NIL Deals of the Week: Wake Forest's Tyree Appleby signs with Applebee’s

While the NIL landscape continues to evolve, collectives are coming up with unique fundraising initiatives.

When collectives sprung up across the country soon after the NCAA started to allow athletes to monetize their name, image and likeness, the conversation quickly turned to sustainability. Would these organizations be able to raise real dollars once the shine wore off?

Collectives are now finding new ways to keep boosters entertained and active. In the past week, one collective announced plans for a cruise while another facilitated a deal with a historic hotel.

As a reminder, feel free to submit info on your NIL deal to On3. You can send an email to [email protected] or reach out via DM or comment on Twitter to @On3NIL or @deals_nil. Direct messages are open, too, on the @On3NIL Instagram account.

Let’s get to the deals that highlighted this week in NIL.

Wake Forest’s Tyree Appleby inks NIL deal with Applebee’s

Back in October at ACC Media Days, Wake Forest‘s Tyree Appleby made the joke he would like to land an NIL deal with Applebee’s. Fans have constantly tagged the restaurant chain in tweets this season, trying to draw attention.

It finally worked.

Appleby and Applebee’s announced a partnership this past week on social media. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. But the video released with the announcement was name, image and likeness at its best.

“I love this place,” Appleby says in the advertisement. “But they spelled it wrong.”

The commercial cuts to Appleby outside of an Applebee’s holding up a “Y” in front of the bar and grill’s iconic sign.

“It should be Y, not E, E,” he says. “But lucky for them, I have their backs.”

The spot then focuses on Appleby holding a T-shirt with Applebee’s logo redesigned to spell it the same way as his last name. There are also campaign-style buttons with the slogan “Y Not?” on a table in the commercial. Plus, Appleby is seen placing stickers over Applebee’s menus with the newly designed logo spelled “Appleby’s.”

A transfer from Florida, he has become one of the top players in the ACC this season. The point guard is averaging 18.6 points and 6.2 assists per game. His deal with Applebee’s also provides an example of major brands investing in the NIL. Reese’s signed 12 football players back in October. And Buffalo Wild Wings followed it up by signing eight college football players to create the “first-ever All-Sauce team” in January.

Appleby has a $93,000 On3 NIL Valuation.

BYU stars sailing to paradise through NIL initiative

CougConnect, a BYU-focused collective, has turned heads with its creative deals since its inception in November 2021.

Now the collective is back with another innovative NIL opportunity, this time for fans to participate in. CougConnect recently announce it’s going “Cruising With the Cougs” as part of its new NIL partnership with football players Masen Wake, Max Tooley, Miles Davis and Keanu Hill.

In what is believed to be the first-ever NIL cruise, BYU fans – and CougConnect subscribers – have a chance to go on a four-day Carnival Cruise out of Long Beach, California, to Ensenada, Mexico, from April 28 to May 1. As part of the $350 player package for three people, fans get two to three dinners with different players and mini-golf with the players.

A swag bag including BYU gear from Banter and CougConnect swag is also available for the first 10 groups that purchase the player package. Fans will also have access to interviews conducted by the BYU-focused Hype Train Podcast.

CougConnect Director Jake Brandon said there would also be times when the group will meet up with the players for lunch or a movie. “Cruising With the Cougs” is sponsored by Banter, Pacific Horizon Credit Union and the Hype Train Podcast.

“We knew it would be a NIL first and likely get attention,” Brandon said. “That’s how we got those sponsors on board. The four players are very excited about the trip.”

Georgia, Oklahoma women’s basketball sign team deals

Team-wide NIL deals are not new in college athletics or women’s basketball. They’ve continued to pick up in popularity over the past six months. Level 13 Agency committed $25,000 to each Texas Tech player earlier this past summer.

The South Carolina women’s basketball is also making $25,000 or more in NIL agreements this season; that was announced in September. Auburn-focused NIL collective On To Victory signed the entire team this past December but did not disclose details of the deal.

In a growing landscape where cash is king, securing compensation is not a problem. But questions of how much is starting to become true dealbreakers in recruiting. That’s not only reserved for football, either.

In the last week, two new women’s basketball programs have struck teamwide partnerships. 1Oklahoma, the nonprofit collective founded by a group of businessmen and Hall of Fame Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer, said it signed the entire Sooners women’s basketball team.

The Classic City Collective facilitated a teamwide partnership this week between the women’s basketball team and Conditioned Air Systems. The HVAC company based out of Gainesville, Georgia, has been contracted in the past for a handful of university projects.

Terms of the agreements were not disclosed. But it is yet another reminder that staying competitive in college sports now has NIL on the checklist.

4-star 2024 recruit Vyctorius Miller signs with Under Armour

Landing NIL deals with up-and-coming basketball stars have been a focus for major sneaker companies.

Nike signed Bronny James, DJ Wagner and Judea Watkins – all high school basketball stars – back in October. Adidas has also been aggressive, signing proven college talent and establishing an NIL network. And Puma is working with the Pauldo Sisters and Flau’jae Johnson.

Under Armour made its own statement on Wednesday. The sportswear company signed an endorsement deal with Vyctorius Miller. The four-star recruit in the Class of 2024 was pictured in an Instagram post, promoting Under Armour’s new Spawn 5 Carnival Pack sneaker.

Miller is the nephew of Master P. He’s also the son of Vyshon Miller, who is better known as Silkk the Shocker, a multiplatinum artist who thrived with No Limit Records. A 6-foot-5, 170-pound shooting guard, Miller has received offers from Kansas, USC, UCLA, Syracuse, Memphis and Oregon, among others.

Originally from North Hollywood, California, Miller is spending his junior year at Arizona’s Compass Prep. Because the school is not a member of the Arizona Interscholastic Association, he does not have to follow the governing body’s NIL policy, which prohibits athletes from profiting from their publicity rights.

What move Miller makes next will be interesting to watch. The majority of schools currently recruiting him are either adidas or Nike. Or aligning with Under Armour could be a sign of an early jump to the NBA.

901 Fund strikes deal with The Peabody Memphis

The 901 Fund, the preferred Memphis-aligned NIL collective, struck one of the more interesting NIL deals this week. In a facilitated by the collective, The Peabody Memphis hotel partnered with the Tigers men’s basketball team. Memphis players will use their NIL rights to promote local charities.

Guests who book a night’s stay at The Peabody Memphis through the 901 Fund’s “NIL package” will help fund opportunities for Memphis athletes. The Peabody Memphis’ website says each reservation will result in a $75 donation to the 901 Fund, “earmarked for Memphis men’s basketball to further connect student-athletes with charitable organizations in the City of Memphis.”

The NIL package starts at $275. Last week, Memphis senior forward Malcolm Dandridge served as Honorary Duckmaster, which is a ceremonial role based around the twice-a-day tradition of ducks visiting the fountain in the hotel lobby at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. every day.

The Peabody Memphis will also contribute $1 to the 901 Fund for every sale of its “Arctic Tiger” cocktail and its lemon and blueberry Bavarian tart. The items are sold in its lobby bar and deli.

Honorable Mention

• Graham Mertz is riding around Gainesville, Florida, with a new set of wheels. The Florida quarterback, who transferred from Wisconsin, landed a Range Rover Sport Supercharged in a partnership with Essential Motors NJ. The agreement does not give Mertz the keys for free but it does provide a favorable discount on the car.
• Charlie Hustle partnered with Kansas State basketball stars Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson on two new shirts. Terms of the deal were not released. But the deals were facilitated by Wildcat NIL, a K-State-focused collective.
• The Grove Collective signed another wave of Ole Miss football players. The preferred NIL collective of Rebel athletics announced the signing of eight athletes on Tuesday.
• Florida State-focused NIL collective Rising Spear facilitated a new deal with Seminoles beach volleyball star Maddie Anderson and Garnet & Gold, which is known as Tallahassee’s last locally-owned Florida State apparel store.
• Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders and his family starred in a commercial for the yogurt brand Oikos that aired in some markets during the Super Bowl on Sunday. Sanders tweeted a clip from it before the game, too. His sons Shedeur and Shilo appeared in the commercial using their name, image and likeness rights.

Jeremy Crabtree and Andy Wittry contributed to this story.