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Today’s Case

Montana junior college pairs up with local shoe store

It’s not very often you hear about NIL deals at the JUCO level.

That has changed, courtesy of one head coach and a local business.

Dempster Jackson, head cross country and track and field coach at Dawson Community College in Glendive, Montana recently orchestrated NIL deals for two of his athletes.

He connected with Glendive-based Shoe Shack owner Mark Nicholson last fall, who was immediately sold on the proposal, noting: “It’s about the cheapest advertising you can buy and reach the demographic we’re trying to reach.”

The two athletes, Cody Harrington and Mia Snyder, are marketing the Skechers Performance GO RUN Ride 11 running shoe. Shoe Shack gives both student-athletes free running shoes, plus $25 per athlete for each promotional shoot (there's only been one so far). Then the runners share promos on their social media accounts, hopefully attracting followers toward Shoe Shack for business.

Nicholson states that the conversation and foot traffic to his store has increased, courtesy of these NIL deals.

The Verdict

• NIL for All

  • This proves that NIL is not only for the top 1% of athletes, those playing football, or those at Power 5 institutions. NIL also helps to level the playing field away from sports and provides student-athletes from all sports and social media followings to capitalize on their brand.

• Open the doors for other JUCO’s

  • As junior colleges generally don’t tap into NIL (this is actually the first such partnership I’ve read about), perhaps this can be a motivator for student-athletes at other two-year institutions to leverage their name, image and likeness.

  • Additionally, much respect to Coach Jackson on putting his athletes forth for deals. (Most coaches are not allowed to do this, though.)

• Local deals bring value

  • While national brand deals deliver their worth (along with a high price tag), not every athlete will have access to these partnerships.

  • It’s important for all athletes wanting to maximize their NIL to work with local businesses, either near campus or their hometown.

    • Benefits include building a long-term relationship while the athlete attends that school, and marketing that targets a local audience, among other advantages.

Meet this year’s men’s Final Four NIL star

North Carolina State’s DJ Burns has scored several deals in the past month. Check out this video for more!

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^{I discuss insights and news related to name, image and likeness in 3 minutes or less every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 12p ET/9a PT.}

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