Ga’Quincy McKinstry, Kool-Aid swap Twitter names in NIL partnership
Alabama freshman cornerback Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry has partnered with his namesake, Kool-Aid.
McKinstry has long held the nickname “Kool-Aid” and is even listed on Alabama’s roster officially as Kool-Aid McKinstry. Per the official twitter bio for the Kool-Aid drink, the brand and the player have swapped names temporarily.
“In honor of our new partnership, we’ve swapped names with Kool-Aid McKinstry and given him the power of OH YEAH,” @koolaid’s Twitter bio reads.
“Honored to partner with Kool-Aid the Brand…” McKinstry’s twitter bio reads. “I will be sharing the OH YEAH title with the Kool-Aid Man!”
@koolaid now features a profile picture of McKinstry and a screen name of Ga’Quincy Mckinstry, while @GaQMcK1, McKinstry’s personal twitter account, now features a profile picture of the Kool-Aid Man in a football helmet, a new header picture and a screen name of “Kool-Aid Man”
McKinstry’s making an impression early at Alabama
McKinstry enrolled at Alabama in the spring and has quickly made an impression on his defensive coordinator, as previously covered in this piece by On3’s Stephen Samra.
“Kool-Aid is a very talented kid,” Golding said, via YouTube. “He’s got the length that we want. He’s got the short-area quickness. He can run, he’s got top-end speed. He’s played offense and returned punts so he’s got ball skills.
“The one thing that I was most impressed about from Kool-Aid in the spring is the ability to come up and put his face on you,” he continued. “A lot of times, those types of kids, especially that position, are hesitant to come put their face on you….so I thought in the spring, yeah he’s athletic enough, we knew that, right? He is who we thought he was, right? But I thought he was more physical.”
A two-sport star in the making
McKinstry was considered the top cornerback in the 2021 class. Hailing from Pinson Valley, McKinstry played on both sides of the ball, helping the Indians to the Alabama 6A State Championship in 2020 and three titles in the last four years. He also starred on Pinson’s Valley’s basketball team.
McKinstry is a two-sport star and participated in practice with Alabama’s basketball team in the spring prior to the start of football workouts. He is not currently listed on Alabama’s 2012-2022 basketball roster but is expected to participate in both sports throughout his career in Tuscaloosa.
Earlier this month, McKinstry was awarded the USA Today Best Defensive Player award, as well as being named Male Athlete of the Year. McKinstry received the award live on CBS This Morning and was surprised by Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski, as previously covered in this piece by On3’s James Fletcher. McKinstry was the first ever recipient of the USA Today HSSA Male Athlete of the Year award.