Volunteer Legacy holds networking event with local charities

Spyre Sports Group has managed one of the leading collectives in the first 20 months of NIL.

Now the Tennessee-focused sports marketing agency is focusing on its 501(c)(3) entity. Volunteer Legacy creates charitable opportunities for Vols’ athletes. While the entity was established this past September, it is becoming a priority this spring for Spyre.

The groundwork for the future was set on Wednesday. With more than 20 charities present, Volunteer Legacy welcomed roughly 50 Tennessee athletes to a networking event at the Lauricella Center in Neyland Stadium.

“We’ve talked to over 50 charitable organizations, we’re going to have 20 present today along with our partners Emerald Youth and East Tennessee Children’s Hospital,” Spyre’s director of fundraising Brandon Spurlock told On3 in a phone interview Wednesday. “First, we want to change the dialogue of what NIL is and use it to do positive things. Through tax-deductible dollars with Vol Legacy, we can give athletes the opportunity, through this event, to have a say in how they partner with us and which organizations they partner with.”

Open to every Tennessee athlete, the hope is to create a meaningful NIL opportunity between the Vol athlete and their charity. Instead of forcing a student-athlete to work with a nonprofit in order to receive compensation, Volunteer Legacy is trying to drive up the number of charities involved.

Not only were athletes able to have a speed-dating session with the 20 charities, they’ll also be allowed to bring in an organization they previously worked with. While Spurlock did not go into details on the contracts run through Volunteer Legacy, they will have a minimum benchmark of social media posts and community service hours to complete.

“We want them to be eager, and we want it beneficial for the charity,” he said. “We don’t just want guys and girls to show up, do some work and be grumpy about it. Instead, trying for one that might be meaningful. We won’t hit 100 percent on that, but we’re hoping to coming close.”

Spyre co-founders Hunter Baddour and James Clawson have been working on the concept of Volunteer Legacy for months. They’ve also assembled a board, which includes former Tennessee quarterback Josh Dobbs and receiver Grant Frerking. Chris Kinney, who has a background in investment banking and private equity, sits as the board’s president.

Similar to other NIL collectives across the country, creating nonprofits allows for donors to make tax-deductible donations. It’s also another avenue to create NIL opportunities. Volunteer Legacy is currently accepting one-time donations on its website.

“This event marks the first step in a long journey,” Baddour said. “Today is about how our athletes use their NIL to make a true impact across the state of Tennessee. This event allows them to have a say in who they are partnering with which will ultimately lead to stronger relationships and, more importantly, great results for the many charitable organizations represented here today.”

Volunteer Legacy aiming to assist in NIL sustainability

Earlier this week, The Volunteer Club, which is run by Spyre, announced it had active members in every U.S. state. As multiple collectives across the college landscape evolve and consolidate, generating new revenue is a priority for every entity moving forward.

Since July 2021, the club has worked with more than 200 Tennessee athletes across 11 programs, procuring $13.5 million in NIL deals, Baddour told On3. The eight-figure number comes from endorsement deals Spyre has facilitated along with The Volunteer Club’s athlete partnership program.

The hope is those numbers only rise. Spurlock sees Volunteer Legacy as a key piece in ensuring that happens.

“We feel, thanks to James and Hunter, we’ve been out front on a lot of things,” he said. “This is just another one where we’re trying to lead the way. This is what we felt was best. We listened to our supporters and our potential supporters.

“Our board has been heavily involved in this. For us, the ability to track and generate tax-deductible dollars is vital to this word everybody is using — sustainability. This is just one part of us trying to achieve that.”