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Who is Matthew Sluka? What you should know about the UNLV QB who left NIL

Top line

The starting quarterback of the undefeated University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) football program said late Tuesday that he will no longer compete for the program, reportedly because of a dispute over a supposedly guaranteed payment to transfer to the university. It is a jarring move in the new era of college sports in which student-athletes are allowed to be paid by third parties.

Key data

Sluka announced on social media that he would sit out the remainder of the 2024 season, vaguely citing “certain assurances” made to him when he committed to play for UNLV that were “not kept” as the impetus for his decision.

Sluka never received a $100,000 payment that was allegedly offered to him verbally by a UNLV assistant coach and was supposed to be paid out by a third-party organization, Sluka's agent, former NFL cornerback Marcus Cromartie, told the Associated Press.

Cromartie told ESPN his client was later offered $3,000 a month for four months, for a total of just $12,000. The quarterback's father, Bob Sluka, told the Athletic that UNLV head coach Barry Odom refused to give us the promised money.

“I think Matt felt lied to … he just wanted to stand up for himself,” Cromartie told AP.

A spokesperson for the UNLV football program did not immediately respond to Forbes' request for comment.

Important background

The dispute underscores college sports' emerging name, image and likeness (NIL) landscape, which has been compared to the “Wild West” after changes to the law allowed student-athletes to be paid indirectly starting in 2021. Colleges don't pay athletes salaries directly, but so-called NIL collectives, which pool money from alumni supporters, often offer salary payments to high school recruits or college transfers so they can join teams. This is an extension of the NIL rule change originally intended to let athletes profit from endorsements and advertising. In Sluka's case, UNLV's NIL collective reportedly didn't know about the $100,000 pledge but paid Sluka an unrelated $3,000 fee, a representative for the organization, Rob Sine, told ESPN.

tangent

Sluka's departure comes amid one of the most highly anticipated seasons in UNLV football history. Sluka, who spent the 2020-2023 seasons at FCS school Holy Cross, was the team's leading passer and rusher through three games and led the team to upset road wins over Big 12 opponents Houston and Kansas. The strong start helped UNLV earn a top-25 ranking in the Coaches Poll for the first time, and it now ranks 23rd, while it is fourth honorable mention in the more widely used AP Top 25. UNLV has a legitimate shot at qualifying for the College Football Playoff for the first time, where one of the 12 finalist spots is awarded to the highest-ranked champion of the lower-division “Group of Five” conferences, which include UNLV's Mountain West Division. UNLV is the second-highest-ranked team in the Group of Five in the AP poll, with only conference rival Boise State trailing behind. Sluka, a former All-American in the FCS Division I Subdivision in football, helped Holy Cross to an undefeated regular season and a berth in the FCS quarterfinals in 2022. A native of Locust Valley, NY, Sluka attended Kellenberg Memorial High School on Long Island and the Peddie School in New Jersey before college, where he scored 101 touchdowns in his pre-college career.

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