Purdue Athletics: Name, Image and Likeness

The topic of the week for NCAA Athletes - The NIL.

Name, Image and Likeness.

An opportunity that has been years in the making. Court Cases in the making.

Just over 10 years ago, College Programs could sell jerseys with their players last names, could sell bobble heads that looked like the player, could basically sell their name to make a profit, including our beloved NCAA Sports Games.

That ended.

Colleges give scholarships, they give an education, they give an opportunity.

Top tier players give exposure, prime time television and massive contracts from sponsors to these same schools.

On Social Media, it seems like the world is split. Some love the idea that college athletes can sell their NIL now and of course, some hate it.

Imagine this - the United States of America is split on a controversial topic.

But, isn’t that why this country is great? We can have varying opinions, agree or disagree on something and life moves on.

The NIL is here to stay for college athletes and personally, I think it is a great opportunity for a school like Purdue and a great opportunity for the athletes that want to become Boilermakers.

Outside of knowing how these players are on the playing field or on the court, what do we REALLY know about them? The answer is - not a lot. Do we even know what some of their majors are in college? Do we know where they even came from?

Athletics is a results driven venture and that is what fans, season tick holders and John Purdue Club Members care about.

But, now, we get this unique chance to learn a little bit more about our Purdue Athletes, or Athletes across the nation.

Did you know that Zander Horvath could do this?

No, none of us did, outside of his family - and sadly, not many probably cared. But, I think this is a great opportunity to get behind our athletes and support them in something outside of just cheering for them on a Saturday Afternoon.

The majority of college athletes are not going to sign with Coca-Cola, or Tostitos or Kraft, that is something the NCAA would do, something for millions of dollars.

I truly believe we will see college athletes mostly focus on growing their OWN brand, something they do when they get to the pros, generally.

Or, maybe we will see a college athlete openly endorse a local business he grew up going to as a kid, a business that is ran by his or hers parents.

Maybe to raise money for a cause.

It could also be a way in for a young fledgling business to get their name out, just a bit more as they try and grow their media presence, because lets be honest, most small businesses do not work out without some type of prominent social media ties.

Or maybe it is a business that is tied to the university, like Mad Mushroom Purdue, Harry’s, Brothers, etc, that just wants to be kore involved with a Purdue Athlete.

While, I can see and understand some obvious flaws that people are bound to bring up in the comments. I think this is an exciting change for college athletes.

They get to show their personality outside of the playing field, they get an opportunity to show who they are to a fan base that pours their pride into their athletic achievements. Now, I think it is our time to pour our pride into their athletic AND their personal achievements.

Congratulations, College Athletes.