Skip to main content
Join Now
Get a profile. Be recruited.

WATCH: Matt Corral's insane 18-story NYC billboard part of NIL deal for Heisman push

Sean Labarby: Sean Labar12/07/21seanlabarpr

Matt Corral has emerged as one of the biggest stars in college football and with the Heisman Trophy ceremony looming, the Ole Miss quarterback is leveraging his on-field success into a massive NIL deal.

Panini America doesn’t care about the Las Vegas oddsmakers or bevy of sports media talking heads who believe Alabama signal caller Bryce Young is the clear front runner.

On Monday, Panini America–the world’s largest manufacturer of sports collectibles and trading cards– announced that it’s unveiling a Heisman Trophy push surrounding the company’s exclusive NIL athlete, Matt Corral.

The biggest part of the late push for the Ole Miss passer to land college football’s coveted trophy is highlighted by an 18-story billboard in Times Square. 

It’s a bit ironic to see a college football player from a college in Missisippi plastered on an innovative video board that likely often shows Hollywood superstars and entertainers, but it’s a significant investment from Panini to say the least.

When the new NIL rules changed, Panini signed Corral to exclusive autographed memorabilia deal and the sports card giant is all-in on their guy with the Heisman announcement just a week away.

The campaign also coincides with the launch of Corral’s autographed memorabilia line on Panini, which includes signed helmets and footballs.

Matt Corral is among the nation’s passing leaders with 3,334 passing yards and 20 touchdowns to go with 597 yards rushing and 11 more touchdowns. Lane Kiffin and his quarterback have helped revamp the Rebels program, finishing the year with the first 10-win regular season in the history of the program.

Clearly Corral is benefiting from this season’s success, but amongst one of the wildest coaching carousels in the history of the sport, the Ole Miss front man inked a contract extension making it clear his goal is to build on the success he’s had in just two seasons.

Matt Corral on deal with Panini

While there have been some Bryce Young shares impact NIL has had in Alabama locker room (on3.com) since the new rules allowed players to reach deals based on their name, image and likeness, Panini’s decision to make Corral its exclusive partner is significant.

The executives of the company explained why they chose the Old Miss gun-slinger as their target partner.

“Matt Corral was one of the first NIL athletes we signed exclusively last summer and he was one of the first for a reason: He’s one of the most exciting players in all of college football and his status as a Heisman finalist only confirms that,” said Brian Bayne, Panini America Vice President of Acquisitions.

“We’ve had a blast watching and rooting for Matt this season, and we look forward to working with him for years to come.”

Though the terms of the contract aren’t known, it’s clear Panini America has plans to continue to partner with Matt Corral once he reaches the NFL. This is a fascinating development in the new, unprecedented NIL landscape, where companies can attempt to buy long-term loyalty for star college players, build trust, and continue partnerships if and when the player heads to the NFL.

Matt Corral is clearly thrilled about the recent deal, although details of the contract are unknown.

“I’m grateful to have such a great partnership with Panini America under NIL for my autographed memorabilia. All season long Panini has supported me allowing me to focus on performing on the field. To have Panini unveil this enormous billboard in the heart of Times Square during Heisman Week is special and I look forward to the next phase of our partnership,” said Ole Miss Quarterback and NIL athlete, Matt Corral.

No matter what takes place in the Heisman voting, Corral is making bank while becoming a national superstar and he hasn’t even reached the NFL. Times are most certainly changing.