Nebraskan Volleyball Millionaires
Nebraska Volleyball Day set a world record with 92,003 inside Memorial Stadium.
This special edition of The NIL Report newsletter features a conversation with former Cornhusker Andie Malloy to get a sense of what Nebraska Volleyball Day was like with a world record 92,003 inside Memorial Stadium.
If you are an athlete and would like our team to help share your story, please DM us or email TheNILReport@gmail.com.
Nebraska Volleyball Day
In Lincoln, Memorial Stadium was jam packed with 92,003 Cornhusker fans. Decked out in red, chanting, screaming for Nebraska on a picture perfect evening in late August.
But they weren't cheering on their football team. Actually, that team was already in Minnesota where the next day they would continue a head scratching half decade stretch of finding ways to lose close, one score games.
They were there for coach John Cook and Nebraska volleyball.
The Huskers handily swept Omaha, and set a world record attendance record for any women's sporting event ever.
Former Husker Andie Malloy was one of many former players in attendance and described the atmosphere as electric and unreal. In the one season Andie played as a grad transfer, she helped take Nebraska to the 2016 Final Four.
In what she called one of her most rewarding seasons, Malloy had 13 kills in the Sweet 16 vs Penn State and 15 kills in the Elite 8 vs Washington.
“The energy definitely felt similar to that of a football game. It’s so incredible that Memorial Stadium was filled for a women’s volleyball game!” Andie said. “The respect and love the Nebraska community has for volleyball was made even more evident on this big stage. A huge achievement for women’s sports and I’m so glad that Coach Cook played a huge role in that.”
The bigger picture on display was just how big NIL can be at schools and sports many used to not give a second thought to.
Big NIL money is not just for football and basketball players, it is for all athletes.
And Cornhusker volleyball players are extremely well positioned to become NIL Millionaires due to four competitive advantages.
Rabid Volleyball Fans
The Huskers have sold out 306 straight volleyball games beginning in 2001. The demand is there for autographs; coaching clinics; and more. The five-time national championship program takes a back seat to no one... not even football.
“Nebraska Volleyball means perseverance and celebration. Nebraska Volleyball and the community are unlike any other.” Andie described. “I feel so unbelievably blessed and lucky that I got to be a part of it. All of the hard work poured in by everyone involved in the Nebraska volleyball program over the years continues to be so celebrated by a community that keeps showing up big for women’s volleyball!”
And that community support is paying dividends in the NIL era as the Nebraska NIL Collective recently announced a mammoth NIL deal reserved for just the volleyball team.
1890 Initiative's 10-year, $5 Million NIL Gift
This NIL pledge was called a game changer by coach John Cook. With a roster of 14, an equal annual split would be ~$35,715/player. Or ~$142,857 over your four-year career.
That is a significant competitive advantage if you are a recruit staring six figures in the face just by enrolling. Then there are all the other extra sponsorship deals you could obtain on top of that.
Local Business Support
The businesses are just as passionate for all Husker sports as the average fan. Volleyball is no exception. The opportunities to partner on customized local NIL deals are endless.
In fact, Andie says she “would team up with so many local shops if I could.”
Indeed, the annual economic impact of football alone for the state is roughly $200 million with about 25 percent of that being attributed to the local economy.
Mike Osborne, son of Husker national champion legend Tom, said in 2020 that 70 percent of his business revenue is made during football season. He estimates that seven percent is derived from volleyball.
If that is extrapolated state wide and holds true, then Nebraska volleyball contributes $14 million annually to the state's economy. That is still a huge number, one that many other programs would love to have. The question is how does an athlete connect with these businesses?
Opendorse HQ
The NIL industry leader is located right in these Nebraska's backyard for these athletes to take advantage of. CEO Blake Lawrence played football for Nebraska and has over a decade of experience assisting athletes after founding Opendorse in 2012.
It has since grown to be the largest provider of technology in the athlete endorsement industry and used by over 120,000 athletes and half of Fortune 50 companies. Their partners include the majority of NCAA DI FBS institutions, hundreds of NCAA/NAIA/NJCAA institutions as well as the NFLPA, MLBPA, NHLPA, WNBPA, USWNTPA, PGA TOUR, LPGA, USOPC and every US National Governing Body.
You can't ask for a better starting point for your network; the opportunities are limitless.
And remember athletes are not receiving revenue sharing from the sale of tickets, food, drink and TV revenue. They sold beer at the game and were televised on FOX/Big Ten Network. Even an average of $15/ticket will put revenues at $1.365 Million for ticket sales alone in this one game!
Athletes in other sports could strike NIL deals with Ameritas to promote the event, but not volleyball players since the NCAA does not allow you to do a deal that promotes a contest you compete in.
That is not something any athlete can control at this point, so instead they have to evaluate what program allows them to compete at the highest level, make significant money and create lasting core memories.
When you combine institutional support; fanatical community support and NIL money you get a perfect core memory that was 92,003 at Nebraska Volleyball Day.
And that puts these athletes on track to become NIL millionaires.