MARCH 4, 1998
Related Links	Plain talk from the St. Louis Rams' Ryan McNeil By Marlynn Jones Staff A session of the Entertainment and Sports Law Society's Agent Seminar discussed what clients look for in an attorney/agent. Moderator for the session was Leonardo DaVinci Starke, a 1990 graduate of UM Law. In addition to operating a law practice, Starke is legal counsel for the W. H. Roberts Foundation and an advisor for professional athletes.   Starke was joined by one of his clients, Ryan McNeil, of the St. Louis Rams, who was an All-American cornerback at the University of Miami. McNeil received a degree in psychology with a minor in business administration. Currently, he is Chairman of McNeil Management. He also operates Positive Alternatives, Inc., a foundation that runs camps for kids, as well as sponsoring a speaker's bureau of athletes that speak to children at elementary schools.   In an effort to best address the students' concerns, a question/answer format was used for this session.   In addressing what sells an athlete on an attorney, McNeil relayed that in this copycat society, many choose attorneys and agents based on personal referrals by teammates, teachers, coaches, etc. "It's tough to crack the circle of professional athletes because many have been burned," he said. "Your first instinct is to put up your guard when approached by someone you don't know," he said. "NFL Security now has a system set up where players can have people checked out," he continued.   "Before making a decision you must first define your objectives:what do you want to get of professional sports," he said. "Before you negotiate anything you must determine a market value for yourself," he added.   "After you choose some potential representatives, you rank order them by preference and then call their current clients," he said. "Then you make an interview schedule and interview the person you like least first because you don't want to be biased," he explained. "If you interview your first choice first you may not listen to what the others have to say and you may miss some valuable information," he explained.   McNeil discussed that different players want different things from an agent. Some want the agent to be a surrogate mother to pay their rent and to wash their car. Some want to have one person to do their taxes, buy a house or car, and help them to relocate.   "After being in the league for five years, I have had two previous financial planners and two previous accountants. Currently, I have an accountant, an attorney, an money manager and a public relations firm in addition to my agent (Brian Ransom of Atlanta, GA)," he disclosed   "There are players that prefer to have all of their services in-house, but I would rather piecemeal my team together and hand pick each one," he said. "The chances of something illegal happening increase when everything is in-house and one person does everything. I think you should go to the specialists in each area, for example, you don't go to the dentist to get heart surgery," he analogized.   "I found my agent through a referral from teammate who had worked for that person over the summer," he said. "I'm very particular, I like my T's crossed and my I's dotted and I'm very independent about what I do and I needed someone with a personality that could handle that," he added.   When asked why he didn't select a UM graduate that has represented other UM football players, McNeil said that their personalities did not match. "Additionally, over the course of the years that I was at UM he did some things that were illegal according to the NCAA and to the NFL," he said.   "While with the Detroit Lions, I represented the team as the player representative and there were 10 agents on the "hit list." he said. "These agents are watched and scrutinized more than the others and some of the agents from this area on that list. I think that if you will do something minor to cheat that you may do something major later on," he said.   Starke warned the students of the ethical requirements of the Florida Bar and informed them that since this particular agent never took the bar exam that he is not governed by the same rules of ethics that will govern them.   Another area of concern for future agents is having players lured away by other agents. The civil cause of action for the conduct of "stealing players" from others is called tortuous interference of contract and Starke suggested that students research the area prior to beginning work in the field.   "The majority of agents that have longevity are not media hungry personally," he warned. "If you do a good job for your clients, people will seek you out," he said. "Eugene Parker has NFL and NBA players, including Deion Sanders and Emmitt Smith, but you never see him," he continued. "Parker thinks his client should be in front of the cameras rather then himself," he said.   McNeil said that Parker told him that the best players make the best agents. If you have a good player then you will be able to get a good contract.   Geography may be hard to overcome for those starting out in the business. "If you are in California or New York and trying to represent player in Miami, a representative in Miami will have an advantage over you because he can see then more often and you will probably have to call more often to compensate," McNeil said.   "If you have lower round draft choices and free agents you may have to do more work," he said. "When I was a free agent last year, I put together a package for myself similar to a proforma used by small companies," he said. "I put together my stats for five years comparing my stats to guys in my conference, and to others that play my same position," he added. "I was able to show how much I improved each year and I sent it to all 30 teams and to all 30 head coaches," he said.   When asked why he chose to sign a one-year contract with the Rams for less money last year than to sign a multi-year deal with a different team, McNeil said that he knew the salary cap was going to be increased and that the amount of increase would be based on the new television contract.   "Free agency gives you choices and options," he said. "Many players go for just the money," he said. "Money is one thing but you want to be comfortable and to have fun also. I didn't have fun my last two years in Detroit so I knew I wasn't going back there," he said.   "I decided on a one year deal. The market was low so teams wanted to do longer deals but I didn't feel that the longer deals were best for my market value," he added.   "I chose the Rams because of the coaching staff, great facilities, the new turf dome and the young players on the team," he said. "They had a good corner that was selected number three overall in the draft. I knew that if I went to a team with a good corner, and I could outshine him, that would make my argument for me," he explained. "I was confident enough that I could make things happen with the defensive style of Coach Bud Carson," he said.   "It was a risk, I could have been injured, but I'm an optimist," he continued. "Changing cities, teams, teammates, defensive schemes was a lot of pressure, but by doing my research I knew that if I did what I was capable of doing that I could be the number one cornerback available," he said.   Starke addressed the issue of how attorneys/agents get paid. "You don't go into this business to represent free agents. You can't sustain a business that way," he said. "It's a business with a lot of overhead," he continued. "If you are in Florida the you have access to Florida schools, but there are players all over the country and you must travel to see and met them. Your resources will limit who you can speak to," he said.   "You must have a proper plan, do research and have resources available. You must understand that hanging out with the players can be fun, but it doesn't pay the bills," he added.   "If you are working for a client it is up to you to decide to decline or accept an offer that is made by the client, Starke said. McNeil explained that the player hires you and the players is the one that should make the decisions. "The athlete must have a trigger number in his head before you start to negotiate," he said. "My senior year, I was ranked as top corner coming out and Darren Smith was ranked as the top linebacker coming out," McNeil said. "So, Smith and I teamed up and decided to present ourselves as a package deal," he said. "Initially we wanted to sign a contract with a very, very prominent representative who said he couldn't sign us as a package because he couldn't justify it to his other clients. We said no," he explained.   "He got upset because we had an advisor and he thought the fee he would get was going to be too low," he said. "We structured our contract with an hourly rate that had a cap," he said. "We went with our second choice agent and we both retain Brian as our agent today because he has represented us with class and in a professional manner," he added.   Advisors work in multiple capacities, as an attorney, in selecting a representative or agent and in business issues, and as a personal attorney, Starke explained. "I'm not well liked among agents because of the advice I give to players," he said. "Think of it this way, What does a wall street attorney make" Maybe $100,00 per year, then why should you get $1,000,000 for negotiating a contract for an athlete"   "If the players drafted at number two last year got $24 million, then the player drafter at number two this year will make at least $24 million. You should get a percentage of what you get the player over $24 million but why should you get a percentage of the entire amount?," he asked.   "Money can't be the only issue, but it's very important. If you are not getting your money's worth as a client, you need to change representatives," said McNeil "The average NFL player changes agents two times during his career," he added.   "There is a great deal of competition locally and nationally not just in the service you provide, but in the money you charge, Starke said. "There are lengths that some are willing to go that others are not. Regardless of your pitch, others are pitching deals too and some allow the athlete to pay whatever and whenever he wants just to get them on their client list." Stake added.   "Many feel that they owe an agent is he has provided money, cars, etc. while the player was in school." Starke said. "Many players make emotional decisions as opposed to business decisions," McNeil said.   "Schools should take the initiative to educate the players on what to look for in a representative," McNeil suggested. "The schools seem to look to the NCAA to do it and vice versa. The NFL has taken the lead by trying to get information to players at the combines. But the schools need to do it sooner," he said.   In addressing women in the industry, McNeil said it is hard for them and for African-Americans to enter the business, but he met a lady in New York at the NBA All-Star Weekend that has several clients and believes that guys are more open-minded now that they use to be. "For me it didn't matter what other clients an agent had but what he could do for me," McNeil said.   "It only takes one client and if you serviced him the way he needs to be serviced then he will be your biggest billboard." he said.