NIL Deals of the Week: LSU stars take over Raising Cane’s, Will Levis signs with Ale-8-One

As the games get closer and closer, the NIL brand buy-in and activations continue to increase.

All summer, NIL marketplaces, such as Opendorse, Marketpryce, MOGL and INFLCR, have talked about the rise of major brands using their software to connect with student-athletes. And with college football season set to kick into high gear this weekend, more deals continue to be announced.

With a mission to highlight the top deals of every week, the On3 NIL team will focus on identifying noteworthy deals in the college athletics landscape.

As a reminder, feel free to submit info on your NIL deal to On3. You can send an email to [email protected] or reach out via DM or comment on Twitter to @On3NIL or @deals_nil. Direct messages are open, too, on the @On3NIL Instagram account.

Let’s get to the deals that highlighted this week in NIL.

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LSU stars take over Raising Cane’s in NIL deal

Raising Cane’s has emerged as a major brand in the NIL space since July 1, 2021. The fast-food restaurant chain specializing in chicken fingers struck deals with LSU cornerback Sevyn Banks and quarterbacks Myles Brennan and Spencer Rattler early in the NIL era.

Following Georgia‘s national championship last season, quarterback Stetson Bennett surprised customers at a Raising Cane’s in Athens. He took orders and threw on a headset.

The fast-food chain struck a deal with multiple players on its hometown team this week. The Baton Rouge-based company had Jack Bech, BJ Ojulari, Kayshon Boutte, John Emery Jr. and Maason Smith take over the Raising Cane’s near LSU‘s campus last weekend.

Boutte was given props on social media for his work running the drive through window. The junior receiver had his season was cut short last year due to a broken ankle. He’s had to have surgery twice to fix the ankle, and LSU head coach Brian Kelly called him out in a press conference early on in his tenure. But Boutte is back to being healthy.

He holds an On3 NIL Valuation of $1.4 million, which ranks 14th in the On3 NIL 100.

Along with additional promotion on social media, the five Tiger players are featured on billboards throughout the Baton Rouge area with the “Our Home Team & Hometown” slogan.

Kentucky QB Will Levis signs NIL deal with Ale-8-One soda brand

Will Levis has slowly pieced together one of the top NIL portfolio’s in college football. He’s signed on with Paul Miller Ford, Boone’s Trace National Golf Club and NOBULL. This is all from guy who did not want to execute a single deal during the 2021 season.

The Penn State transfer has won over the Bluegrass State, though. He led the Wildcats to a win in the Citrus Bowl over Iowa, including an 80-yard drive late in the fourth quarter to give them the go-ahead score.

Now he has inked a deal with the most prominent soda company in the state. The senior has signed with Winchester, Kentucky-based soda brand Ale-8-One. Athlete Advantage represents Levis and helped arrange the deal. The terms of the agreement were not released.

“The fact that Levis has showcased the ability to captivate audiences and is right here in our home state, presented us with a unique opportunity to focus on positive community support and engagement,” Ale-8-One chief marketing officer Kevin Price said in the release. “This exciting partnership will launch this fall with a series of activations across the region.”

Ale-8-One has a claim as the oldest privately held bottler in the U.S. that’s still owned and operated by the founding family. Fielding Rogers, the great-great-nephew of Ale-8-One founder G.L. Wainscott, personally blends every batch of soda.

Levis’ On3 NIL Valuation has soared since his breakout season. He currently holds an evaluation of $638,000, placing him No. 52 in the NIL 100. He’s also amassed a massive following on social media with nearly 250,000 followers.

Krystal signs athletes from five SEC schools to NIL deals

Southeastern fast-food chain Krystal is entering the NIL space with a statement.

Known for its small, square hamburgers with steamed-in onions, the company has made its first move ahead of the college football season. Krystal has signed athletes across five different sports from five SEC schools, all of which are in the chain’s footprint. No terms of the contracts were disclosed.

As part of the activation, athletes posted across their Instagram accounts promoting the fast-food chain’s new Side Chik menu items.

Alabama‘s Will Anderson Jr. is headliner of the group of more 30 student-athletes. The linebacker, who’s in the Heisman Trophy conversation entering the season, ranks third in Alabama history in single-season sacks with 17.5 in 2021 and he’s fourth on the career list with 24.5.

Other notable names include Georgia running back Kendall Milton and Auburn receiver Shedrick Jackson. A full list of the athletes can be found here.

Adding some fun, Krystal also signed the UGA Spike Squad to a deal to promote the menu. They were also included in the NIL announcement.

Georgia QB Stetson Bennett poses as mailman

Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett was back up to his mailman shenanigans this week, this time starring in a TV commercial.

Since he led the Bulldogs to a national title win, he has inked NIL deals with Fanatics, Georgia Power, Onward Reserve and Great Clips. The former walk-on is now one of the most marketable athletes in Athens.

His most recent partnership dropped this week. Starring in a commercial for HillPointe, an apartment complex in Athens, Bennett plays a mailman, a reference to the nickname that he was given in high school after wearing a U.S. Postal Service hat to the Elite 11 camp.

The commercial starts out with Bennett delivering a package to two of the residents from the complex, one of whom expressed surprise at seeing the Georgia quarterback delivering mail.

That sets Bennett up for the punchline: “I deliver. That’s what I do.”

The Georgia quarterback currently holds an On3 NIL Valuation of $699k, which ranks in the top 50 of the NIL 100. He’s seen significant growth across his social media platforms, too, as his following now sits at 97,000. Bennett holds a per post evaluation of $2,500.

The Bulldogs will be right back in the College Football Playoff mix this year, meaning Stetson Bennett will be back in the national spotlight.

Honorable Mention

• USC has launched its BLVD collective in full force. The organization signed Fletcher Jones Motorcars as its official luxury car dealer. In exchange, USC players Jordan Addison and Tuli Tuipulotu will be driving around Mercedes-Benz S500s this fall. The cars are valued at $120,000 a piece.
• The Players Trunk has released a set of limited edition officially licensed trading cards with 35 Michigan State football players. The cards are made possible through a NIL agreement with the players, The Players Trunk, Collegiate Licensing Company — Michigan State’s official licensing partner — and The Brandr Group.
• LSU four-star wide receiver commit Shelton Sampson Jr. has inked a deal with the apparel brand LouisianaRich, which is operated by two of his Catholic High School (Louisiana) teammates. Jacob and Joshua Johnson have signed Sampson to a NIL deal. It’s the LSU commit’s fourth NIL deal.
• North Carolina guard Leaky Black has signed a partnership with Chapel Hill’s Town Hall Grill, the restaurant announced on Instagram. As part of the deal, Black will make multiple appearances at the restaurant throughout the school year. He’ll also have his own menu item — the Lock Down Leaky Chicken Tenders.
• LSU running back John Emery Jr. has become the latest player to ink an NIL agreement with Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys.