Undergrad Research Helps ODU Athletes Build Branding Muscle | odu.edu/
Undergrad Research Helps ODU Athletes Build Branding Muscle | odu.edu/
Undergrad Research Helps ODU Athletes Build Branding Muscle
On July 1, 2021, after a nudge from the U.S. Supreme Court, the NCAA cleared the path for college athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL). Soon, players at sports powerhouses like Alabama, Michigan and UCLA were scooping up endorsement deals.
But at Old Dominion University, student-athletes found that no one was waiting in line to hand them cash or products. Many needed help figuring out how to seek sponsorships on their own.
Enter two ODU faculty members and their research-savvy students.
Brendan O’Hallarn’s Sport and Strategic Communication class spent the fall 2022 semester crafting The ODU Name, Image, and Likeness Knowledge Hub. It’s full of information, best practices, recommendations and links to further expertise.
“For our student-athletes, it’s a terrific tool that supplements the educational resources the Athletics Department offers,” said O’Hallarn, a senior lecturer in the Department of Communication and Theatre Arts. "For me and my students, it’s turned into just a fantastic learning experience.”
Meanwhile, Michelle Carpenter’s Marketing Policy and Strategy class conducted personal branding research for six ODU student-athletes. Compiled after interviews with players, each profile recommends companies best suited to the person’s interests, values, passions and aspirations. One of those reports is spotlighted in the knowledge hub.
“This project has not only taught our students about how to help student-athletes,” said Carpenter, a senior lecturer in the Department of Marketing, “but it's also given them a much fuller picture of branding that they can apply to themselves, to their future work with companies and to helping athletes realize their full potential before they graduate.”
Components of the knowledge hub include:
The knowledge hub also recommends that, before approaching companies, student-athletes build their social media following first, since most brands require them to have a big platform.
Students in O’Hallarn’s class found the research experience challenging but rewarding.
“This is certainly the most intensive and collaborative school project I have ever been a part of,” wrote Langley Peterson in an appendix to the report. “Working with the entire class has been a huge learning experience, but it is very satisfying to see the whole thing come together. I hope our work makes an impact on the athletes at ODU.”
Erin Carter: “It has been thrilling to be a part of something with such a large impact on the University and the Department of Athletics. It has also been frustrating at times as there is little to no ‘easy to find’ information because NIL is so new.”
Some of the students in the two classes are also ODU athletes. Their research gave them a double perspective on the topic.
Moira Olexa, women’s lacrosse: “Being a student-athlete at ODU, I benefited tremendously from this report. Not only was I researching for my fellow athletes, but also learned how to market myself.”
Imo Essien, men’s basketball: “You see these big deals being aired out every other week, but people don’t understand everything that goes into that deal. On the same note, it has also been intriguing to gain more knowledge about the NIL process and be able to share with my teammates some of the lessons I’ve learned."
Despite the newness of NIL and the initial knowledge gap, 126 current ODU athletes have signed deals, according to Danielle Cohea, senior athletic director for compliance, conduct and regulatory affairs.
They include LaMareon James, football (PSD Underwear and Body Armour), Jason Wade, basketball (Patrick Buick GMC), Tara Enneking, women’s swimming (Freestyle Watches and Guayaki Yerba Mate), and some of their teammates, along with players from the baseball, field hockey, men’s soccer, men’s swimming, men’s tennis, sailing, women’s basketball, women’s golf, women’s lacrosse, women’s soccer and women’s volleyball teams.
Enneking said she enjoyed being the subject of one of the marketing class’s brand profiles.
“The opportunity to meet other students and learn about their class content and projects – as well as help to teach them about something they may not be as experienced in – was too rewarding to pass up on,” she said.
Though she already had relationships with brands, talking with the four marketing students who interviewed her “really helped me reassess my interests and take a step back before looking at more companies,” Enneking said.
Also in the fall semester, the Department of Athletics announced the establishment of a group licensing program for student-athletes in partnership with The Brandr Group (TBG). In addition, the University partners with Icon Source, a third-party marketplace that allows ODU student-athletes to engage in NIL activities, Cohea said.
ODU Athletics’ resources for student-athletes, boosters and businesses include:
The two lecturers plan to present the fall 2022 project at conferences this year. They believe the ODU research could help other colleges and universities struggling with the issue.
“A lot of people are investigating this space, but they don’t quite know what’s going on with it,” Carpenter said. “I think we’re definitely on the leading edge.”
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