Let's face it. All player's images are not worth the same.

I don't see why you should compensate a player just because he plays in a televised game. At least not compensate him more than the value of his scholarship. In a blowout, a lot of kids see mop up duty in the last couple of minutes. And what exactly is the "image" of an anonymous third string right guard wearing a football helmet?

If somebody wants to feature a player in his company's TV commercial, that's a different story. But doesn't that just scream potential abuse? How can you possibly regulate it if that company is owned by a booster?

What if ESPN or Fox uses a clip of a recognizable basketball player in a promo? Can't somebody come up with a standard payment for each such use, just like actors have a scale of payments when they appear on the Tonight Show? The problem here, of course, is that it's hard to crop out from the clip the unrecognizable player who just got posterized in that promo. Should he be compensated for his "shame"?

In theory, players shouldn't lose all control of their image to people who will profit from their use. In practice, how do you manage it? And if you can't manage it, why can't you forbid it (which is the current default position of the NCAA)?

I don't know the answer.