How Texas Will Now Compete With "The Bag-Man" Teams
Let the Games Begin!
With the Name, Image, Likeness era upon us, not only is the University of Texas poised to be a leader in innovation and support, but Longhorn athletes are about to discover opportunities here they simply couldn't find at other schools. I'll focus mainly on football, but this applies to other sports, as well. (For instance, imagine if someone with the charm of Charli Collier were sponsored by a clothing line out of Austin.)
As
Urban Meyer lamented on the Big Ten Network, the idea that NIL isn't an inducement for recruiting is absurd. Like new locker rooms or a renovated stadium, everyone knows it's a massive amount of leverage for the schools that get it right. And Texas is positioned to get it right more than any other school.
In no particular order, here's why:
1. THE #1 BRAND IN ALL OF COLLEGE SPORTS
The
Wall Street Journal tabbed the Texas football brand as the most valuable college brand at $1.1 billion. This, even after a decade of mediocrity. Imagine what a few 10 win seasons or a Heisman run would do to that stock.
Texas is also #1 in revenue for college athletics over the last three years. (Sorry, Aggie, your fund raising for a stadium upgrade skewed your stats.)
The next transcendent player like Durant or VY would have the brand association at Texas to attract deals with the likes of Nike. It hasn't been ruled out yet.
2. THE SIZE AND POTENTIAL REACH OF THE TEXAS FANBASE
Part of the reason the Texas brand is so valuable is the reach of its fanbase. The New York Times made a
map showing the reach of the Longhorn brand in the state, but Texas also has the
9th largest alumni base. Sure, Lubbock might be a stronghold for the Red Raiders, but you can find active Texas Exes chapters "from California to the New York island". Those are alumni proud and eager to spend dollars on a brand endorsed by their school's athletes.
In addition, Houston and Dallas are the 4th and 5th largest metro markets in America (and the largest for football states) and you can't help but see the untapped potential of a players' marketability. Not to mention Austin or San Antonio.
3. THE #1 ENTREPRENEURIAL CITY IN AMERICA
Austin is not only consistently and unanimously ranked as the
#1 city in America. It's also the
#1 job market, the
#1 city for start ups, and the
#1 tech city. There are over 50 video game companies in Austin who could leverage a student athlete's likeness.
Why does this matter? Because innovative companies will be the first to enter into innovative partnerships with student athletes. Companies with a comprehensive social media strategy are ready to take advantage of this opportunity, all they need are the students. To put it another way, there are more socially savvy companies in Austin willing to throw dollars at student athletes than you'll find in, say, Norman.
4. NO STATE INCOME TAX
Texas and Florida are the only two blue blood college football states with no state income tax. Players (and potentially their agents) can do the math of earning $50,000 in Texas versus California.
5. EXPOSURE
Laugh at the LHN all you want, but a player appearing on the LHN is exposure. It's why authors do book tours. And actors go on talk shows. Getting in front of eyeballs generates engagement. If you're at Iowa State, you have to wait for games with Texas or Oklahoma to get TV exposure. But not Texas.
Texas also ranks #4 among colleges with social media following, and first in the Big XII by a mile. We should all send a thank you note to our social media department superior content they put out.
6. LEVERAGE
Other schools have their own burgeoning NIL departments, and
Leverage is Texas' own take on the matter.
Leverage is designed to help players expand their platform with Personal Branding & Brand Management, Business Formation & Entrepreneurship, Opportunity Management and Financial Literacy.
Why does this matter? Because the actual networking opportunities
Leverage can offer students in Austin runs laps around the likes of Ann Arbor.
7. WE'RE TEXAS
Everyone's calling NIL era the "Wild West", but we're Texas.
We call it home.
