Steve Sarkisian, Rodney Terry set for Texas One Fund meet and greet

Patrick “Wheels” Smith is close to saying he is comfortable with where Texas currently stands in the world of NIL.

Roughly six months ago, five separate NIL entities focused on Longhorn athletics came together to form the Texas One Fund. After jousting for funding, all efforts were consolidated under one umbrella. Over the last 22 months, donor-led collectives have quickly learned simple messaging is effective. A clouded market can lead to confusion amongst the fanbase and even reluctance to support the collectives.

As the president of the Texas One Fund, Smith is thinking about sustainability and funding on a daily basis. He is confident about where the Longhorns are and where they’re going, especially with the jump to the SEC scheduled for 2024.

Football coach Steve Sarkisian and men’s basketball coach Rodney Terry will meet with donors and fans Thursday at the Austin Country Club. With a $1,000 entry fee for a couple, coaches will have the chance to share their first-hand experiences on how NIL is shaping recruiting and college athletics.

“I think any time the coaches are able to communicate the importance of NIL, and in a setting like that, they’ll get to have one-off conversations,” Smith told On3 in a phone interview. “They’re going to be able to explain it. Sark will do a good job of explaining how he recruits, which isn’t any different than he always has. You’re recruiting Texas. You’re recruiting how you’re making a decision for the rest of your life. But NIL is the last piece of that. Saying ‘We have a robust program on par with anybody else in the country.’ Telling the donor base that, in a setting that’s all about NIL, it’s huge.

“For people to go to that – coaches are so good at talking with the audience, so people really get an inside look of how we recruit, what we’re doing, what all these coaches think about their roster.”

Having coaches come in and speak about why NIL matters is effective, Smith said. Before the NCAA released guidance back in October allowing athletic directors and coaches to endorse these organizations, many institutions opted to stay on the sidelines. The thought of the NCAA making schools an example of an NIL punishment outweighed promoting collectives.

Since then, however, personnel have come out and openly backed these organizations. The norm around college football and basketball has developed into a game of lucrative financial packages in recruiting and the transfer portal.

Events featuring coaches have become a popular fundraising tactic across the country. Collectives at Florida, Ohio State and USC have all held events prominently featuring athletes and coaches. It provides the opportunity for donors to experience a true return on investment by grabbing an autograph or a photo.

Having a successful collective can be crucial to winning. The top-funded collectives aim to have a bankroll of $8 million for an 85-scholarship roster. More collectives at the Power 5 level are operating in the $3 million to $6 million ballpark, though. Each is forced to devise different strategies to attack recruiting. Some have decided to just stop spending significant dollars on high school prospects altogether. 

For Smith, having two of the most prominent figures in Longhorn athletics speak and fundraise on behalf of the Texas One Fund is priceless. And the price donors will pay to interact with Sarkisian and Terry will go back to athletes.

“The minute the NCAA came out with the guidance allowing Sark, RT, all these guys to solicit on behalf of us. Before it was weird, it was a smart thing for them to do,” the collective’s president said. “A lot of this – there’s a great comfort. But you’re still wrestling a gorilla. There’s so much stuff to do. If you want to get on the same page what do we want as a program, what do the coaches want, what are we looking at? And then time; everyone’s time is valuable.”