Big Corn Energy drink establishes Nebraska NIL walk-on program

Nebraska football now has a new NIL tool to bolster its walk-on program.

Big Corn Energy announced its formation Tuesday afternoon, naming itself the first NIL energy drink. As part of its plan, the company will kick back 25% of its profits back to Nebraska walk-ons. Obviously, the famed walk-on program has produced some of the best players in Huskers history, including All-Americans turned NFL draft picks Jared Tomich and John Parella.

An Omaha-based company, Juvenile Brands will run the day-to-day operations of Big Corn Energy, per a press release. The new energy drink already has merchandise, too, which will also give 25% back to walk-ons.

Nebraska walk-ons will not split the profits that Big Corn Energy provides. Instead, the company plans to use a profit-sharing model based on seniority. Walk-ons who have been in the program for four or more years will receive 40% of the profits. From there, the number will decrease by 10% off of the athlete’s class.

Big Corn Energy will be open about the amount of money it raises, too. The company plans to provide the size of its distribution by a meter on its website.

“Walk-ons bring passion and drive to practice every day, and they help set the tone for Saturdays,” the company wrote in a statement. “A strong walk-on program is essential for any college football team looking to consistently win year in and year out.”

How this could impact Nebraska walk-on program?

Big Corn Energy will be basically working in a method similar to a NIL collective. Instead of asking for donations or establishing a monthly subscription, all funds will be procured by profits. From there, the energy drink has the right to distribute the cash how it sees fit.

And while it does incentivize the walk-on position at Nebraska, it is not pay-to-play. Big Corn Energy is simply putting its plans available to the public. It’s the same tactic major NIL collectives, such as The Volunteer Club, have taken on by making as many NIL activities open saw prospective athletes understand the opportunities they will have.

“This partnership is innovative because it appears to be the first consumer product deal where a percentage of sales specifically benefit a certain type of athlete (walk-ons), via profit sharing,” Kennyhertz Perry attorney Mit Winter told On3 on Tuesday. “The payment structure is also unique in that it’s based on seniority.

“This is also different than other group licensing products because those products use an athlete’s NIL on the product. Here, the product itself doesn’t use an athlete’s NIL.”

While the announcement did not include any details on what athletes will need to do to receive payment, the most common form of NIL activity is typically a social media post. Promoting Big Corn Energy won’t be a big ask for Nebraska walk-ons.

If the energy drink becomes profitable quickly, it could bolster Nebraska’s historic walk-on program.

“This could be very attractive to potential walk-ons to Nebraska’s football team,” Winter added. “Depending on the actual compensation that is realized from the deal, if a player knows he’ll receive some NIL compensation as a walk-on, it could definitely play a factor in deciding to walk-on at Nebraska versus walking on at another school, or even accepting a scholarship at an FCS school.”

Cornhuskers continue to bolster NIL efforts

The 1890 Initiative, a NIL collective that launched in early October, is well-funded and has strong ties to both the school and the business community in Nebraska.

The collective is founded by successful Nebraska businessmen Tom Peed and Shawn Peed, along with former Husker football player Matt Davison. The Peeds run Sandhills Global, a company that produces a diverse range of products and services from well-established trade publications and websites to hosted technology services. Davison will also build a team of employees for 1890 that will include Joe Selig as vice president for development. Selig announced earlier this year his planned retirement from his position as senior vice president for development for the University of Nebraska Foundation.

It has major plans to back the Nebraska football and volleyball programs, too.

Another sure sign that the move by Davison and the Peed family is massive for the Cornhuskers is that 1890 will absorb Athlete Branding & Marketing. Athlete Branding & Marketing is the first and most prominent collective to offer NIL opportunities to Nebraska athletes. ABM, which has an office in the Haymarket district in Lincoln, has represented dozens of mostly football and volleyball players since August of 2021.

Big Corn Energy is only going to help the NIL scene in Lincoln.