. As an employee, you’re selling yourself each and every day – writing well will show that you can convey the needed message or write the most effective proposal for business opportunities.

As an intern at Dynasty Athlete Representation, LLC, I have written as much or more than I ever have in school or with any other venture (including start-ups with Business Plans).

Nearly everything I have learned through undergraduate business school – has prepared me to effectively construct marketing plans, prospect analyses, and a variety of reports for both superiors and business partners.

While none of these are prerequisites (or a supplement) for a successful career or internship experience, it definitely helps, because a sports agency is a business.

Is a Sport(s) Management Degree worth it? from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

O.J. Mayo has affected a lot of peoples lives.  He has given the town of Memphis hope that one day the Grizzlies will be a contender.  He gave BDA Sports Management a scare when there were allegations of a connection between BDA employee, Calvin Andrews, leading to Calvin’s one-year suspension by the NBPA.  Bill Duffy lost Mayo as a client, but continues to have success acquiring new talent.  And then there was Tim Floyd.  For a long time, Floyd’s name was generally kept out of the media.  The Mayo scandal revolved around names like Andrews, Rodney Guillory, Louis Johnson, and Bill Duffy.  But then, on May 12, 2009, Charles Robinson and Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports dug up some dirt on Coach Floyd.  Only a month later, and Floyd is on his way out of the University of Southern California.

After such a long break in the O.J. Mayo debacle, things have started moving very fast again.  With Floyd’s resignation, which he claims was based on a new lack of enthusiasm, questions surrounding USC’s recruiting tactics have once again hit center stage.  Will Floyd’s resignation save or futher damage USC’s reputation in the eyes of NCAA investigators?

USC Would Take The Floyd If It Came With No Mayo from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules