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- 🏅 Interview with Autumn J. Seldon
🏅 Interview with Autumn J. Seldon
Teaming up with
Hey there,
Autumn J. Seldon is the president and CEO of MET Agency, which specializes in managing youth and high school football athletes. Bringing personal experience as a football mom – not to mention having a few college and NFL ballers on the staff – Seldon has successfully transformed MET into an innovative force in the NIL space.
In this interview, we talked about NIL, building a brand for younger athletes, and the shifting mindsets of younger athletes as NIL money is introduced to their lives. We hope you enjoy this one!
Want to connect with Autumn? Here is her contact.
— Cole, Justin and Collin
You’re CEO of MET – Management of Elite Talent. We’d love to hear a bit about what MET does, and what role NIL plays in your mission.
MET Agency Sports offers players and their communities consulting, management, support, and resources. This includes mentoring, recruitment, and NIL. We support players as human beings first, students second, and entrepreneurs third. Our Chief Operating Officer, Duane Hines is a licensed clinical social worker and is very hands-on with athletes and discusses day-to-day triumphs and trials. He leads our virtual Athlete Tap-IN meetings with guest speakers. The meetings serve as education and counseling. MET also provides academic support with peer-to-peer tutoring as needed.
As a leader, I'm consistently searching daily for NIL deals and media opportunities to showcase our talented roster of athletes in a positive light. At onboarding, we perform our own internal NIL valuation of players and work towards getting deals to that specific number. Many are already receiving money from their school collective, and others are not. We help all players establish authentic brands. Then we work to sell the brand to prospective merchants.
MET is an athlete-first company, making getting deals for our clients easier. We are willing to take a lesser commission, refrain from over-aggressive negations, and partner with other agencies, also our agreements are non-exclusive. This allows the player to work with others to help achieve their success. We aim to see athletes receive compensation and build it into an opportunity for financial growth. Teaching life skills to be used during and after football is our mission.
As someone who is very plugged into the youth and high school sports world, what shifts have you seen over the last few years among young people – specifically in terms of how young athletes conceptualize their brand and NIL?
Collegiate athletes have been able to capitalize on NIL compensation since 2021 but many didn’t. In 2022 those capitalizing rose to only 18%. From 2022 to 2023 the number of athletes increased 141% in the first quarter alone. During this same time frame, many states approved compensation at the high school level. I don’t know the statistics on youth deals, but the mindset of those we encounter, including parents, is to capitalize on the opportunity.
It’s expensive to be an athlete and parents are the income providers. As a parent of two athletes and a daughter, I spent roughly $5-$10k a year on activities, development, and travel. There was no NIL available. Parents and athletes today now have that option and it’s a blessing. I feel the youth want to develop their athleticism, compete at the highest levels, and be successful entrepreneurs. The custom clothing and apparel lines have become very popular.
I have not seen players want to compete any less on the field because of NIL income opportunities. I also believe it can be helpful to younger players to know their worth and the effects of tarnishing their brand with the wrong things having a negative impact. I’m not blind to some negative effects of players having more income. However, I see the opportunity for more systems to support and guide them in positive directions. These systems should include financial literacy, budget management, credit counseling, therapy, and wealth planning. We’re all human and mistakes will happen, but we must be accountable and plan accordingly. We partner and collaborate with outside resources to bring this education to our players.
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MET has some former NFL players on staff. How does branding say, a high school football player, differ from branding a college or NFL player?
Branding and NIL opportunities differ for individual athletes due to federal laws and compliance. We protect our youth athletes from overexposure. Many parents manage and operate social media accounts. I’ve witnessed firsthand how cruel strangers on the internet can be to minors and in general. High School players are given more leverage but we still seek consent and authorization from parents. It’s the same with college except players can opt out of parental engagement as adults. We advise but we don’t decide.
Although we collaborate with current and former NFL players for mentoring and operations, we don’t yet provide them with branding. Although, with the invaluable advice and sincere guidance they provide to our players many should consider work in the public speaking realm. We are looking forward to having some players move on to the next level soon, and we are strategically preparing for what the support will look like. We will undoubtedly continue to partner and collaborate externally to deliver the best.
What’s your process when seeking out NIL deals for your clients? How does social media play into your strategy?
Athletes are on social media and so are we. We heavily engage on social platforms and leverage them for deals. As of lately, we’re receiving a ton of emails for deals. These can come through our business email or the players themselves. We vet out a ton of spam and scams, but there are genuine opportunities found in the filtering.
What’s one piece of advice you’d give a five-star recruit looking to score NIL deals? How does that differ from an unranked recruit trying to maximize his NIL capacities?
A five-star athlete will have plenty of NIL opportunities. We would encourage them to remain authentic and not take deals strictly for money. The challenge will be picking the ones that best suit the player. An unranked recruit has to train, develop, and gain exposure. The most important asset that either will have in this sport is film. If you’re competing regularly in games or 7 on 7 and you don’t have any highlights there’s self-reflection needed. NIL opportunities can come in the form of philanthropy as well. Getting involved with the community and giving back is a win for everyone. Success looks different for different people. Relationships and networking often cost nothing but ultimately are both priceless.
We must level set with players at onboarding that deals will not be millions of dollars. There are rare exceptions for a few elite athletes who receive them. However, even pennies can add to a million dollars if you’re willing to count them. You can’t compete where you don’t compare. It’s not always a comparison of talent. It can be resources, financial backing, birth rights, networking, or timing. We focus on what can be controlled like training, development, and hard work. We do what we do here because we care and hope to make a difference for players. We showcase the talent to those who will see the value in it and we’ve seen success.
