Dieunerst Collin to star in Popeyes' Super Bowl commercial thanks to NIL deal

Last month, Dieunerst Collin used social media to draw attention from Popeyes. Roughly a decade ago, he had been filmed while waiting to use a Popeyes soda machine. The video went viral on the now defunct social media platform Vine.

The clip has lived on, however, thanks to his side eye becoming a meme and a piece of pop culture.

His call on social media in January drew the attention of the fried chicken fast food chain. Within seven hours of the initial plea, a representative from the restaurant chain said the company wanted to sign him to an NIL deal.

That was really just the start, though. Since the initial interaction with Popeyes, he’s signed an agreement and appeared on a billboard in his hometown of East Orange, New Jersey.

This weekend, he is going nationwide. The Lake Erie College freshman offensive lineman will star in the brand’s Super Bowl commercial on Sunday night. In it, Dieunerst Collin is introduced as “that meme kid.” Rolling up to a house in a white Tesla, he opens the door and multiple puppies come rolling out.

In the next shot, he’s sitting inside the house with puppies climbing over him. Collin announces as part of the commercial, he has his own meal offer called the “eyes on the fries or pies offer.”

“I get to keep one of these puppies, right?” he asks in the final shot.

From internet meme fame, to a Big Game ad. @CollinDieunerst got his eyes on the fries (or pies). pic.twitter.com/SuYMYdWmvI

— Popeyes (@Popeyes) February 6, 2023

From internet meme fame to an NIL success story, Collin has expanded on his initial deal with the national brand. And a six-second clip from a decade ago is now helping him cash in.

“It’s very, very, very, very weird,” Collin told On3’s Andy Wittry of landing the NIL deal back in January. “I never thought I would actually get one. Because, you know, I see a lot of players getting it and everything, and I think it’s like, ‘Oh, wow! I pray one day I can get one,’ and then, ‘Poof,’ like magic, I automatically get one.”

His partnership with Popeyes is not his first move in the NIL space. He previously signed an NIL deal with a local brand called Lock1n in East Orange, New Jersey.

Dieunerst Collin’s tapping into platform

Since first posting his call to Popeyes on his Instagram account in January, he has added nearly 20,000 followers.

The opportunities have not stopped there. Collin is now on the FanBasis platform, a marketplace where fans can purchase digital experiences with athletes and celebrities. He appeared on the Tamron Hall Show.

All for an athlete who has admitted he didn’t like being know as the Popeyes kid. But he has started to embrace, which has opened up more possibilities.

“Now that I have this platform and this following, I get to be myself,” he said. “Cause you know, I’m a playful guy. I like to make jokes and I just like to be myself and I’m pretty sure everyone who follows me and hopefully whoever keeps following me will like whatever content I have.”

Collin told On3 back in January he is majoring in communications. His Lake Erie College bio states he’s minoring in “comedian studies.” A 6-foot-1, 330-pound offensive lineman, he hopes to play professionally someday.

“That’s obviously a college player’s dream,” he said.

Beyond his on-field dreams, he wants to work as a sports analyst after college. Now starring in his first commercial, he’s had some more experience in front of the camera.