Four USC coaches to attend House of Victory's quarterback NIL event

Lincoln Riley is now putting his weight behind a USC NIL collective.

The Trojans football coach will be attending House of Victory‘s quarterback NIL event this coming Monday, along with women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb, beach volleyball coach Dain Blanton and men’s basketball coach Andy Enfield.

The collective is hosting a “QB U” fundraiser Monday at the Hotel Vea in Newport Beach, California. Described as an “evening of current and past icons” Trojan quarterbacks Carson Palmer, Matt Barkley, Rodney Peete, Paul McDonald, Max Browne, Mark Sanchez and John David Booty will all be in attendance. Current quarterbacks Caleb Williams, Malachi Nelson and Miller Moss will also be on hand.

Earning support from athletic departments and administration has become a crucial tool for collectives trying to find long-term success. It gives fans insight into which organization the institution actually has faith in. And having Riley and his three peers at the event will only make it more worthwhile for the donors in attendance.

“The history of USC quarterbacks is massive and is the centerpiece of USC football,” House of Victory executive director Spencer Harris recently told On3. “It’s a long history of very successful college athletes that define what USC football is all about. We wanted to get different generations of USC quarterbacks all together for a really unique event that could help the fundraising for both the current and the future athletes of USC. It’s just all these different generations of talent that represent different eras of success at USC.

“I think it will be a really special night and a great way to bring awareness to House of Victory and awareness for an NIL overall and what that means in today’s college athletics.”

Importance of House of Victory securing Lincoln Riley’s backing

Riley nearly had USC playing in the College Football Playoff in his first season in Los Angeles. Williams went down with an injury in the Pac-12 title game. The reigning Heisman Trophy winner finished with 4,537 passing yards on the season with a 66.6% completion percentage in 2022.

After dinner and a quarterback panel, boosters will have access to a 45-minute panel featuring the four head coaches on Monday night. Tickets to the event run at $20,000 for a table, while individual tickets cost $2,500. All dollars raised will go back to the collective.

Raising NIL dollars has become imperative for football and basketball programs to attract and retain talent in college athletics. The Trojans are ranked No. 2 in On3’s transfer portal rankings, landing defensive lineman Bear Alexander and offensive lineman Emmanuel Pregnon.

House of Victory held a meet and greet last week with at least 12 other USC athletes. A mutual-benefit nonprofit corporation, the collective secured a sponsorship agreement through USC’s multimedia rights holder, Playfly, prior to its launch. The deal allows the collective to use USC trademarks and provides access to advertising.

“To compete in today’s college athletics, it takes a major commitment from USC alumni and a strong NIL program to support the current players,” Harris said. “This event represents that. It’s going to be an exclusive event — you won’t have the opportunity to be around this type of current and former players that had this type of history with the school.”