Name Image Likeness

UConn NIL Collective Raising Funds with Limited Edition Autographed Balls

Bleeding Blue NIL Collective cashed in with $29,000 in one hour of exclusive pre-sale

Noah Henderson

UConn players with the national championship trophy. From left, Jaylin Stewart, Alex Karaban,
UConn players with the national championship trophy. From left, Jaylin Stewart, Alex Karaban, / Connor Linskey/Norwich Bulletin / USA
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One month after repeating as National Champions, the UConn Huskies men's basketball team continues to leverage their program's success towards significant NIL initiatives. For the second straight year, UConn’s Bleeding Blue for Good NIL Collective will sell commemorative autographed basketballs to celebrate – and fundraise for – the NCAA Tournament champions. The balls will be signed by all players on the 2023-24 team and feature custom “back-to-back champs” insignia to memorialize the national champions.  

The basketballs, limited to a 290-piece run, will go on sale to the public today at 9:00 AM EST for $500 a piece. Anyone interested is encouraged to move fast, as quantities may already be limited due to last night’s exclusive pre-sale to Storrs Central subscribers, a UConn athletics news outlet that pledges all of its profits to NIL funding. In just one hour it was reported that the promotion had already raised $29,000.

Jared Guy Thomas, Executive Director of the Bleeding Blue for Good NIL Collective, weighed in on the promotion: “We're so proud of the players that made up this historic back-to-back championship squad. While it's hard to believe that we have the opportunity to sell these commemorative basketballs two years in a row to raise money for the Men's Basketball NIL fund, at the same time, the team never really gave us any reason to doubt that they'd be able to scale those heights again this year. We're proud of our Huskies and I'm personally proud of all of our fans for the passion they show for this team and their willingness to help us raise money to continue to fight for championships.”

NIL commemorative merchandise has been taking off in the 2024 summer. Just this week, the Purdue NIL store released a limited-run watch to honor Zach Edey’s historic defense of his Naismith Player of The Year Honor. The Bleeding Blue for Good Collective has found a sweet spot with the autographed basketballs and is capitalizing on an even broader trend of increased positive perception and valuation of the NIL collectible market. Not only can they help honor current players, but they can tap into NIL resources that can contribute to future recruitment and retention efforts. When it comes to NIL Development, time and time again, it is proven that riding momentum is key.  

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Noah Henderson

NOAH HENDERSON

Professor Noah Henderson teaches in the sport management department at Loyola University Chicago. Outside the classroom, he advises companies, schools, and collectives on Name, Image, and Likeness best practices. His academic research focuses on the intersection of law, economics, and social consequences regarding college athletics, NIL, and sports gambling. Before teaching, Prof. Henderson was part of a team that amended Illinois NIL legislation and managed NIL collectives at the nation’s most prominent athletic institutions while working for industry leader Student Athlete NIL. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law in Urbana-Champaign and a Bachelor of Economics from Saint Joseph’s University, where he was a four-year letter winner on the golf team. Prof. Henderson is a native of San Diego, California, and a former golf CIF state champion with Torrey Pines High School. Outside of athletics, he enjoys playing guitar, hanging out with dogs, and eating California burritos. You can follow him on Twitter: @NoahImgLikeness.