Three other Oregon players will also be receiving their reimbursements for similar reasons.
Among the most recent trends that have been occurring in college football is that the schools direct some of the student assistance fund from the athletic department to pay for the insurance premiums for the coverage of players who look as though they will have a promising future in the NFL.
Among the universities taking part in this practice, the Oregon Ducks have become the most recent to join.
Four players from the state have been receiving coverage as their university has been paying the insurance premiums for their policies: quarterback Marcus Mariota, defensive Arik Armstead, cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, and center Honriss Grasu. That said, Grasu, Ekpre-Olomu, and Mariota had done this after they had turned down an opportunity for the NFL for another year at the school. Armstead will still have the opportunity for the NFL draft following this season.
The reason is that the school had been concerned that they might violate the rules of the NCAA. However, when the athletic department found out that they would be able to use the funds that were provided by the NCAA from the student assistance fund of the university for covering the cost of the insurance coverage, it decided that this was the move it wanted to make.
The athletic department recently released a statement that said “The UO athletic department is reimbursing four families of football players for out-of-pocket expenses related to the purchase of insurance policies for loss of future earnings in the event of an injury…”
This insurance coverage trend began when Cedric Ogbuehi – the skilled offensive tackle – was drawn back to Texas A&M when he was promised that he would have his policy paid for in case he should be injured. Florida State kept quarterback Jameis Winston, perhaps rescuing itself for another season or two.
The cost associated with covering the insurance premiums for the four players has not yet been disclosed, but the estimated payments for Ogbuehi were more than $50,000, and those for Winston’s might have been closer to $60,000.