After about a year of not having a NIL collective intact, Indiana University has not just partnered with one collective but two.
A week ago, Indiana announced that the football team partnered with Hoosiers for Good. This collective aims to connect players with local charities. Offensive lineman Matthew Bedford and backup quarterback Jack Tuttle have already participated in the grand opening of an American Red Cross in Bloomington.
RELATED: Indiana collective “Hoosiers For Good” signs 11 more student-athletes to NIL partnerships
Now, not just the football team but the men’s basketball team will join the football team by partnering with Hoosiers connect. However, the two foundations will combine to focus their efforts on the student-athletes instead of competing against each other.
The new board for these collectives will be ran by former Hoosier athletes and founders of both collectives. Former basketball players Jared Jeffries, Colin Hartman, and Brenna Wise will join the board. Cook Group President Pete Yonkman will also be on the board. The Cook Group is amongst the largest donors for IU.
Today, we celebrated the grand opening of our Bloomington office! Special thanks to @john4btown, Chamber President Eric Spoonman, & @Hoosiers4Good’s @jacktuttle14 & @MatthewBedfor14 for helping us celebrate! Feel free to stop by throughout the week! #RedCross pic.twitter.com/aVuzmUOtGg
— American Red Cross (Indiana Region) (@INRedCross) September 14, 2022
Tyler Harris will retain his role as the executive director. It is the same role that he had with Hoosiers for Good. Hartman will be the vice president of partnerships
“As our leaders engaged with businesses and individual supporters about Hoosiers For Good, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that partners local charities with IU student athletes who are passionate about using their NIL platform to amplify philanthropic work, we saw an opportunity to use our expertise in the quickly-changing NIL space — and leverage our existing relationships with IU student athletes — to support businesses that want to use NIL for their commercial endeavors,” Harris said in a press release.
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The Hoosiers Connect collective will be the contact point that connects local businesses and charities with players and give more access to the team for fans and boosters.
The collective offers multiple memberships. The more you pay means more benefits that you receive. The Candy Stripe tier gives fans a chance to have a pre-game men’s basketball meal with members of the football team and tickets to an annual gala hosted by the student-athletes.
