Any system in which entities can profit from humans who’ve been given the freedom to market themselves will inevitably lead to huge bags of cash being thrown around. It’s the nature of the beast, and you can see it everywhere. Britney Spears didn’t pitch Pepsi because she loves Pepsi, after all. Nobody would know who Tom Emanski is without his being carried on the back of Fred McGriff’s fame. Hell, O.J. Simpson might have made more money in his life running through airports than on a football field.
So it’s no surprise that, in the rush to capitalize on the newfound ability of college athletes to profit of their own image, companies are busting open the piggy bank for sums that seem a little absurd.