Hey there,

The college football season is officially over (congrats Michigan!), but that doesn’t mean the NIL news stops. NIL touches every sport, and even when the game stops, the conversations keep churning. It’s a year-round business, which is why we’re excited to bring you the news every single week.

Before we get to the weekend updates, we’d love to hear feedback on anything and everything about our newsletter. Hit reply or send us an email at [email protected] to get in touch with us. Now for the news!

— Cole, Justin and Collin

KICK-OFF

Dunne Dominates NIL

Livvy Dunne was just named Best NIL Athlete of the Year by Sports Business Journal. With her valuation currently settling around $3.3M, there should be little surprise about her taking home the prize.

Dunne initially built her brand identity through social media, but in 2023 she ventured into more traditional media outlets, including an appearance on ESPN’s NFL “Manningcast” and modeling for Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit Edition twice.

“I never thought that I would ever be in this position,” Dunne said on a podcast, “I didn’t know when I started growing my social media that this [NIL] rule was ever going to change.” (More)

The NIL Agent Issue…

There is remarkably little stopping someone from becoming an NIL agent, at least according to the Washington Post. In a recent article, they told all on how there’s no official agent certification process from the NCAA or any other governing force.

In fact, basically nothing exists to prove competency. There’s no test to understand how NIL contracts work – like there are with basically every other agent job of this sort. Just about anyone can send money into their state to register as an agent and boom, you’re ready to represent a college athlete.

There are obvious issues with this system, but until there’s more NIL regulations in general, expect that this problem will continue to exist. (More)

Legacies Live On

Many said that NIL will produce more parity within college football, a notoriously top-heavy sport. In some ways, that’s been true – just look at the unique playoff contenders the last few years, like TCU.

But perhaps that’s fleeting. Despite all the speculation of spreading around talent, Georgia, Alabama, and Texas still hold the top three spots in terms of the 2024 recruitment class. In fact the entire top twenty is stacked to the brim with historic programs with rich winning legacies, and virtually no newcomers.

The real winners for NIL are schools that haven’t seen success in a long time, but maintain a rabid (and generous) fanbase.

Miami is a perfect example: they’ve only won double-digit games once since 2003, yet find themselves with the fourth best recruiting class in the country for 2024. (More)

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Harbaugh Wants Revenue Sharing for Players

“There’s no voice for the players”

That’s what Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said to the press about revenue sharing in college football. Click the video below to see how the national champion coach thinks the system is broken, and how he’d fix it.

DOWN TO BUSINESS

ESPN and NCAA Strike Media Rights Deal

Recently we’ve seen a ton of college sports figureheads talk about how players should get a slice of the TV revenue they generate, most notably from Michigan football’s Jim Harbaugh. Well, that conversation makes the recent agreement between ESPN and the NCAA even more relevant to the athlete compensation discussion.

The two entities just signed a massive eight-year media rights agreement worth $115M a year, nearly tripling the value of the previous agreement. One key reason for the massive price jump is the nationwide expansion of interest in women’s sports as a lucrative media market.

The deal, notably, is silent on revenue sharing language. (More)

Deal “Hunter”

Colorado defensive back Travis Hunter has proven to be one of the most unique athletes of the NIL era. Well, he just secured a one-of-a-kind deal with FreeForm Sports, and joined the company’s Athlete Advisory Council in the process.

Part of his role will be offering his own personal thoughts throughout the product development process, as well as releasing custom gear like wristbands and pads. It’s worth noting that Hunter wore custom FreeForm gear during his final two games of the season.

Hunter will be joined by other athletes on the Council eventually, but for now he remains the only person to hold the distinction. (More)

COLLECTIVE 101

Trading Players Mid-Season?

Women’s basketball coaches from around the country are sounding off on how NIL has changed their sport into a somewhat professional model. With frustration brimming, some coaches are calling for radical changes to the system.

“If I want to trade you at Christmas because I need another guard, if we’re professionals I should be able to trade you,” Louisville basketball’s Jeff Walz said.

“It’s the NIL, which I think is a wonderful idea, but it’s so broken. It’s the one percent of college athletes that can truly do NIL on their own. Everybody else, the reality is this, the coaches and the collectives are raising money for them.” (More)

Schiano’s Shoes Help Collective

Rutgers’ head football coach Greg Schiano supported his NIL collective during the school’s bowl game, simply by wearing shoes. The custom kicks will be given to a member of the school’s Knights of Raritan collective as part of an NIL-boosting effort. 

According to the collective, this is the first time a coach has supported his school’s NIL during a bowl game. The shoes mean more, too, considering the Scarlet Knights beat Miami in the game for just their seventh ever bowl win. (More)

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

Katie Shanahan

Katie Shanahan, the driving force behind Quinnipiac's field hockey team, is rewriting the rules of athlete endorsement deals in a social media era. Dubbed "6 A.M. Shanahan," her relentless dedication and ambition have garnered attention from top brands like Adidas and Liquid I.V., despite her sport's lower profile at a smaller school.

Her story is a testament to the power of determination, proving that small-school athletes can stand tall in the world of NIL endorsements.

NIL BLITZ

♦️ Washington’s O-Line gets BBQ deal before the national championship

♦️ What Arkansas’ Sam Pittman has learned from portal season

♦️ PowerNIL partners with Under Armour

♦️ K-State AD hates “free for all” NIL money

♦️ Why losing the latest labor dispute would actually help the NCAA

♦️ Alabama’s team NIL deal with LANK

♦️ NIL star Cavinder Twins attend NBA’s “Twin Night”

BATTER UP

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