ANJALI DALAL-WHELAN / ASSOCIATE EDITOR 

USD junior and football linebacker Nick Felago found his way to a  Name,  Image  and Likeness (NIL) deal from a  misdirection by Apple Maps. Two  years  ago,  when  he  was   going into his  first  year at  USD,  he went to get an acai bowl with a teammate after practice. Rather than an açaí shop, his maps directed  the  two  of  them to the sales  office  of  the brand Açaí Roots. 

While Felago couldn’t get his post-practice snack, the sales team gave him a kombucha for stopping by, which he posted to his Instagram story. 

The brand’s marketing team saw the post and reached out — leading to what has now been an over  two-year-long partnership  between  Felago and   the acai brand.

Influxerusd is a platform that helps athletes sell merchandise. Photo courtesy of @Influxerusd/Instagram

A few years ago, this partnership would not have been legal. Until recently, student athletes were not allowed to make money off of their athletics or identity while they were in college. In 2021, a dramatic shift came when the NCAA changed their rules to allow student athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness. 

For the past four years, NIL has made waves in the world of college athletics —  including at USD. Over 200 NIL deals have been made with USD athletes, according  to   Lauren  Kirby,  USD’s Assistant  Athletic Director for NIL. 

A popular way for athletes to partner with brands is through their social media pages. While at some large schools, high-profile student athletes have struck deals worth millions of dollars, some USD student athletes are finding smaller companies to make the most of their brand as an athlete.

Felago shared that his NIL deal with Açaí Roots has been extremely helpful in his career.

“It’s been really cool to have a partner and a base around me besides just my personal name,” Felago said. “They’ve obviously hooked me up with a lot of stuff that’s benefited me financially, and with the food, of course.” 

Felago noted that discussions of NIL are prevalent among student athletes at USD. 

     “I can talk to any athlete about it,” Felago said. “Male, female, any sport and we will be able to have a conversation, whether they have a strong opinion one way or another or they have a cool deal or they’re working on something… it’s definitely always a topic of conversation.” 

       Daniel Bruton, a professor in the Knauss School of Business who has worked in sports marketing for over 30 years described the change as an overcorrection of an unfair system. 

       “The way the structure was for athletes was extremely unfair,” Bruton said. “When there’s programs making millions and hundreds of millions of dollars… and then the athletes can’t accept a sandwich, or they’re suspended, I always felt like it’s not right. And now, I feel like the beginning of NIL has been a huge over correction to the other side. It’s just like, ‘pay them [athletes] whatever you can and whatever you want.’” 

   NIL deals can take many different forms. From free merch or food, to financial payments — the contracts differ widely. 

     “Each    school   seems   to have their own rules,” Bruton explained. “Each state has its own rules, congress is involved, so it’s kind of the wild, wild west out there.” 

  USD softball player and junior Janae Combs has also dipped her toes into NIL social media deals. Combs posted an Instagram reel to her 700 followers, promoting tape to help with menstrual cramps. Combs found this deal on an app which connects athletes and brands. She shared that it didn’t go exactly how she expected. 

   “It wasn’t my favorite deal,” Combs said. “It was a little bit cloudy with the information about what I would be receiving and stuff like that. I wasn’t a big fan of the deal itself, but I think it did help me get experience in that kind of world of NIL and now I kinda understand how it all works.”

   Combs   said she felt that the brand was not transparent about the compensation she would receive. 

     “I   thought   I   was   getting money, but it was just the product value and the product that I was getting,” Combs said. “So I think sometimes the NIL deal providers aren’t clear and you might be signing up and signing into contract with something you don’t exactly know what you’re signing up for.” 

 Despite this experience, Combs said she was open to more NIL deals in the future. 

   “Being on softball at USD … It’s not as big as other sports or other schools, so it’s not a lot of NIL deals either,” Combs said.  “So it’s more just kind of here and there or whatever. If I’m interested or want to scroll to the app and I see something cool you know try to apply for it, but it’s nothing I’m really driving to do.”

   USD Athletics has taken an active approach to working with student athletes on NIL deals. Last April, they launched a website to centralize information about NIL for athletes and businesses. This website goes over many of the FAQs and legal questions surrounding NIL. The website also links to “the Torero exchange,” which is a website that lists athlete profiles, with their information and social media handle, allowing brands to reach out to them and strike deals. 

  In Fall of 2024, Lauren Kirby came to the Athletics department to serve as USD’s first director of NIL. She explained how Athletics is helping Toreros navigate their deals. 

   “We offer one-on-one strategy sessions to any student-athlete who wants help in the NIL space – this ranges from help with brand outreach to strategy around social media presence,” Kirby said in a written statement. “We have hosted workshops open to all student-athletes with guest speakers specializing in areas such as sports marketing, personal branding, financial literacy, and social media/content creation.”

  USD’s Knauss School of Business is also paying attention to NIL. This year, professor Carlton O’Neal is teaching a class called Athlete Marketing in the Age of NIL. This class is meant both for athletes looking to market themselves as well as students who are interested in working in sports marketing. 

O’Neal explained the value of the class for athletes. 

    “If  people  implement  what I’m  teaching in the class, they’re going to go out and show who they are.” O’Neal said. “That’s going to give more notoriety to them and I think it’s going to be better for the school.” 

   O’Neal expanded that athletes can use their name, image and likeness to generate income for anything — not just themselves. 

 “There’s a swimmer in my class, she’s thinking of using her notoriety as a USD swimmer to teach kids swimming,” O’Neal said.  

   Another  way  NIL is taking place at USD is through full group sponsorships. Four full teams at USD have received NIL deals in the form of photoshoots which were posted to the brands’ and teams’ social media pages. The first was men’s rowing with Nautica, an apparel and lifestyle brand. Men’s and women’s tennis and men’s golf all received a deal with Vuori, a San Diego based athletic brand.

    Despite  the  benefits  that  many athletes have received from NIL, some believe there may be some negative  ramifications of NIL in college athletics. 

 “It’s definitely created some haves and have nots as far as Universities,” O’Neal said. “Especially the ones with the quote-en-quote ‘money sports:’ football, basketball, I mean they generate billions, so that’s probably been a bit of a negative thing for colleges overall.” 

 Many believe that this is causing athletes to transfer to more well-known schools to score NIL deals. Bruton explained this idea, and how it could negatively affect athletic programs at small schools such as USD.  

  “Say you are USD and your tight end catches 100 passes and has the opportunity to go somewhere that’s going to pay him half a million dollars,” Bruton said. “He’s gonna go … It would be crazy not to.”

  The world of NIL is still new and ever changing. This summer, a legal settlement opened a path for universities to pay their college athletes outright. As the policies evolve, the business of sports will continue to provide opportunities — and challenges to USD athletes. 

Last Spring Vuori announced partnership with USD’s golf and tennis team. Photo courtesy of @vuoriclothing/Instagram