Griffin and Sherman clash over alleged pre-NIL college payments

Robert Griffin III and Richard Sherman have disputed how college football players were compensated before name, image and likeness rules allowed athletes to earn money legally.

The exchange followed Griffin’s appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, where he discussed how NIL rules might have changed his college career. Griffin said he was not personally paid under the table while at Baylor, but alleged that other programmes provided substantial payments and benefits.

Griffin named SEC teams, Stanford and Florida State, claiming some players received hundreds of thousands of dollars. He also alleged that, in one case, school-established bank accounts contained $100,000 after a major win. Those claims have not been independently established in the supplied material.

Sherman, who played for Stanford from 2006 to 2010, rejected Griffin’s allegation about the university. In a social-media post reported by Yahoo Sports, Sherman said Stanford had never paid players under the table and accused Griffin of spreading made-up stories.

Griffin responded by citing a 2016 USA Today report about Stanford infractions. He said the report described a player receiving a US$3,000 bike loan, a free car, meals and access to a holiday home before NIL rules were in place.

The reported benefits and the broader allegations are not the same as proof of a systematic payment scheme. Sherman’s denial also does not resolve the underlying claims, leaving the dispute centred on competing accounts of how college football operated before NIL regulation.