The 1890 Initiative signs NIL deals with top Nebraska volleyball players

Player retention support by NIL collectives isn’t just for football.

Since the Transfer Portal opened, collectives have been announcing NIL deal after NIL deal with top returning football players. In fact, over the past year, collectives have become a critical part of player retention and roster management for football programs. Yet, roster management NIL deals impact other sports, too.

Take what’s going on at Nebraska for example.

The 1890 Initiative, a Cornhusker-focused collective launched three months ago, announced Thursday it signed Lexi Rodriguez and Lindsay Krause, two of the top returning NU volleyball players. Like it is on the football side of things, it’s expected that almost the entire volleyball roster at Nebraska will be part of NIL deals with 1890 eventually.

While movement by football players in the Transfer Portal generates the most headlines, college recruiters say there are similar changes impacting rosters in women’s sports, especially in volleyball and soccer. So, collectives that do a good job of striking deals with top players can be important factors in reducing turnover in those sports, too.

That’s why these partnerships between Rodriguez, Krause and The 1890 Initiative matter for the Huskers volleyball program.

Rodriguez is one of volleyball’s top players. The sophomore was a second-team All-America and first-team unanimous All-Big Ten selection in 2022. She led the Huskers to a nation-leading .128 opponent hitting percentage with 4.26 digs per set.

Krause played in 31 matches and averaged 2.26 kills per set with a .271 hitting percentage in 2022. Krause was picked to the NCAA Austin Regional All-Tournament Team and was a Big Ten All-Freshman Team selection in 2021.

Both are impact players for Nebraska, who advanced to an NCAA Regional for the 38^th time in program history this season. Rodriguez has an On3 NIL Valuation of $42,000. Krause’s value is $19,000.

The 1890 Initiative making headlines all over for Huskers

The 1890 Initiative – founded by former Husker great Matt Davison and Nebraska businessmen Tom Peed and Shawn Peed – has generated a lot of headlines over the past few weeks.

Since the start of the new year, 1890 has signed NIL agreements with six football players, including key returners Ajay Allen Jr., Marcus Washington, Teddy Prochazka and Ty Robinson.

Overall, 1890 has agreed to 12 deals in the last three weeks and also announced that senior volleyball player Kenzie Knuckles has been hired as the collective’s Director of Events and Fulfillment.

The 1890 Initiative developing into top collective

The 1890 Initiative launched with much fanfare in October. But even then, collective leaders said it would take a little bit before we see the full scope of their game plan to assist Nebraska student-athletes.

Along with all of Davison’s ties to the program – which included 19 years on the Huskers’ radio broadcasts and helping raise $80 million for the NU’s new football facility project – having Tom and Shawn Peed associated is a big deal.

The Peeds run Sandhills Global, a company that produces a diverse range of products and services from well-established trade publications and websites to hosted technology services. They are among the most successful businessmen in the Midwest.

Plus, Davison will also build a team of employees for 1890 that will include Joe Selig as vice president for development. Selig announced earlier this year his planned retirement from his position as senior vice president for development for the University of Nebraska Foundation.

1890 is initially focused on Husker football and volleyball student-athletes. The plan is to assist them with NIL opportunities in Nebraska through local charities, partnerships and networking with local businesses. NIL opportunities, according to 1890, will include camps and clinics, community outreach, autograph signings, public appearances, nonprofit engagement, social media promotions and other activities.

“There are a lot of questions about the future of Nebraska football, and NIL is a big component of that,” On3’s HuskerOnline Publisher Sean Callahan said. “Having a collective backed by the Peeds and led by Matt Davison and Joe Selig is a home run. Davison was responsible for raising $80 million for Nebraska’s new football facility project, while Selig is one of the most respected University of Nebraska fundraisers of all time.”

1890 Initiative absorbs Athlete Branding & Marketing

Another sure sign that the move by Davison and the Peed family is massive for the Cornhuskers is that 1890 absorbed Athlete Branding & Marketing.

Athlete Branding & Marketing was the first and most prominent collective to offer NIL opportunities to Nebraska athletes. ABM formerly represented dozens of mostly football and volleyball players since August of 2021.

ABM ceased operations at the end of 2022. It had been headed by Gerrod Lambrecht, the former Nebraska football chief of staff under former head coach Scott Frost.

When Frost was dismissed on Sept. 11, Davison said he at that point knew ABM “was going to wind down operations by the end of the year.”