From Understanding to Enthusiasm: Spyre Sports Execs Detail NIL Approach, Tennessee Goals and How They Plan to Support Vols

On July 1st, 2021, the NIL era officially arrived, and it has shaped the world of college athletics since. The change signaled the opportunity for players to profit from their name, image and likeness finally. It was an exciting time for student-athletes across the country, but there were many unknowns. Knoxville-based Spyre Sports, led by James Clawson, Hunter Baddour, and Sheridan Gannon, was ready to help facilitate NIL deals for student-athletes at Tennessee and help players navigate the new unknowns. Baddour and Gannon recently sat down with Sports Illustrated to discuss their efforts, new initiatives and more.

Selling a new product, vision or idea can prove challenging, especially when you couple it with navigating a world impacted by a pandemic and something as unknown as the NIL. Still, that did not hinder Spyre's efforts, as they took the obstacles in stride.

"Education has been the biggest obstacle to overcome," Baddour, one of Spyre's founding partners, told Sports Illustrated's Volunteer Country. "Helping the community, helping business leaders, donors, the fans understand what name, image and likeness is, how a business or person can use a student-athlete to help their individual business or causes, and also support the athletic department at the same time. Continuing education is a big part of it—not just in Knoxville, but traveling around to all the major markets that Tennessee is currently and has historically recruited in—Charlotte, Atlanta, Tri-Cities, Chattanooga, Nashville and Memphis."

Spyre has traveled across the state and country to talk with donors, boosters, or anyone interested in the NIL. The feedback has been positive, according to Baddour.

"The enthusiasm across the state, the Southeast, and even across the country in places like California has been positive," he said. "You have to think about it; Tennessee is coming off of three wins, a new coach, a new quarterback, another new quarterback, and then still very much in a pandemic. You are competing against high-definition TVs, surround sound, parking, yet Tennessee is still packing the place. Imagine if Tennessee ever starts competing for championships again—what that enthusiasm is going to be like. If there was a concern that the last 12-15 years of Tennessee football have brought apathy, that could not be more wrong based on our experiences with our travels. The Tennessee community is tired of losing, and they want to do whatever they can as donors or fans to bring Tennessee back. I think the majority of these folks and groups view the NIL as a way to close the talent gap with places like Georgia and Alabama quicker than maybe the previous model, in which you had to build back the program slowly. What we are preaching has been highly well-received."

Still, there is more to it than just going around and talking to people about what Spyre is attempting to do. There have to be funds raised to drive the efforts and accomplish their ultimate goals.

"The second part, outside of understanding and education, is fundraising," Baddour added. "It is building a collective war chest or whatever you want to call it, to where the Tennessee community is going to be able to put together NIL deals and packages. It is going to make Tennessee as competitive as anyone in the country."

One of the latest initiatives Spyre has employed is engaging fan support. The group believes in the power of the Tennessee fan base and the help they could offer on the NIL front.

"We really believe in the power of numbers, and I think the fans understand that as well," Sheridan Gannon, described by Baddour as "the point guard of the business," said of the power of the fan base. "It takes all of us. We want fans to understand that it is not just going to be the big-time donors that control this, but they have a voice in this as well, and they are able to make a difference in this too. So whether it is a hundred-dollar one-time donation or whatever it may be, they are still going to be involved in this and be a part of this movement."

Baddour echoed Gannon's sentiments on the power of the fan base.

"If you are Tennessee, it could be significant," he said. "The reason that Spyre Sports has really engaged the fans on this front is simply the fact that we had several fans reach out and want to know how the common fan can get involved with NIL-- how they can donate, what their money would be going towards. After several requests, we engaged the fans and let them know how the money would be used. The fan base is a very powerful group. We think this will give Tennessee an advantage on the NIL front over the vast majority of schools."

One way fans can make a difference is by becoming a member of the 1951 Club, which Baddour offered more insight into.

"We had a lot of people, through social media, in particular, engaging us about how they could get involved, whether it be a donation to the NIL war chest or provide in-kind opportunities," Baddour said of this. "A car dealership getting involved is a great example or restaurants wanting to provide a free place where student-athletes can eat for free. There was so much interest in being involved from the fan standpoint, we thought we needed to create some membership society, and we chose the 1951 Club to let fans be a part of this movement and pay homage to the past. Arguably the greatest football season in the history of Tennessee, right up there with 1938 and 1998, the 1951 Club is essentially a donor tier system named after famous Tennessee coaches, in the past, Majors, Pat Summit, General Neyland, for example. Depending on the donation, there are things that members will get, whether it's newsletters, signed memorabilia, access to information before it goes public, or access to meet and engage with current student-athletes in multiple sports. It just depends on the commitment level and involvement.

So, as Spyre continues to work and facilitate NIL deals for the student-athletes at Tennessee, what is the ultimate goal?

"We want Tennesee to be the premier NIL destination in the country," Baddour said of this. "I understand if that sounds like coach speak, but if we are not shooting to be number one, then what are we doing? We would like Tennessee to be year-after-year in the top three in recruiting in football. Why the top three? Because depending on what website or ranking service you use, nobody is ever number one in all three. So if you are in the top three, I think it is fair to say you are a consensus number one. We also want to take care of all sports at Tennessee, and that includes Women's sports. There is definitely an opportunity for everybody to get in on and experience NIL in a positive way."

Like the unknowns of the NIL, Spyre continues to let everyone know who and what they are about. When asked what he would tell people about the group, here is what Baddour had to offer.

"We are all Tennessee guys. We are all from this area. We all went to UT. We have multiple degrees from Tennessee, and our blood runs orange. Whether our model of business is scalable or not, that is irrelevant—we are not interested in ever taking our model to another SEC or Power Five school. We are only doing this to support the University of Tennessee, and we are very passionate about it. Again, we feel like NIL is a tremendous opportunity, maybe a Godsend, to get Tennessee back to where we all know Tennessee should be, competing for championships year in and year out. Rally the Valley! "