FSU softball player Kaley Mudge speaks on NIL in House subcommittee meeting

Between last weekend's series at Duke and this weekend's home series vs. Georgia, the Florida State softball outfielder was in Washington, D.C. Wednesday, testifying as a witness in front of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee about the state of college athletics and name, image and likeness legislation.

On a panel filled with college athletics administrators and former college athletes, Mudge was the only current college athlete invited to speak at Wednesday's meeting.

Here's the entirety of what Mudge had to say with her five minutes of allotted time:

"Thank you for providing me with the opportunity to to have to testify before you on the important topic of protecting NIL rights for college athletes. Good morning. My name is Kaley Mudge. I'm a redshirt junior outfielder on the Florida State softball team and I'm from Winter Springs, Florida. I'm currently majoring in exercise science and will be graduating this spring. My goal is to go to nursing school when my eligibility is finished.

I would first like to thank you for the opportunity to be here today and speak to you about my experiences as a college student-athlete. Florida State has truly changed my life in the past four years, I have seen myself grow into the best version of myself as a student, as an athlete and as a person. I chose Florida State because from the moment I stepped on campus, it felt like home. I wanted to find a program and an institution that felt like a community and I found that at FSU.

The professors, coaches, administrators and students have made my four years such a great experience. The culture of the softball program specifically is such a family and I'm blessed to find that in a national championship program. My coaches, athletic trainer, nutritionists, strength coach and teammates have all helped me become my best self and I wouldn't be where I am today without them.

I came into FSU as a partial academic and athletic scholarship recipient. When NIL came into play in 2021 I was very excited for the chance to start earning money to help further pay for my education. My experience with NIL has been a very positive experience. I've gotten the opportunity to learn so much about the professional world as a college student, including how to read contracts, how to negotiate deals, and how to earn and save money. As an Olympic sport athlete on a partial scholarship, NIL has been extremely beneficial to me because I'm able to help pay for my tuition to hopefully come out of college with little debt. One specific deal that I am involved in now has given me the opportunity to start saving money for nursing school when I'm done playing softball.

NIL has served as an effective means for comprehensive life skills education, given the multifaceted nature of this issue. This includes financial literacy training, contract review, personal branding, business formation and responsible social media strategies. Like many universities across the NCAA, Florida State University has developed a comprehensive education program to provide student-athletes with knowledge, resources and support to navigate the NIL environment. This includes the creation of three separate NIL-related courses in partnership with the college of business and school of entrepreneurship, support for contract review through the college of law, co-branding opportunities through use of institutional marks and logos, an expansion of current university partnerships to develop opportunities relative to NIL.

In addition to the support provided by the institution, the collective has provided additional resources in the NIL space, specifically in identifying and securing new NIL opportunities, understanding market value and facilitating group licensing opportunities for myself and other student-athletes. Specifically, I am an ambassador for an FSU collective and this is a deal that is helping me pay for nursing school.

Given that we compete for national championships, it is imperative that we have uniform NIL guidelines and expectations as opposed to the current framework of disparate or non-existent state laws and regulations. These national standards should guarantee student-athletes the ability to pursue NIL opportunities. These standards should also ensure a healthy recruiting environment to promote fairness and equity, along with a measure of transparency to support the NIL marketplace.

As we celebrate 50 years of Title IX, it is important that the opportunities for participation and access to higher education specifically for underrepresented populations are supported and insured. There are many threats throughout legislation and litigation that would undermine this model. Throughout college athletics and specifically at Florida State, student-athletes receive the highest forms of health care support including medical coverage for athletic injuries beyond graduation and eligibility. We continue to expand access to enhance nutrition and mental-health resources and we also receive first-class academic support and resources such as advisors and tutors. These benefits enjoyed by student athletes across the country would not be possible without the legal protections under Title IX and the redistribution of revenue across all sponsored sports.

The creation of an employee-employer model would significantly threaten this current dynamic and alter everything we know about how sports outside football and men's basketball are supported. NIL has provided me with so many opportunities in the past few years and it has made my experience even better as a college student-athlete. Thank you again for your time and for the opportunity to be here today."

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