In the current world of college athletics, the topic of “Name, Image, and Likeness” has stormed onto the scene since the NCAA rule change in July 2021. With the legislation continuing to grow, Ferris State University is looking to advance with it.

According to Athletic Director Steve Brockelbank, the athletic department is “preparing to partner with a third-party organization to help manage and scale all NIL opportunities available to student athletes.”

The school has met with various organizations regarding the management opportunity, including one company they met with on Tuesday.

“We should have that done in a week or two,” Brockelbank said.

Under the name, image, and likeness realm, student athletes now are allowed to make money through ventures like endorsement deals and partnerships with businesses. Many of these opportunities come through the developing world of social media and public engagement.

The first year under new NIL regulations has shown a huge impact on Division One football. Some
players will make excess of $2 million over the next year thanks to this rule change. While many may say only the high-profile athletes can get access to NIL opportunities, Brockelbank believes this isn’t
necessarily the case.

“I think a lot of people make the assumption that NIL opportunities are reserved to high level Division
One student athletes,” Brockelbank said. “That's not necessarily the case. I think our student athletes
want to have some opportunities in the future as well.”

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