It's the ugly side of NIL, Matthew Sluka out as UNLV quarterback in disastrous turn for Rebels

It was only a matter of time before a player that transferred for the hopes of getting a bag was ultimately led astray. The first signs of this were obviously the Jaden Rashada debacle with Florida where his reported $13.85 million deal fell through, which ultimately led him to Arizona State for a cup of coffee and ultimately to the Gators arch rival, Georgia.

UNLV and head coach Barry Odom are officially the first program to have a star player step away from the team due to promised money not adding up. The Rebels had last season's quarterback Jayden Maiavia hit the portal for USC, so they made a pitch to then-Holy Cross quarterback Matthew Sluka to come to Las Vegas.

Sluka was exceptional during his time at Holy Cross, where during his four-year career he accounted for 5,916 passing yards, 59 passing touchdowns, 3,583 rushing yards, and 38 rushing touchdowns. The Rebels are currently 3-0 with wins over Big 12 squads Kansas and Houston, along with a win over Utah Tech, largely due to the play of Sluka.

Unfortunately for UNLV, their luck might have finally run out. Sluka announced on social media late Tuesday night that he will not take another snap for the Rebels this season, and will now redshirt after his promised NIL money didn’t materialize, per Brett McMurphy.

“I have decided to utilize my redshirt year and will not be playing any additional games this season,” said Sluka in his post. “I committed to UNLV based on certain representations that were made to me, which were not upheld after I enrolled. Despite discussions, it became clear that these commitments would not be fulfilled in the future. I wish my teammates best of luck this season and hope for the continued success in the program.”

This is a prime example of why collective bargaining needs to be established in the current landscape of college athletics. It’s also not a good look for UNLV as a whole, when they are currently trying to figure out which conference they’re going to be playing in going forward, as the Pac-12 and Mountain West battle it out in court.

UNLV is set to host Fresno State in the Mountain West Conference opener on Saturday.