Minnesota's Daniel Jackson turns potential Catch of the Year into NIL deal
Thanks to NIL, college football stars can immediately capitalize on their success within hours, especially if they have the right NIL partnership in place. Minnesota receiver Daniel Jackson is a perfect example.
Last Thursday night, Jackson hauled in an improbable, toe-dragging touchdown catch, helping the Golden Gophers beat Nebraska. Even though the grab came in Week 1, it’s already a candidate for Catch of the Year.
On a 4th-and-10 play in the red zone late in the fourth quarter, Minnesota quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis launched a lofting ball to the corner of the end zone for Jackson. At first glance, there was no way Jackson was going to make the catch and still stay in bounds. But incredibly, he properly dragged his left toes and kept his right leg in the air while coming up with the catch before going out of bounds. The touchdown led to an eventual walk-off field goal that gave Minnesota the victory.
It was a viral moment for Jackson that racked up social media views and spawned GIFs. The moment also launched four different T-shirt and sweatshirt designs. The officially licensed shirts feature an image of Jackson making the catch and “The Toe Tap” emblazoned in Minnesota gold and maroon.
The design was created through Jackson’s NIL partnership with Dinkytown Athletes, the official collective linked with Minnesota. The T-shirts, hoodies and sweatshirts are available on the Athlete’s Thread website, ranging from $27.99 to $54.99. The Athlete’s Thread website features more than 100,000 NIL products and showcases the talents of more than 10,000 student-athletes from 78 different schools.
Less than 24 hours after making the catch and shortly after the gear was released, Jackson promoted the T-shirts, hoodies and sweatshirts on his social media handles. His posts promoting the NIL deal generated more than 25,000 views on X.
Dinkytown Athletes connects Minnesota athletes
Dinkytown Athletes launched in September 2022 in what was originally a crowded collective space. However, Dinkytown has the full support of football coach P.J. Fleck but also the university and the athletic department. It soon became the leader and the only collective in the Golden Gopher marketplace.
Dinkytown Athletes was co-founded by former Gophers offensive lineman Derek Burns and Rob Gag, a lifelong supporter of the program. The collective already has signed more than 70 student-athletes from various sports.
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“Our charter is to help student-athletes navigate NIL opportunities and help our local business community and fan base with never-before-seen access to our U of MN athletes,” Dinkytown Athletes’ website says.
Daniel Jackson’s big game
Daniel Jackson wasn’t just a one-hit wonder for the Gophers. He was big throughout the game against Nebraska. He finished with nine catches for 68 yards and had numerous impressive catches against the Cornhuskers’ defense.
“We trust Daniel with the ball in his hands,” Kaliakmanis said after the game. “And you know he’s going to make that play.”
Added Jackson: “I’m just happy I could do it for my brothers and that I could come through when my name was called. It feels really good.”
So, good that Fleck plans to put a picture of the catch in his office.
“That’s a catch that goes on the wall forever,” Fleck said.
In the game, Jackson also became the 28th Gopher to reach the 1,000 career receiving yard mark. During his junior season in 2022, he led the team in receiving yards (557), receiving touchdowns (5) and was second in receptions.