Gabe Ikard, Dusty Dvoracek Launch Strengthening Oklahoma as 'The Good Part of NIL'
As NIL opportunities begin to proliferate for Oklahoma football players, one thing distinguishes the newest one from the others.
It’s run by two former Sooner Academic All-Americans and All-Big 12 Conference players.
Dusty Dvoracek and Gabe Ikard are the driving force behind Strengthening Oklahoma, a new avenue for fans to give financial support and receive exclusive access to current OU football players.
At a recent photo shoot at Dvoracek’s home, Strengthening Oklahoma got the official seal of approval from The Man himself — Drake Stoops’ dad, aka Bob Stoops.
“(Drake) said, ‘Hey, I just want you to know that my dad is really happy that you guys are doing this and he's really excited that I get to be a part of it,’ “ Dvoracek said. “And that just touched my heart. You know, I mean, the man that literally had as much impact on my life as anybody that there is, for him to have said that to Drake, and say it to me, that meant a lot.”
The Strengthening Oklahoma roster currently consists of 13 players: Billy Bowman, Ethan Downs, Jalil Farooq, Reggie Grimes, Key Lawrence, Marvin Mims, Jalen Redmond, Drake Stoops, Danny Stutsman, Woodi Washington, Theo Wease, Dashaun White and Brayden Willis.
It’s been in the works since February, and the website — StrengtheningOK.com — launches Monday.
“Gabe and I just felt that there wasn't a whole lot of NIL space for Oklahoma,” Dvoracek said.
BoomCrew, powered by Atlanta NIL venture The Players’ Lounge, is one place fans can go to offer financial assistance to OU players while getting an interactive experience.
Another is the recently launched Norman NIL Club, which offers financial support for “80+ Oklahoma football players” and offers fans the chance to “join the ultimate fan experience.”
It may seem like there’s a competition happening for fans’ NIL attention, but several players are a part of all three ventures. Fans can choose how they want to support players, or if they have the means, can sign up for all three.
“I would say that, first and foremost, we want athletes to make every NIL dollar they can,” Ikard said. “That's how we feel. As far is it being a competition. I don't view it that way.”
In the case of Strengthening Oklahoma, various subscription tiers buy various levels of access to the players. Dvoracek and Ikard — both nationally renowned for their work on ESPN, SiriusXM Satellite Radio and locally, will conduct extended interviews with players, offer game analysis and more. Players will also autograph merchandise for raffle-style contests and even attend meet-and-greet events.
“We came up with a concept of providing exclusive content of the most popular athletes in Oklahoma, where we would kind of drive those interviews,” Ikard said, “but that there would be a component where the fans could contribute and feel like they were getting to know the players a little better.
“And then of course, we'll be going in depth about football with these guys, which is kind of what Dusty and I do. Right? We think that we'll be able to pry a lot out of these guys — not, you know, giving away any secrets or anything, but just really helping them explain to the fans what was going on on the field. And then it's our hope that in that process, we can create more educated football fans, as well.”
It’s a similar model to the other NIL ventures out there, but Dvoracek and Ikard — their status as former players, and their status as current media personalities — adds gravitas to this one.
The Strengthening Oklahoma 2022 initial roster. Back row: Dashaun White, Danny Stutsman, Theo Wease, Reggie Grimes, Key Lawrence, Ethan Downs, Brayden Willis. Front row: Marvin Mims, Woodi Washington, Drake Stoops, Billy Bowman, Jalil Farooq.
Photo: Strengthening Oklahoma
“I think one of the biggest differentiators,” Ikard said, “is the fact that Dusty and I will be working with these athletes, guiding them through these interviews, helping them open up to where the fans get to know them better, making sure that we don't put him in any bad situations. And then Dusty and I, we will add our honest, expert analysis to what's going on. And I think combining the players’ perspective, and then our perspective as analysts, it's a really good combination.”
The team Ikard and Dvoracek have assembled — a website developer, legal representation, a marketing company, and their first major sponsor — are all Oklahoma-based.
Still, stepping into the world of NIL has meant a bigger commitment than everyone first thought.
“There were lot of moving parts,” Ikard said.
Maybe most important of all those parts is staying on the NCAA’s good side, eligibility-wise, when no one’s really sure where exactly the NCAA stands or what the association has coming down the pike in the coming months and years.
“You're worried about the athletes eligibility,” Ikard said, “you're worried about protecting the athletes (and) university from anything when it comes to the NCAA, right? So there's a lot of things to consider. And the way that we went about it was extremely cautious and thorough.
“We met with all the right people to ensure that we were doing it the right way that we were not infringing on any copyrighted material, that we were not jeopardizing the kids’ eligibility in any way with how we were organizing it or how we were going to market it. So it was. It was a long process.”
Ikard said the goal is to run the whole operation with “the utmost integrity … because we're trying to help these kids make money. The last thing we wanted to do was was jeopardize them, or their university in any way.”
And still, the NCAA looms like some dark wild card, an unforeseen variable, perhaps benign on the surface but really just lying in wait. A year into the NIL world, the NCAA is a future punishment in a game where the nobody knows the rules.
“That's been a challenging legal environment,” said Oklahoma City attorney and former Sooner player Josh Smith of McAfee and Taft. “The rules have been kind of a moving target since this came out, and we see a lot of examples of what NIL collectives are doing at other universities. And you know, we've we've kind of been attentive to that. But we've also been really mindful of the guidelines that have come out from the NCAA — state laws and other things that come into play — so we think we've done it right.
“ ... Dusty and Gabe have really worked hard to come up with a model that can reward these athletes and really bridge the fan-to-athlete gap in a way that we think protects eligibility, protects the the all those involved.”
Dvoracek, a punishing all-conference defensive tackle on some of Stoops’ best teams, was a three-time Academic All-Big 12 player in 2002, 2003 and 2005. Ikard, a tight end who moved to offensive line and became a dominant center, was a two-time Academic All-American in 2012 and 2013 and was the National Football Foundation’s Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2013.
Dvoracek described his own financial situation as a student-athlete as needing “student loans for family matters,” but said he never sat around wishing for more money.
“I’ve got a degree a business degree from the University of Oklahoma,” he said. “My parents never went to college. I got a chance to play at an amazing place. Get trained by the best people in the country. I never thought, ‘Man, they're getting over on me.’ I'm very appreciative, fortunate to have been able to do the things I was able to do.”
That said, Dvoracek added that he’s always been a proponent of players getting paid, especially for their own name, image and likeness, regardless of what rules or guidelines the NCAA has or hasn’t yet created.
“The only thing we could do with this, with Strengthening Oklahoma, is to operate within the guidelines that exist right now,” Ikard said. “And that's why we met with all of the necessary people that we met with, to make sure that we weren't putting these athletes in jeopardy in any way. But you're right … it seems like it's a rapidly changing landscape.”
“If that model changes,” Dvoracek said, “if the laws and rules around it, whether it be from federal, state or or the NCAA, or whatever this next entity is, then we'll adhere to those. And if they don't make sense for our structure, then I'm sure we'll move along accordingly.
“I think that what we want to be is the good part of NIL.”
