Will the NIL eventually water down the NFL

[zephirus]

By what you are describing it sounds like this plan moves the "colleges" further and further away from being a place of learning and more of a minor league pro system. So why still call the teams in this conference College Football?

I think a few college football issues might affect the NFL and not just NIL.  With the big tv money going to the colleges, I think the NCAA will be lucky to be in existence in a few years. The big time colleges will create a super conference and I can see them not taking a back seat to the NFL on scheduling and other matters. They may want to be a feeder league to the pros; they may end up forcing the league to pay way more for the kids to go pro (as if the colleges are not pros now).  Also, there was a recent ruling that allows college athletes to unionize.  That will become a big deal

This might very well be what ends up happening, although I don't know how quickly.  The XFL does not have an age restriction.  How long until top high school talent, who can secure NIL deals AND get paid by the team start opting to "go pro" directly out of high school?  If you aren't inclined to higher education, or see that as an impediment to your ability to focus exclusively on football, or "need cash now" - there are now outlets that can pay and potentially pay big.  And while I'm sure the NFL would lose it's mind over losing it's "free farm system" that it currently has, I imagine they'd have to adapt quickly.  They would also be permitted to view how 18-22 year olds fare against NFL cast-offs, hangers-on or never-has-beens like the XFL currently has.  The point is, the intrinsic value of college athletics has been destroyed by NIL.  What happens next is anyones guess. 

The "super conferenece" stuff is already happening.  The SEC and Big 10 have thrown their weight around and the 14 team CFP will automatically hold at LEAST 6 teams from those two conferences, if not 8.  They also will take home 65% of the revenue from the CFP.  Feels like only a matter of time before they essentially form an AFC/NFC conference style format and college football will really be about .... 32 teams.