Leading a Mid-Major NIL Collective

Learnings from nearly two years of working in NIL.

NIL isn't just contracts. It's about trust, timing, and showing up for your athletes.

I am the Executive Director of the Olé Foundation, the preferred partner NIL collective for the University of San Diego. We officially launched in April of 2024, though we wanted to launch as soon as paying athletes became permissible in 2021. I personally signed an NIL deal with the University of Arizona in November of 2021, announced on the Pac-12 Conference website. I've been active in NIL — and persistent in supporting my alma mater's performance — since Day 1.

But if it takes two to tango, you need a willing dance partner. USD wasn't willing until 2024, which is why our collective lagged nearly three years behind many other schools.

Starting behind, catching up

We're still learning lessons that other schools learned between 2021 and 2025, but generally those lessons haven't been as expensive — or as torturous — for us. Our beginning in 2024 was mostly an attempt to do something. We got money to a couple football players, a couple basketball players, and a couple baseball players. Something was better than nothing, but we were, and in many cases still are, behind others at our level.

A side note: I won't be mentioning explicit player values, as confidentiality clauses prohibit discussing individual deal and contract amounts.

Our Year 1 budget (April 2024 through June 30, 2025) was small but meaningful. Especially in basketball, we were integral in providing money to many players — nearly the entire roster — who were transferring in. First and last month's rent, security deposits, and moving expenses add up quickly, and I'm proud we could help cover those costs for a non–high-profile sport. We also supported a couple of baseball players: one drafted in the third round, another a freshman All-American.

The unfortunate truth is that the highest-paid athletes from our collective in football, basketball, and baseball either didn't see the field last season or won't next season. That's not a great return on investment.

What the money is really for

So-called country club sports are seeing NIL agreements, or university-paid revenue-sharing deals, of $100,000 or more. We have one of the top tennis players in the country in Oliver Tarvet. Because of outdated rules that may change this year, Ollie couldn't claim roughly $150,000 in prize money from Wimbledon after winning a match there before falling to Carlos Alcaraz last summer.

The university has stepped up with revenue sharing for some sports. Others are stretching limited budgets. Alumni are stepping up too.

Success in modern college athletics requires a dual-threat approach: former athletes and current administrators working together to unlock the value available to winning teams — though doing so requires intentionality and discipline.

Our collective bridges the gap between NCAA rules and modern competitiveness. If a recruit is close with their brother, mother, and father, schools can typically only accommodate the athlete plus two on an official visit. Without a collective, someone gets left at home.

Guaranteed money vs. hypothetical money

At the Power Four level, there will likely be close to $1 billion in unguaranteed, non-secured NIL deals offered this calendar year alone. The volume is staggering — and so is how much of it is not guaranteed.

Schools are offering revenue-sharing deals, which are guaranteed, but most athletes won't receive rev-share dollars exclusively. Compensation is typically a blend of rev share (often restrictive and penal) and NIL (often hypothetical and uncertain). There are many better ways to structure this.

I expect some schools will default on NIL payments, largely to save money. The same impulse that drives university-friendly contracts will lead to unfulfilled NIL agreements. I don't operate that way, but I know many schools do, will, or already have.

The road ahead

I envision the USD collective as an alumni engagement resource — a beacon for passionate supporters to rally around with confidence and purpose. Our best days are ahead. I look forward to being part of the solution and continuing to figure out how to resource our programs, coaches, and players.

Go Toreros.