The 15 Club has immediately helped Kentucky football

You can’t do big-time college football in the current landscape without Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). That is 100 percent true in the SEC. Kentucky football is no different.

After a slow start, the Wildcats finally got their official NIL collective “The 15 Club” up and running in November. That collective offers various membership levels starting at $25/month. Fans can also make a one-time donation. Ninety percent of the net proceeds will be paid directly to the student-athletes.

Kentucky head football coach Mark Stoops appeared on KSR and told Matt Jones that those financial contributions are already helping the football program in Lexington despite the slow start as the university administration had to get all of its ducks in a row.

“Early on, I felt like we needed to get some things done. And there was urgency across the board on how we get this handled,” Stoops said. “Then I thought Mitch [Barnhart] and our athletic department and administration — our leaders — really did. They stepped up and said ‘ok, here’ how we do this’. We vetted it. It’s legal. We’re going to do things right. And put the stamp of approval on it.”

“It’s like anything. There’s never enough. We’re competing. We have our collective, The 15, up and running. And thank you. Thank you, thank you to the people that have given to that. There are already grassroots people that I know maybe don’t have 10s or 20, 30 thousand dollars to donate but that are donating monthly. And it makes a difference. That collective, that money is starting to add up where we’re getting monthly income in that 15 fund. That helps fund the big picture and these players. Gives them the opportunities.”

There is no way to know where exactly the donations are going, but activity in transfer portal tells us it’s being put to good use. Since the regular season ended, Kentucky has yet to lose a starter to the transfer portal. Will Levis, Chris Rodriguez Jr., and Carrington Valentine aren’t playing in the Music City Bowl but that appears to be for NFL Draft reasons. Meanwhile, all of the young stars at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility are set to return in2023.

Kentucky’s hot start landing six transfers this month also tells us that there appears to be some type of NIL plan in place and prospective targets are liking what they are hearing. Kentucky football still needs help, but the program made a big step last month.

“We are up, we are off the ground,” said Stoops. “And I thank people for their support.”