Over the past few years, thanks to various litigation (some of which involved the Supreme Court), there has been a seismic shift in terms of how NCAA athletes can be compensated.
In the past, NCAA athletes weren't allowed to receive any sort of endorsement dollars, as this would have been a violation of NCAA rules. Now, NCAA athletes can monetize their NIL rights, which means Name, Image and Likeness rights.
This means, for instance, that a quarterback for Alabama can sign an endorsement deal with a soft drink company, or a wide receiver at USC can sign a deal with a video game company.
There are only two stipulations in the NCAA's interim policy on NIL rights:
1. Compensation can't be tied to on-field performance
2. Schools can't offer impermissable incentives to come to their schools
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Over the past year, we've seen athletes sign 6 and even 7-figure deals.
In the past, athletes would essentially live with no money during college, and this would lead to cases where school boosters would offer inappropriate cash payments/other luxuries to athletes.
Now, with NIL rights deals, athletes can start to monetize their name, image and likeness rights while they are attending college.
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In the past, everybody but the athlete was being compensated. The schools were making money, the companies advertising were making money, etc - everybody except the athletes themselves.
This has changed, and now college athletes have the opportunity to make significant sums of money while still attending school.