🏅 NC State players sue NCAA

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Hey there,

We’ve got a loaded edition for y’all today, but before getting to all of that, we wanted to ask you something. We’re thinking about rolling out some premium content for y’all that would be behind a subscription-style paywall.

Is that something you’d personally be interested in? If so, what type of stuff would you be interested in seeing? Seriously – we want to know! Scroll down to the bottom of today’s newsletter and answer that poll question for us so we can gauge your interest.  

If you have any questions or thoughts about that (or anything else, really), send them to us at [email protected].

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— Cole, Justin and Collin

KICK-OFF

Bench Press to Beat Rare Diseases

This may be one of the coolest NIL stories we’ve seen to date, and one that’s so fitting for the school it’s about. Northwestern’s football team is raising NIL money to fight rare diseases… by weightlifting.

“Lift for Life” is a bench press competition in which family members, Northwestern fans, and others pledge a certain amount of money to donate for every bench rep a player gets. The more reps, the more money goes to charity, thanks to the school’s local chapter of Uplifting Athletes. 

Last year, bolstered by marketing from the school’s collective, the event brought in almost $45K. This year that number is expected to grow, as players are leveraging their NIL to get brands involved in the donation efforts. (More)

LGBTQ+ Athletes Get Paid with NIL

In a recent video, Opendorse CEO Blake Lawrence made his case for why companies should actively invest their NIL budgets in LGBTQ+ folks. No, it’s not because it's Pride Month… it’s because these investments actually offer a better financial return than NIL deals with other athletes.

“In the world of NIL, social media is about 90% of NIL deals,” he explained, “What we’re seeing in the data is that there’s a five to ten times higher engagement rate and view rate on Instagram posts when posted by an openly gay athlete compared to their peers across college athletics.” (More)

Partisan Politics Could Affect NIL Policy

As much as we may wish otherwise, politics affect college sports in a massive way. It’s been virtually impossible to pass any sort of legislation on college sports, however, because of partisan gridlock. Could that change soon?

A few weeks ago, a bill called the “Protecting Student Athlete’s Economic Freedom Act” surfaced, which would explicitly ban student-athlete employment at the federal level. Republicans advanced that bill, but it won’t actually become a law because of the narrow advantage held by Democrats in the Senate and Joe Biden's unlikely signing of it.

However, as Matt Brown points out, we are in an election year. Things could shift very quickly if votes were to get cast another way. If Donald Trump became president and Republicans gained more of a foothold in the legislative body, expect Republicans to push through legislation such as the bill we described above. (More)

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BEST PRACTICES

NIL Brand Management for Introverted Athletes

Not every athlete is an extrovert, which can make building a NIL brand seem daunting. Don’t worry though – if you’re an introverted athlete, it may just take a little push to maximize your brand potential.  

One person I’ve really liked tracking is former Wisconsin basketball player AJ Storr. It’s no secret Storr has a somewhat reserved personality, but his branding strategy is anything but. Keon Hutson, who handles a decent portion of Storr’s NIL strategy as a merchandise partner, counsels Storr to connect with fans at every opportunity. 

"Even if it's for 30 minutes, let them see your face, give away a couple T-shirts, a couple hats, take some pictures, answer some questions," Hutson told him, "Let these people know that you're real."

By becoming a “real person” to fans, your brand becomes real too. Connection creates fandom, and fandom buys NIL merch. Introverts will likely have to get out of their comfort zone a bit, but even a thirty-minute fan connection can make a world of difference. (More)

DOWN TO BUSINESS

NC State Legends are Suing NCAA

Members of NC State’s legendary 1983 team, nicknamed the “Cardiac Pack”, are suing the NCAA over how the organization used footage and pictures of their team during March Madness broadcasting this year. The lawsuit alleges that the NCAA used these players’ NIL to promote the tournament without their consent.

Of course, NIL wasn’t allowed in 1983… but because of the recent developments in expanding NIL rights, “the NCAA could be vulnerable here,” to quote sports law expert Mit Winter.

Boise State law professor Sam Erlich agrees with Winter. “I imagine the NCAA will argue in response that, ‘Hey, you signed a contract, we’re just following through on that contract,’” explained Erlich, “But that’s where the restraint of trade and O’Bannon come into play since those contracts were signed in an anti-competitive environment.” (More)

• Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon just signed an NIL deal with McDonald’s, promoting his “OGII” meal. The superstar running back is primed to become one of the biggest NIL earners next season.

• Bowl games are expected to utilize NIL contracts to entice players to play for their team’s postseason bowl instead of sitting out to prep for the NFL draft.

COLLECTIVE 101

Collectives Matter, No Matter the School Size

The NIL collective arms race has been ramping up in recent weeks. As we’ve discussed before on here, NIL collectives aren’t done… but we can expect that they’ll look very different, very soon, transitioning away from being a financial middleman between schools and athletes.

“If everyone's playing with $22 million, and you're going after the same recruits, what's going to set you apart?” said Russell White, who serves as president of The Collective Association, “That's where your collective is going to come in.”

Collectives will likely play a huge role regardless of whether schools can hit the $22 million Rev-share threshold. If big-spending schools do Rev-share $22M a year, the NIL collective will help them facilitate even more deals outside of the “salary cap.” If a school doesn’t make enough money to Rev-share up to $22 million, NIL donations will determine their baseline spending ability. (More) 

• The University of Minnesota is looking to add bottle service to the stadium experience to increase revenue for the school. Cocktails and other liquor options are also being discussed.

• Learfield and Penn State have finally settled their legal dispute stemming from the school’s new partnership with Playfly.

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

Coleman Hawkins

• School: Kansas State 

• Position: Forward

• Sport: Basketball

• Class: Graduate Student

• Accolades: 

• Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award Watch List

• Second-team All-Big Ten (AP), third-team (media), honorable mention (coaches)

• Third on the team in scoring (12.1 ppg) and tied for the team lead in rebounding (6.1 RPG)

• Led team in steals (1.5 spg) and blocks (1.1 rpg), and ranks third in 3FG% (.369, 59-160)

• NIL: Hawkins will reportedly receive the largest NIL contract in college basketball history, raking in an astounding $2 million to play for the Wildcats next season.

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NIL BLITZ

♦️ New head coach Bill O’Brien says that Boston College will “Never be all about NIL.”

♦️ The College World Series draws a record number of viewers and attendees this year, leading to more NIL investment than any other year

♦️ The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics presented a “Blueprints for the Future” event in light of the House settlement

♦️ Adidas continues to invest in youth and professional volleyball, opening up NIL possibilities in the near future.

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BATTER UP

Today’s Poll Question:

Last Edition’s Poll Results:

Coleman Hawkins has an NIL agreement worth about $2M in place with K-State. How much higher will teams spend next year to secure similar talents?

• $2M again - 21%

• $2.5M, slightly more - 27%

• $3.5M, significantly more - 24%

•  Over $4M, the sky’s the limit - 28%