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Raymond Savage Jr. Is Going To Jail In Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

Raymond Lee Savage Jr., former CEO and President of Savage Sports Management and All-American linebacker at the University of Virginia, is going to jail in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama for having one of his employees illegally contact former University of Alabama wide-receiver,Tyrone Prothro, while Prothro was in college (the year was 2005).  The employee was not licensed as an athlete agent in the state of Alabama at the time.  Savage was originally arrested and taken into custody in October 2008 for allegedly having a part in illegally contacting Prothro.  Five years later, Savage is finally being booked.

Savage had once plead not guilty to both charges for which he was accused: 1) Not registering as an athlete-agent in Alabama (felony); and 2) Initiating contact with a student-athlete (misdemeanor).  The state of Alabama dropped the misdemeanor charge, but the felony charge remained.

When Savage failed to appear in court for a reduced charge on the felony count, a judge issued a writ of arrest.  In response, Savage explained could not leave his home in Virginia due to health problems.  The judge did not buy it, and Alabama’s Assistant Attorney General Don Valeska was very displeased.  Valeska is not one to mess with.  In the past, he has said,

“At the appropriate time, one of these agents is going to go to jail because of a felony, but this one [Savage Jr.] we didn’t feel was the case based on the facts,” Valeska said. “We want the message to go out that nobody comes to Alabama without following the law and talks to college athletes about going pro.”

Mike Trope, author of Necessary Roughness and former NFLPA agent has a quote that I always think about whenever I write about Alabama, and he happened to say it in reference to the Savage case – “[Don’t] ever represent any player that is a resident or goes to school in the state of Alabama. I am not an agent anymore, but I wouldn’t do it.”  Anyone who is not licensed as an athlete agent in Alabama and is currently recruiting student-athletes based in that state needs to remind themselves that they are putting their freedom at risk based on their actions.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

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