Former Utah linebacker Trevor Reilly resigned as Colorado’s special teams coordinator on Monday after apparently going to some extremes to try to help the Buffaloes fund their name, image and likeness initiatives.
The former CU assistant went on ESPN 700 and explained the reason he left the Buffaloes. Reilly did not have any issues with CU head coach Deion Sanders, who is entering his second season with the Buffaloes. But the former Ute noted there were disagreements with administrators about how the program was handling name, image and likeness funding.
In a resignation letter obtained by Sports Illustrated, Reilly expressed frustration that his NIL efforts did not result in action from CU officials.
“I did all this work in your name and was told to pursue it,” the letter said, according to SI. “I burned through all my contacts in my Mormon community, which is worth about $3 trillion. Now, I can’t get these people to answer my calls because I just found out today that none of my endeavors will happen.”
Reilly also said he went to Saudi Arabia to seek funding from the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF) to help grow Colorado’s NIL initiatives.
“I even went to Saudi Arabia and got a meeting with the Saudis, who were interested in pursuing business,” Reilly wrote in a resignation letter obtained by Sports Illustrated. “I have email receipts to prove it, and you guys let it fall flat on its face.”
When Reilly appeared on ESPN 700 on Wednesday, he went more into detail about his trip to the Middle East. In addition to a trip to Saudi Arabia, Reilly said he went to Amman, Jordan.
“I ended up being in Amman, Jordan, on Christmas,” Reilly said on ESPN 700. “I had an opportunity to go over there and meet with the government (in Jordan). Then I ended up in Saudi Arabia. I met with (them) for an hour and a half.”
The move showcases the lengths coaches and programs are going to pay players, amid the complexities of the impending House settlement, which will allow programs to share up to $22 million of in-house revenue with athletes.