UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson signs NIL deal with Activision

UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson promoted the video game “Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time” through a recent NIL deal with the video game developer and publisher Activision. Thompson-Robinson posted a sponsored TikTok video of him playing the game, complete with on-screen captions that were written in an arcade-style font.

Thompson-Robinson has more than 640,000 followers on TikTok.

The NIL marketplace MOGL helped facilitate the deal. MOGL co-founder and CEO Ayden Syal said there was a strong fit between Thompson-Robinson and the Santa Monica, California-based video game developer.

“The fact that he plays the game and had a strong appreciation for the new launch was a requirement here and definitely something that Activision looked at,” Syal said. “We wanted the content to be not only organic but truly mean something.”

“It’s been a great season, bro,” Thompson-Robinson says into a gaming headset in the video, while playing the video game. “Yeah, we’ve been playing some really good teams. You know, I’m feeling it right now.”

Through seven games, Thompson-Robinson has completed a career-high 73.8% of his pass attempts for 1,772 yards, 17 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He has also rushed for 267 yards and four touchdowns. UCLA (6-1) is ranked No. 12 in the latest AP Top 25 poll.

In the video, an actor who’s wearing a Crash Bandicoot costume jumps into view.

“Wait a minute,” Thompson-Robinson says. “Aye, you’re Crash Bandicoot, aren’t you?”

Through some creative video editing, Thompson-Robinson appears in the video game world.

“What is this place, dude?” Thompson-Robinson says.

The actor playing Crash Bandicoot responds, “Hey man, it’s my homeland.”

The opening scene of Thompson-Robinson’s TikTok video said “Part I” and he will post two more parts as part of the partnership. Other athletes will share Thompson-Robinson’s video, plus create their own content, too.

The future of partnerships with video game publishers

With “EA Sports College Football” scheduled for a July 2023 release, following a hiatus of EA Sports’ college football video games after the release of “NCAA Football 14,” there could soon be an increase in NIL deals between college athletes and video game publishers.

The players whose names, images and likenesses will be used in “EA Sports College Football” will agree to participate in the video game through a group licensing partner, but EA Sports could also partner with specific, high-profile players to promote its release.

The player who’s chosen to appear on the cover of the video game will likely receive additional compensation on top of the agreed-upon group licensing terms.

“I think that we absolutely will see a massive uptick in video game promotion amongst athletes just given the fact that the engagement rates amongst their audiences is going to be their friends who they’re playing the games with and things like that,” Syal said. “So 100%. I mean, group rights and group licensing is going to be a major component of this. We could also see, as the metaverse continues to expand, basically player profiles or player avatars be associated with group rights as well.”

Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s On3 NIL Valuation

Thompson-Robinson, a fifth-year senior quarterback and former On3 Consensus top-50 recruit who’s playing in the country’s second-largest media market, now has nearly a dozen publicly announced NIL deals. He has partnered with companies such as crocs and SoFi.

He has an On3 NIL Valuation of $771,000, which ranks No. 24 among college football players and No. 41 in the On3 NIL 100.

The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets the standard NIL market value for high school and college athletes. It utilizes a proprietary algorithm that calculates an athlete’s NIL market value using dynamic data points targeting three primary categories, including an athlete’s performance, exposure and influence.

The On3 NIL 100 is the first of its kind and the defacto ranking of the top 100 high school and college athletes based upon their On3 NIL Valuations.

Thompson-Robinson benefits from having more than 760,000 total followers on his social media channels.

“From a storytelling perspective, Dorian is, if not the largest, one of the largest collegiate athletes in the L.A. area,” Syal said.