For Isaiah Livers, time runs out
Student-athletes continue to vie with the NCAA for rights
Isaiah Livers stood on the bench in sweats,
hands in his pockets and a long expression on
his face. Michigan’s season was coming to its
end and Livers could only watch helplessly as
the waning moments of his collegiate career
faded into the abyss.
He dared to follow the arc of Franz Wagner’s
last-second 3-point attempt, a heave that carried
with it the Wolverines’ fate.
The shot fell short. Livers bowed his head.
Two-and-a-half weeks earlier, on March
12, Livers’s season had already ended. A well-
orchestrated Maryland fast break caught
Livers, the lone man on defense, in an awkward
position; he committed a foul and came up lame.
He didn’t know it yet, but he had just suffered
a stress fracture in his right foot, an injury
that would ultimately require surgery and six
months of rehabilitation.
A day later on March 13, Livers hunched
forward in his chair, eyes darting around and
eluding the camera. He walked through the
aftermath of the injury — upon learning of the
diagnosis, he couldn’t help but wonder if his
collegiate career had reached its conclusion.
But Livers didn’t want to dwell on the
possibility.
“I don’t want people to write me off yet,”
Livers insisted. “Still gonna rehab and work
my butt off to get back with this team because I
know we’re going to make a run and I’m gonna
be there for it.”
He was there, just not in the fashion he had
hoped. Prior to Michigan’s clash with LSU in
the Round of 32, Livers watched warm-ups
from the bench, hands on his hips. While the
starting lineups were introduced, he rocked
back and forth, doling out high-fives. His spot
came. The public address announcer sent the
words “Brandon Johns Jr.” echoing throughout
Lucas Oil Stadium.
The end of the road is cruel for all college
athletes, with only a select few fortunate enough
to go out victorious. But there’s an extra layer of
cruelty to Livers’s story, his career evaporating
out of his control, forced to watch the seconds
tick away from the sideline
“I can’t even imagine what Zay’s going
through,” freshman center Hunter Dickinson
said on March 13. “Seeing the work he put in
ever since he decided he was gonna come back
for his senior year, just coming into practice, I’d
come an hour early and he’s already got a full
sweat going in his workouts with the manager.”
Livers geared early-morning workouts,
post-practice film sessions and everything in
between toward the same goal — winning a
national championship.
He dreamt about it alongside Jordan Poole,
his freshman-year roommate and closest
friend. They painted hypotheticals, envisioning
themselves floating up a ladder on the first
Monday night in April, scissors in hand, basking
in their immortality.
As freshmen, the pair fell one game short of
living out their dream when Villanova drubbed
Michigan in the national championship. After
the loss, Livers sat deep in his locker, a Gatorade
towel draped over his head. A few feet to his
side, Poole did the same.
Still, their youth played in their favor, three
more hurrahs on the horizon.
One by one, those years fizzled without
glory. In 2019, Texas Tech stymied Michigan’s
season to a screeching halt in the Sweet Sixteen.
Last year, COVID-19 shelved the NCAA
Tournament entirely, prompting Livers to
contemplate his future. After testing the NBA
Draft waters, he opted to return to Ann Arbor,
the thought of winning a championship at the
forefront of his decision.
“I feel like I had some more to prove,” Livers
told the NCAA’s Andy Katz in July. “The motto
was, ‘unfinished business.’ One last ride with
coach Howard and the boys.”
Buoyed by Livers, Michigan seemed
primed to make the ride a special one, a
national championship certainly within
the realm of possibility. If Gonzaga and
Baylor were entrenched as 1a and 1b, the
Wolverines established themselves as 1c,
penciled into the Final Four.
“It just shows that he was destined for
this,” Poole told The Daily in February,
a day after Livers netted 16 points in
Michigan’s 79-57 demolition of No. 8 Iowa,
a win that pushed the Wolverines to 17-1.
“He’s built to carry a team, put a team on
his back.
“ … Him being able to carry the team and put
the team on his back, figure out anything that
needs to be done in order for those guys to win
and put themselves in the championship — he’s
gonna make sure he gets that done.”
After a junior season derailed by nagging
injuries, he vowed to show “a new Isaiah.” And
he did, improving his performance in every
major statistical category, no longer merely the
3-and-D player from his first two seasons.
The new Livers, a senior captain, became
more vocal. He filled the leadership void left by
Zavier Simpson, serving as the program’s public
face both after losses and in more prevalent
matters, like speaking out against racial injustice
and the lack of compensation for college
athletes.
On March 4, Michigan secured the outright
Big Ten regular-season championship against
Michigan State on Senior Night. During his
portion of the postgame festivities, Livers
walked across the court with tears in his eyes,
shaking his head in disbelief; a moment that
always seemed so far away had arrived. He
hugged Juwan Howard. In the stands, John
Beilein watched on with a smile.
Livers understood his career had reached its
twilight. Yet, at the same time, all he aspired to
achieve was laid in front of him.
“I want the natty, too,” Livers said after the
game, his voice exuding determination. “I got
my outright, we’re going to win the Big Ten
championship, have a March Madness run,
fingers crossed, and go get that natty.”
And it all seemed feasible until the injury.
Livers’s career-long dream had not been
put on hold; rather, at once, gone down the
drain.
“The world is full of possibilities,” Livers
maintained the day after his injury. “You never
know, I could be back out there.”
But after Tuesday’s heartbreaking loss to
UCLA, Livers’s career ended with a whimper
and a limp. He hobbled into the tunnel and out
of sight, a Wolverine one last time.
Just a day before March Madness
started, the biggest NCAA event of the
year, college basketball players tweeted out
“#NotNCAAPropterty” in protest of the
NCAA denying them the ability to profit out
their name, image and likeness (NIL) and for
their service on the court.
NCAA President Mark Emmert and the
rest of the organization had previously agreed
to finally allow student-athletes to benefit from
their talents and efforts. Nearly two years later,
that promise is left unfilled.
Due to the delay, student-athletes continue
to voice their frustrations.
“There’s really no reason why it can’t
happen almost immediately,” former Michigan
defensive back Hunter Reynolds told The Daily
back in August. “In my opinion … they are
trying to drag it as long as possible to … tone it
down and keep as much control as possible,
and by virtue, as much money as possible.”
The protest on Twitter prior to the NCAA
Tournament was just one occurrence of
the unrest players feel. The leaders of that
movement — Michigan senior forward Isaiah
Livers, Rutgers guard Geo Baker and Iowa
guard Jordan Bohannon — did in fact meet
with Emmert. But, little came of it.
“Our meeting was the same thing he’s doing
in the public,” Bohannon told ESPN. “A lot of
talk and he’s waiting on Congress to decide on
legislation.”
The angst to get these rules passed is mainly
rooted in the financial benefit — like getting
a small piece of the $800 million pie that the
NCAA Tournament generates — but there is
more to it than that. Throughout the summer,
student-athletes of every sport, race, gender
and ethnicity pitched their support for racial
equality. They used their social media and their
platform to speak out.
“Athletes need to learn they have a voice
and don’t need to be suppressed, because
they signed a contract to a university,” Livers
told The Daily in November. “ … At the end of
the day, people are always going to see us as
athletes, so that’s why we need more athletes
to speak up.”
Opinions on student-athletes varied widely,
but it is not something new. For a while athletes
have built their brands, whether it be on social
media or through their play-styles on the court
or field.
“The days of ‘Shut Up and Dribble’ should
be long, long gone,” Michigan Regent Jordan
Acker (D) told The Daily. “The more that
student-athletes are able to express themselves
creatively, politically (or) whichever way they
choose to use their platforms. I think it is really
helpful.”
They did not need the approval of the
NCAA to show their personality and stick out.
Student-athletes are not requesting that. They
simply want the support.
When asked about what role the University
of Michigan would play if NIL rules were
passed, Acker simply responded that they
would treat student-athletes the same way they
treat any other student.
He added: “Those of us who are lucky
enough to have these sorts of platforms have
to use them, in that way though, to make
the student experience fairer because that’s
ultimately (what) this is about. It’s not really
about me. It’s about making sure that this
system which is not fair becomes more fair.”
The University’s main mission is to support
its students. Despite some differences in
opinion among the administration, Acker
stated that there is a “general consensus”
of individuals — including President Mark
Schlissel and Athletic Director Warde Manuel
— to support the student-athlete community.
The actual rules and laws are yet to be
decided, but regardless, it is a priority to make
them fair to all athletes no matter their sport,
gender or ethnicity.
“There’s going to have to be lots of discussion
about how the money comes in and how do we
make sure that we don’t create more ‘haves’
than ‘have nots,’ both from campus to campus,
as well as within our own campus,” Acker said.
“But ultimately, I think there are going to be
different incentives and one of them is going
to be creativity and that alone may balance the
field a little bit.”
Name, image and likeness rules already
passed in the NAIA and already showing
positive results.
For example, Aquinas College volleyball
player Chloe Mitchell broke ground, earning
the first sponsorship deal for $3,000 from a
beverage company called Smart Cups.
It is not a shattering amount but it is a
start. Mitchell has already amassed over five
thousand followers on YouTube, around 50
thousand followers on Instagram and an
astounding 2.6 million followers on TikTok.
Her sponsorship with Smart Cups will
barely make a dent in tuition, but as stated in
the CNBC article, she hopes that eventually
she can leverage her platform into paying for
school and maybe even a career one day.
ESPN estimates that top student-athletes
could turn profit anywhere from a couple
thousand dollars — like Mitchell — to even
a million for the few top-tier athletes. Livers,
Bohannon and Baker would likely fall in
between $5-to-$20 thousand in ESPN’s
estimation.
These rules have the potential to truly
change the lives of student-athletes, financially
and beyond. Without the NCAA’s help though,
that won’t be possible.
JARED GREENSPAN
Daily Sports Writer
BRANDON TRACHTENBERG
Daily Sports Editor
MADDIE HINKLEY/Daily
Isaiah Livers and other student athletes have
expressed disappointment in the NCAA’s continued
lack of support when it comes to NIL rules.
ALEC COHEN/Daily
After a junior year plagued by injuries, Isaiah Livers thought this season would be different. However, in the middle of March his college career met its end
with an stress fracture.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
14 — Wednesday, April 14, 2021
Advertisement Ann Arbor, MI - April 12, 2021, Do You See What
I See? is an art exhibition featuring four graduating seniors from
the Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design at the University of
Michigan. Isabella Brand, Olivia Prado, Riley Parrish, and Sophie
Linden will be showcasing their work which includes sculptures,
paintings, installations, and a book. The title Do You See What I
See? comes from a shared interest in exploring our own individual
perspectives and how that can influence our understanding of reality.
By posing the question “Do You See What I See?” we are asking
our viewers to take a moment to reflect on our artwork in a way
that nudges them to let go of their preconceived notions and see the
world through a different lens.
This exhibition will be held at the OpenFloor space at 213 S. State
St., Suite 2, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. The space will be open for view-
ing from April 12th through April 22nd.
Opening ceremonies will be held at the following times:
* Tuesday, April 13 from 6 - 9 pm
* Saturday and Sunday, April 17 & 18 from 11am - 4 pm, 6 - 9pm
* Thursday, April 22 from 6 - 9 pm
Opening events will be held for hour-long intervals with a maximum
of 15 people attending per hour in order to maintain the Covid-19
safety regulations. From April 12th - 22nd, people can to the exhi-
bition for up to 30 minutes from 12 pm through 6 pm. The link to
google sheets gallery reservation times is provided below.
We want to thank our sponsor Arts at Michigan and our generous donors
from GoFundMe. Our exhibition would not have been possible without their
support. Check out our info: https://linktr.ee/srioinfo
Bakich and Paige stress the importance of diversity and inclusion
For redshirt junior right-hander Isaiah Paige,
his playing career has already seen a plethora
of highlights. During the 2019 campaign, the
Michigan baseball team made it to the College
World Series final, falling to Vanderbilt in three
games. Paige started and lost game two, but he
only allowed one run on three hits in four innings.
More importantly though, he and his opponent,
potential 2021 number one overall pick Kumar
Rocker, made history that night for more than their
on-field production, becoming the first two Black
Americans pitchers to start in a College World
Series final.
Despite his achievement, Paige knows it was
just the first step of many.
“That’s a little bit of history that I was glad to
be a part of,” Paige said in a discussion with the
University of Michigan’s School of Kinesiology on
Tuesday. “But, my view of baseball hasn’t changed
at all. It doesn’t matter who I’m playing against
or who I’m playing with, it’s all for the love of the
game. I just want to give back to the game in any
way I can.”
That is a sentiment that Wolverines’ coach Erik
Bakich has emphasized, too.
“There’s a lot of people that talk and they
don’t do jack squat,” Bakich said. “They just like
to complain or to post. Isaiah is about action.
We actually get out in the community; when
we are allowed to have camps, we do bring
underprivileged kids in here.”
For Bakich, success is predicated on far more
than just wins and losses. He leads a program
that prides itself on its off-field abilities as much
as its on-field ones. He tries to produce young
men who will make an impact for years to come,
particularly in their communities. The team is a
family that looks after one another and seems to
genuinely care about making a difference.
The baseball program hopes to imbue those
attributes in its athletes for life, creating a tight-
knit community focused on making those
differences. And for Bakich, opening up those
opportunities to people of color is something
always on his mind.
From Bakich’s perspective, with all that
baseball has to offer kids, it is unfortunate that so
many children will never pick up a bat. For many
lower-income families, little league is but a pipe
dream.
“I think baseball is missing a huge opportunity
to target some of the best future players,” Bakich
said. “Kids that don’t even know that you could
be making millions in baseball, because they’re
forced to pick a different sport.
Baseball, like many sports in the United States,
has fallen victim to the ever-growing funds of travel
leagues. Many parents find themselves paying
thousands of dollars so their kids can play. For
some, this is nothing more than a mere hindrance.
For others, it can alter their athletic courses forever.
“I think it’s ridiculous the cost of travel ball and
some of these showcases,” Bakich said. “It negates
opportunities for a lot of kids. We want to have a
diverse roster and we want to provide as many
opportunities for kids all over the country that we
can.”
Diversity is probably not the first word that
comes to mind when thinking about baseball.
However, for many kids, seeing an inclusive roster
could be the start of a career. Younger players
must find role models to stimulate their love for
the sport — just as Paige did when he was first
starting.
“As an outfielder at a younger age, I was always
attracted to guys like Torii Hunter and Curtis
Granderson,” Paige said. “How do you combat
that when you look around the game and you
don’t see anybody who looks like you?”
As Paige continues to succeed in Ann Arbor, he
serves as a role model for other children who will
one day want to be Paige the same way he once
wanted to be Hunter or Granderson.
With Bakich’s vision for his program, those
dreams may become realities sooner rather than
later.
SAM BERNARDI
Daily Sports Writer