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Football Agent Greg Linton Describes The Dirty Side Of Recruiting

A few days ago, football agent Greg “Tripp” Linton of HOF Player Representatives wrote an article titled, Agent’s Corner: You Want the Truth, You Can’t Handle The Truth…  The article starts with a familiar story to many sports agents in the business – a college coach having an under-the-table relationship with an agent – but a story that is rarely told as a first-person recollection.  Linton describes his constant reaching out to a particular football recruit who had expressed an interest in learning more about Linton and his company, along with the recruit’s college coach doing everything in his power to serve as a roadblock to Linton’s communications.  The icing on the cake comes when Linton finds out from the recruit that the coach told the player that he already has “a guy” for him that he has known for a while, and that the player should end up going with that agent.  In that particular case, the entire set of events ended up working in Linton’s favor because the athlete was smart enough to see through the coach’s self-interested maneuvers, but oftentimes, athletes put their trust into third parties (it is not only coaches) who do not necessarily have the players’ best interests in mind, and it ends up harming the athletes.

The other “cases” that Linton writes about are examples that have been shared with him by his colleagues.  They are certainly worth reading, but I place extra value on that first case, because it was an experience lived by Linton himself.  While I wish that Linton divulged the name of the coach and player, I understand how that act could jeopardize his name in the industry, which is something he needs to protect.

Linton finishes his article with four things he is not too thrilled about: 1) University committees that advise players with the agent selection process, 2) Outside consultants who assist in the agent selection process, 3) Limitations on when agents can contact student-athletes, and 4) State agent laws.  The one area where I think there can be a lot of value is the inclusion of outside consultants, however, those consultants must be vetted and appear to be as non-biased as possible.  No matter what, they will undergo some scrutiny based on the agents the players select, but I truly do believe that these outside consultants could be a very strong benefit to the athletes and their universities.  The outside consultants should be intelligent, respected within the community, knowledgeable about NCAA/players associations/state/federal rules, regulations, and laws, and have an ability to connect with the student-athletes.

I want to end this post by giving props to Linton for writing the article.  He knew that he would be scrutinized for it and that it could hurt him in many ways.  My hope is that he shows it to his future recruits and that they respect him for it – I think a majority of them will.

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.

One reply on “Football Agent Greg Linton Describes The Dirty Side Of Recruiting”

I am interested to learn more about these outside consultants. Who exactly are they? What kind of fee would they get? As unbiased as they can try to be, we still see players from the same school often signing with the same agent. Are we going to start seeing agents courting the consultants rather than the players?

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