NIL Newsletter #117 | Fanatics FBS jerseys, Wisconsin's Varsity Collective, UMich QB's offensive line gifts, UGA's NIL records lawsuit + ICYMI Ticker
Welcome to the NIL Newsletter by Optimum Sports Consulting - providing valuable, actionable NIL resources for student athletes, administrators, agents and other sport professionals.
Recapping NIL This Week(end):
Fanatics unveils first group of FBS jerseys
Fanatics has unveiled officially licensed FBS jerseys, featuring some notable players as well as allowing fans to purchase custom-made jerseys as well. All jerseys are priced at $139.99.
According to ESPN’s Tom VanHaaren, Fanatics says that over 4,300 student athletes opted in to its national NIL program. Among those who opted in were Bryce Young, Caleb Williams and Quinn Ewers.
But some industry leaders believe the current group licensing agreement has serious issues. Sports attorney Darren Heitner took to Twitter on Friday to explain why he believes SAs are being ripped off:
Wisconsin relaunches its ‘Varsity Collective,’ new supporters include Russell Wilson and JJ Watt
Wisconsin has relaunched its Varsity Collective, with a plan to provide NIL opportunities with a focus on life experiences. When the collective initially launched earlier this summer, it had plenty of support.
Former Wisconsin quarterback Brooks Bollinger and mega-donor Ted Kellner were main supporters of the first initiative, and they will be major names on the relaunch. They won’t be the only ones, though. Russell Wilson, JJ Watt, Meghan Duggan, Joe Thomas and Sam Dekker are just a few of the former Wisconsin athletes who have committed to helping the collective in the relaunch.
Coaches from across Wisconsin athletics also attended a press conference Thursday. Varsity Collective will focus on achieving two goals: maximizing NIL opportunities while also equipping Wisconsin SAs with lifelong experiences for their post athletic careers.
The Varsity Collective’s NIL programing with student athletes will be centered around the Rep Yourself Program. Athletes will work with Wisconsin alumni, such as Meta’s Kevin Hein and David Yurman vice president of marketing Rachel Goldflam, on personal branding and navigating NIL contracts.
The second program will be Life Currency. Former Wisconsin athletes will speak to current student-athletes about their experiences and act as mentors. The collective also plans to focus on building its own brand, with podcasts launching with notable alumni: “The Varsity Beat,” hosted by former Badgers basketball star Sam Dekker & “Badger Bigs,” hosted by former Wisconsin football star Joe Thomas and his wife, former Wisconsin women’s basketball player, Annie Thomas.
Michigan’s Cade McNamara gifts offensive line custom fitted Ping drivers
Michigan senior QB Cade McNamara, who has an NIL deal with Ping, the popular golf brand, got his offensive linemen fitted for new clubs last month. Now, according to McNamara’s Instagram, the linemen have received brand new drivers.
The Ping G425 LST driver is regularly priced in stores at roughly $400. Ping also made sure to include the Wolverines maize and blue colors.
McNamara has long been in favor of spreading the wealth when it comes to NIL, and that’s a reflection of the Wolverine team’s efforts as a whole. Thanks to Valiant Management - which has helped Michigan players secure over $2 million in NIL deals - UM has held team events, including a ‘Meet The Team’ event at Crisler Center in late August.
“I think I’m in a place that I can benefit from it a lot, and I’m very appreciative of that,” McNamara said of NIL at Big Ten Media Days. “I’m really happy that Michigan has done events and things for not just the starters on the team but for all players as well. In my vision, I think that is the best of NIL, that not just the more popular guys get all of it. When the entire team can benefit from it, that’s the version of NIL that I like.”
Athens judge denies University of Georgia Athletics' motion to dismiss newspaper’s effort to view NIL contracts
Western Circuit Superior Court Judge Eric Norris denied a motion on Tuesday by the University of Georgia Athletic Association to dismiss a complaint filed by the Athens Banner-Herald that seeks to obtain NIL records filed by university athletes. ABH is seeking documents associated with financial contracts for NIL signed by UGA athletes.
The complaint is still pending. Athens attorney Edward Tolley filed a motion asking Norris to dismiss the complaint based on an argument that the lawsuit should have been directed at UGA and not the athletic association, which is a private entity that does not accept public money.
In response to the judge’s ruling, Augusta attorney David Hudson issued a statement Wednesday that he felt the judge properly found that the Athletic Association is subject to the Open Records Act “because it maintains and has custody of records on behalf of the university.”
A statement from UGAAA said: “We respect the Court’s decision, and we are pleased that the Court agreed with the Athletic Association’s central position in this case, expressly holding that the requested “NIL disclosure forms are ‘education records’” protected by federal privacy law. We continue to review the Court’s decision and consider all options, including whether some portion of the requested records can be disclosed without identifying individual students in violation of federal privacy law.”
Another issue is the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which is a law protecting the privacy of educational records of students. Hudson argued these NIL contracts are not educational records, a matter that Hudson said is still at issue. The judge, however, sustained an ABH alternative position that NIL documents could be released with personal identifier information redacted.
ICYMI Ticker
LSU freshman, hip-hop star Flau’Jae Johnson has signed a shoe deal with Puma. The LSU freshman women’s basketball player and hip-hop icon announced Thursday on Twitter she has signed a shoe deal with Puma. One of the top-ranked recruits in the 2022 class, she was a McDonald’s All-American this past season.
Deion Sanders's son, Jackson State QB Shedeur Sanders, gifted his team Beats by Dre headphones courtesy of his NIL partnership. Sanders presented the entire Tigers’ team with the latest, top-of-the-line Beats Studio wireless headphones – which retail at approximately $300 per pair.
Ohio State NIL collective, The Foundation, has unveiled plans to launch a Florida chapter. The hope is to have an annual fundraiser in the Miami area. Notably, some of the top football talent in the country resides in Broward and Miami-Dade counties too. More HERE.
Miami booster John Ruiz, who has reportedly paid out over $7 million to SAs in NIL deals since July of 2021, hosted the LifeWallet Sports NIL Forum. Full video on YouTube HERE.
Texas A&M student athletes combined for over $4 million in NIL deals in the 2021-2022 school year. The state of Texas requires that NIL contracts be disclosed along with their values. This allowed Travis Brown at The Eagle to compile the numbers. The Aggies football program led the way, bringing in around $3.3 million.
Clemson Athletic Director Graham Neff talked about handling chaos in college athletics, including touching on NIL. Video HERE.
Texas Tech has launched its Beyond Verified NIL marketplace with Opendorse. Similarly, Toledo created its Toledo Rockets Marketplace backed by Opendorse as well.
Tulane announced its Wave Exchange with INFLCR.