Leave is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Davidson College, its athletics department or its conference. Everything here comes from what Davidson College, its conference, the state of North Carolina and the NCAA have published, linked under Sources and read on October 23, 2026. "Not published" means the school has not published it.
The rules at Davidson
| Question | What is published | Source |
|---|---|---|
| School NIL policy | "Scholar-Athlete Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) Policy", effective 2021-07-01 and updated 2025-09-22, linked from the athletics site menu and reprinted at the end of the 2026-27 Scholar-Athlete Handbook. It says athletes may receive third-party NIL pay for value "actually provided" and "NOT provided in exchange for athletic performance", and that since 2025-07-01 they "may also receive compensation directly from Davidson College through a revenue-sharing agreement". Athletes may not miss class, academic requirements or required team activities for NIL. Violations can bring NCAA penalties and Davidson sanctions "up to and including cancellation of athletics financial aid" | Davidson Athletics, Scholar-Athlete NIL Policy (updated 2025-09-22); Scholar-Athlete Handbook 2026-27 |
| How deals are disclosed | NCAA: third-party deals of $600 or more go to NIL Go within five business days (Bylaws 22.2.2, 22.2.2.2). Davidson's policy: "The College requires that all scholar-athletes disclose ALL NIL activity within thirty (30) days of either the receipt of the compensation or the execution of an agreement for future compensation, whichever occurs first", using "both the workflows in NIL GO and the INFLCR App". The 2026-27 handbook adds that "All NIL engagements must be disclosed in INFLCR and must be approved", and that compliance staff follow up on NIL Go once a deal over $600 is disclosed in INFLCR. Davidson keeps NIL records for seven years. No North Carolina statute sets a disclosure rule | Davidson Athletics, NIL Policy (2025-09-22) and Scholar-Athlete Handbook 2026-27; NCAA Division I Manual 2026-27; /nil/college/north-carolina |
| Banned categories | No North Carolina statute lists NIL categories. Davidson's policy bars NIL activity in categories that conflict with NCAA legislation ("banned substances and sports wagering") or institutional values ("alcohol, tobacco, gentleman/strip clubs, bail bonds companies, nutritional substances not controlled by the FDA, etc."), and bars endorsing political candidates, parties or campaigns as a representative of Davidson. It says "All sponsors must register through NIL Go and the Davidson Wildcat Exchange and then be approved" | Davidson Athletics, NIL Policy (2025-09-22); /nil/college/north-carolina |
| School marks and group licensing | The policy lets athletes say they "play a varsity sport at Davidson College" but says they "are prohibited from using/posting Davidson College logos and/or marks in their NIL Activity" and may not use images of themselves in college-issued gear with Davidson's name or marks. Athletes may work with Davidson sponsors or their competitors, but support college partners (the policy names Under Armour and Pepsi as examples) while practicing, competing, traveling or appearing for Davidson. On 2026-06-10 Davidson announced a multi-year partnership with NIKE and BSN SPORTS (BSN as exclusive supplier of NIKE uniforms and apparel); the NIL policy, last updated 2025-09-22, has not been revised to match. Group licensing: Davidson and The Brandr Group launched a voluntary program on 2023-10-19 for merchandise and sponsorships "co-branded with Davidson logos and marks" | Davidson Athletics, NIL Policy (2025-09-22), NIKE and BSN SPORTS release (2026-06-10) and Brandr Group release (2023-10-19) |
| Revenue sharing | The College Sports Commission lists Davidson College as participating in 2026-27 and puts the cap at "approximately $21.58 million per school" (read 2026-10-23). Athletic director Chris Clunie wrote on 2025-02-13 that "Davidson College will opt into the settlement and share revenue across our men's and women's basketball programs", that the college would raise money for "an endowment that supports a portion of scholar-athlete NIL compensation for basketball", and that it "will not cut academic, student life or other athletics programs" to pay for it. On 2025-03-10 Davidson announced the Curry-Berman Fund, an "eight-figure fund to support the college's men's and women's basketball teams" from Stephen Curry '10, Ayesha Curry and Don, Matt '05 and Erica Berman, with further fundraising planned. Davidson publishes no amounts by sport or athlete | College Sports Commission; Davidson Athletics, Athletics Update (2025-02-13); Davidson College News, Curry-Berman Fund release (2025-03-10) |
| Collective or NIL group | Not published: no NIL collective is named on Davidson's athletics site as of 2026-10-23. The Curry-Berman Fund is a gift to the college, not a collective. Davidson's NIL marketplace is the Davidson Wildcat Exchange on INFLCR (launched 2023-02-15), which the policy requires any business or individual working with Davidson athletes to register with; the launch release says neither Davidson nor INFLCR takes revenue from those deals. Since a 2026-01-12 renewal, Learfield's local team, Davidson Sports Properties, is adding staff to "advance Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) opportunities" for athletes | Davidson Athletics, NIL Policy (2025-09-22), Wildcat Exchange launch (2023-02-15) and Learfield renewal (2026-01-12) |
| Agents and representation | The policy allows "any professional services provider" for NIL work and says use of agents "must be consistent with NCAA rules". Davidson's agents page (posted 2020) says "All representative must first register with the Department of Athletics before contacting any of our scholar-athletes or visiting the Davidson campus". North Carolina law: an NIL agency contract is an agency contract under G.S. 78C, so the agent registers with the Secretary of State, the contract carries the NIL warning, the athlete can cancel within 14 days, and an agent tied to the school in the past two years may not take an NIL agency contract with its athletes | Davidson Athletics, NIL Policy (2025-09-22) and Agents and Advisors page (2020); /nil/college/north-carolina |
| Compliance contact | Davidson Athletics Compliance, Box 7158, Davidson, NC 28035-7158: Katy McNay, 704-894-2637, kamcnay@davidson.edu; Derrick Spice, 704-894-2966, despice@davidson.edu (Compliance page) | Davidson Athletics, Compliance |
| State law | North Carolina has no general college NIL statute; S.L. 2025-46 (in force 2025-07-01) regulates NIL agents under G.S. 78C for every student-athlete, private colleges included, and Executive Order 223 was rescinded in 2024; narrow law | /nil/college/north-carolina |
What is specific to Davidson
Davidson's 2025 letter calls it "the top-ranked DI liberal arts college (outside of the military service academies)" in U.S. News & World Report, and explains why it chose to pay athletes rather than "consider a less competitive conference or level": a move "backwards or to a lesser conference" would, it said, diminish the experience for every team. It then named men's and women's basketball for revenue sharing, the flagship sports of a "basketball-centric" Atlantic 10, funded by new money and an endowment. A month later the Curry-Berman Fund supplied the start: Stephen Curry and Matt Berman also became volunteer assistant general managers for both basketball programs, and Davidson had already signed on with Teamworks General Manager (2024-12-05) for "basketball roster planning and revenue-sharing decisions". The NIL policy keeps the college out of third-party deals, except those under "an approved College revenue-sharing agreement", and asks athletes in the Atlantic 10, the Pioneer Football League and the Southern Conference to sign waivers letting those conferences use their names and images.
How Leave fits
In Leave, every deal thread carries a rules summary for the athlete's state and level, and keeps the contract, its dates and the disclosure deadline that applies. It is a summary, not a ruling; the school and the law decide. Leave is software, not an agent, and takes 0% of any deal. You decide, you send.
Questions about NIL at Davidson
Does Davidson pay its athletes?
Davidson opted into House settlement revenue sharing and is on the College Sports Commission's 2026-27 list, with a cap of about $21.58 million per school. Its athletic director said in February 2025 that Davidson would share revenue across men's and women's basketball, and its NIL policy says athletes may receive pay directly from the college through a revenue-sharing agreement. No breakdown is published.
What is the Curry-Berman Fund at Davidson?
An "eight-figure fund" for Davidson's men's and women's basketball teams, announced by the college on 2025-03-10 and given by Stephen and Ayesha Curry and the Berman family. Davidson says it starts the college's effort to compete where schools share revenue with players, and that more fundraising will follow. It is a gift to the college, not an outside collective.
How do Davidson athletes report NIL deals?
Davidson's NIL policy asks for disclosure of all NIL activity within 30 days of payment or signing, whichever comes first, through both NIL Go and the INFLCR app; the 2026-27 handbook says NIL engagements are disclosed in INFLCR "and must be approved". NCAA Bylaws 22.2.2 and 22.2.2.2 separately call for reporting third-party deals of $600 or more to NIL Go within five business days.
Can Davidson athletes use Davidson logos in NIL deals?
Not under Davidson's policy, which bars Davidson logos and marks in NIL activity and bars images in college-issued gear. Athletes may say they play a varsity sport at Davidson. The Brandr Group's group licensing program, launched in 2023, offers co-branded products for athletes who opt in.
Does North Carolina NIL law apply to Davidson, a private college?
North Carolina has no general college NIL statute, public or private. Its agent law, G.S. 78C as amended by S.L. 2025-46, does reach Davidson athletes: NIL agents register with the Secretary of State and NIL agency contracts carry a warning and a 14-day cancellation right.
Be your own agent. Leave.
