Mulvihill hopes high school spirit stays strong
By Terry Murry on Thursday, October 27th, 2022 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – InterMountain Education Service District Superintendent Mark Mulvihill is worried about the NIL rule that was recently adopted by the Oregon School Activities Association. He hopes the rule allowing high school athletes to profit from their names, images and likenesses doesn’t change the games themselves.
“It worries me,” he said. “Already we have problems with kids transferring, power houses being built, and adults that don’t have the best motivations working with kids.”
Portland Gear was the first to sign two high school athletes. The girl and boy basketball players attend West Linn High School and Jesuit High School respectively. Mulvihill said that it’s no surprise that athletes from the bigger schools in metropolitan areas would be the first in the spotlight with the NIL rule. He also hopes the spirit of high school sports stays strong.
“I don’t want us to lose what co-curricular sports are about,” he said. “They’re about fun rivalries, homecoming games, kids getting out and playing. Ninety percent of the kids are not going to play at any kind of collegiate level. I don’t want us to lose the essence and what is so cool about high school activities in general. This worries me a little bit.”
Oregon is one of 20 states to have enacted NIL rules.
