After weeks of rumors and speculation, it became official.

According to multiple reports, Rutgers has accepted a bid to play in the Players Era Tournament, an NIL-driven event being held in Las Vegas.

As of now, the Scarlet Knights are the seventh team to join along with Alabama, Houston, Notre Dame, Oregon, San Diego State and Texas A&M. The eighth team has yet to be determined. The tournament will likely take place on Nov. 26, 27, and 29, which is Thanksgiving weekend.

Each team will receive $1 million in its NIL collective for participating in this tournament. This money will be distributed to members of the team. There are other ways to add to that total, including winning the tournament.

The Scarlet Knights were in talks with the Cayman Islands Classic but pulled out due to scheduling conflicts. Now, they will head to Vegas with its best recruiting class in program history.

Steve Pikiell has yet to take Rutgers to a non-conference tournament. The addition of Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey for the 2024-25 season will put the Scarlet Knights well on the map. This means there will be eyeballs on Rutgers and this tournament will give the team a chance to show the nation what it is capable of.

Rutgers recently added Kennessaw St. to its non-conference schedule as well. Within the Big Ten, the Scarlet Knights are set to play Michigan, Penn State and Purdue twice while hosting Illinois, Iowa, Michigan State, Minnesota, UCLA, USC and Wisconsin while traveling away to face Indiana, Maryland, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon and Washington.

This Players Era Tournament is the first NIL-driven event of its time. With this new day and age in college sports, it will likely not be the last one, especially if it is successful. Now we know that Rutgers will for sure be in attendance.