NCAA Athletes Sure to Face Tax Hit as Endorsement Checks Arrive

The NCAA may need to let college athletes work with financial advisers now that the organization has said it will move toward a system that would let the athletes benefit from marketing themselves, several tax professionals said.

Current NCAA rules bar athletes—who generally aren’t paid beyond the value of a scholarship—from hiring agents. But the Oct. 29 announcement—a step toward letting students earn money from the use of their name, image and likeness—will bring a slew of questions for the student athletes to answer.

It could mean that in the future college athletes—some as young as 17 ...