THE EVER-CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF NIL
Local businesses, Wildcat NIL contribute to K-State Athletics
How Manhattan businesses are partnering with K-State Athletics to give back to student-athletes
April 22, 2024
The Manhattan Brewing Company is one of the business partners of Wildcat NIL. (Photo by Madeline Willson)
As Name, Image, and Likeness collectives have grown in popularity, so too have opportunities for local businesses. But for some businesses in Manhattan, NIL is more than just a marketing opportunity — it’s a way to give back to student athletes.
Jake Voegeli is one of the three co-owners of the Manhattan Brewing Company, a brewery and taproom in downtown Manhattan. They sell alcohol that they make on-sight, including beer, margaritas, and sangria. Voegeli said that the Manhattan Brewing Co. wanted to do its part in helping student athletes at Kansas State University.
“I was a former athlete here at K-State — I played football,” Voegeli said. “So when it came time for the Wildcat NIL stuff, I didn’t know anything about it, really. But I knew that it was going to be important.”
Wildcat NIL is the official NIL collective partnered with K-State Athletics. It was created in April 2022 by a group of former student athletes from K-State. Curry Sexton, one of the founding members of Wildcat NIL, said that they saw a need for an NIL collective at K-State.
“We all knew that this was going to be an important part of college athletics, and we knew [Wildcat NIL] had to be competitive for K-State to be competitive,” Sexton said. “We have a passion for K-State, so that’s ultimately what caused us to get involved with this.”
In the past, the Manhattan Brewing Co. has partnered with K-State Athletics to create several beers. However, due to the fact that student athletes cannot directly sponsor bars or alcohol, Voegeli instead turned to Wildcat NIL.
Wabash beer can be bought at the Manhattan Brewing Company, or wherever liquor is sold in Kansas. (Photo courtesy of Manhattan Brewing Co.)
“That’s when we came up with Wabash,” Voegeli said. “It’s very light in color, very light in body. It has a very crisp kind of end to it that is really nice. It’s kind of a pool beer, it’s meant to be drank. The can design is really cool, too.”
Wabash beer was released in December 2023. A portion of the money earned from the sale of the beer contributes to the Wildcat NIL Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization that distributes the money it collects to all athletes in the athletics department. Voegeli said that despite not being able to sponsor specific athletes, he’s glad that the funds from Wabash go to the athletics department as a whole.
“I was a former walk-on, so it’s really cool for me to see walk-ons getting any NIL money,” Voegeli said. “I love that Wildcat NIL does that. I mean, if you’re a player in K-State Athletics, no matter what you are, you’re gonna see some kind of kickback on that, and I really like that.”
According to Sexton, there are several businesses that they partner with to raise money for the Wildcat NIL Foundation. These include a coffee brand, apparel stores, and Fit Nation, a local gym.
Fit Nation, a boutique gym in Manhattan and Topeka, use the referral line when members sign up to donate to Wildcat NIL. (Photo by Madeline Willson)
Nathan Downey is the owner of Fit Nation, a boutique gym in Manhattan and Topeka that focuses on group workouts, nutrition, and mindset. Downey said that his partnership with Wildcat NIL began in December 2023 when he reached out to Sexton.
“We have a referral line for new members, and people can put down however they heard about us," Downey said. "If they put down Wildcat NIL or NIL of any sort, we donate 10% of their membership dues back to the NIL every month. ... It doesn’t seem to be that much on a one-on-one basis, but when it starts to add up, it becomes a decent chunk of change.”
While these partnerships contribute to the Wildcat NIL Fund and K-State athletics as a whole, the businesses benefit from these partnerships as well. Sexton said one of the other benefits of Wildcat NIL are the student athlete endorsements.
"If you’re a player in K-State Athletics, no matter what you are, you’re gonna see some kind of kickback on that," -Jake Voegeli.
“Some of our athletes — you think of an Avery Johnson, or a Gabby Gregory, or an Ayoka Lee — some of these athletes have some of the biggest marketing brands in Manhattan,” Sexton said. “So getting them to endorse your business through a social media post or through a commercial, whatever it may be, is a really strong opportunity for businesses to enhance their brand.”
Downey said that having student athletes promote his business has been extremely beneficial.
“I believe [Wildcat NIL] just throwing up a random Facebook post out there once in a while hits people,” Downey said. “And anybody throwing Facebook posts out there that isn’t necessarily me is a good thing.”
According to Sexton, business partnerships like these are some of the best sources of revenue for the Wildcat NIL Foundation. He said that their relationship with each business is unique.
“Every partnership is different,” Sexton said. “There’s some where it’s us proactively trying to create opportunities. And then we have a lot of businesses that reach out to us and say that they want to engage with X, Y, and Z athletes to promote their business. So there’s different ways in which it can happen.”
Downey said that so far he really enjoys working with Wildcat NIL.
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“I love everything about it,” Downey said. “It’s the game we’re given right now, so let’s play it. Do everything we can do.”
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“I think what it’s really done is allow people to see that the community is really behind this initiative,” Voegeli said. “They want to see Wildcat NIL do well, they want to see athletes do well. And this [partnership] kind of puts this out there for the entire K-State nation to see.”
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Although the endorsements from student athletes are a benefit, Downey said that isn’t the main reason why Fit Nation partnered with Wildcat NIL. His main goal with this partnership was to help K-State Athletics as much as he could.
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“I know we’re trying to raise a bunch of money to get the best players we can possibly get in here,” Downey said. “And we’re trying to do all we can.”
Jake Voegeli, one of the three co-owners of Manhattan Brewing Co. (Photo by Madeline Willson)
Nathan Downey, the owner of Fit Nation. (Photo by Madeline Willson)
According to Voegeli, the NIL is an absolute must. He said that part of the reason why he
partnered with Wildcat NIL was because he knew that athletes needed basic compensation for their name, image, and likeness.
“K-State is not necessarily a school that is pumping in a ton of money like some of these other bigger ones are,” Voegeli said. “So in order for us to compete at a higher level, and get more of these phenomenal athletes to come in here and support the programs, we have to have more NIL money.”
"Right now, it's kind of the Wild, Wild West," -Jake Voegeli.
“It’s a mess right now,” Downey said. “I would love to see something where there was a way to somewhat cap what any one individual student could possibly get. Some way to even the playing field, but not make it to where one person has so much clout over the rest of the team that it’s hard for them to step onto the field when it comes to bowl time, or the end of the tournaments. Because I think we’re starting to see some of that.”
“Right now, it’s kind of the Wild, Wild West," Voegeli said. "Which is why I think it’s incredibly crucial for more donations to come in with NIL — to help fund these athletes, to get them on campus — so these programs can thrive."
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