By Jeffrey Cohen | Sports Editor
Name, image and likeness have been the three most prevalent words surrounding college sports over the past five years.
NIL has taken many forms and shapes as schools and athletic departments across the country have tried to navigate it, including the landmark House v. NCAA settlement that allowed the athletic departments to directly share revenue with student-athletes.
In its most basic form, NIL is meant to allow athletes to make money off brand deals and third parties that they participate in. In his first year as Peach Bowl, Inc., CEO, David Epps changed the NIL landscape by providing Auburn players around $6 million in compensation around their appearance in the Aflac Kickoff game against Baylor.
“We and Auburn looked at an opportunity to move the game from Auburn to Atlanta, putting it on a bigger stage,” Epps said. “[It] gave us a chance to start to do true NIL and work with student-athletes.”
The game was originally scheduled at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, as the second part of a home-and-home series between the Bears and Tigers. Epps explained that Auburn gets the focus of the money distributed because it agreed to move its home game to Atlanta.
The Tigers have been involved in multiple media appearances, ticket sales promotions, billboards around Atlanta and other online appearances.
“It was a big process when you’re looking at potentially a couple of a dozen players, and you’re looking at how do you properly utilize those guys,” Epps said. “You basically look at a traditional marketing mix of how you might promote a game … and when you can tap into a student-athlete, it helps lend some authenticity to what you’re doing.”
Baylor gets the benefit of more exposure in one of college football’s most utilized markets. Atlanta has hosted the 2018 and 2025 College Football Playoff National Championships and the College Football Hall of Fame along with the annual Peach Bowl.
“It gave Baylor a chance to come into the Southeast, in the Atlanta area, which is always good for exposure and elevation of the brand,” Epps said. “Baylor has a ton of fans and alumni in Atlanta, so I think it’s a nice opportunity for Baylor to reach out to this community.”
Atlanta is home to around 1,200 Baylor alumni, making the city one of the largest out-of-state hubs of former Bears.
Baylor also gets to play in one of the most viewed TV broadcast slots in college football. The SEC on ABC game at 2:30 p.m. CT averaged 7.8 million viewers per week last season.
“You get to play in a high-profile neutral site matchup that brings a lot of eyeballs to that middle Saturday afternoon ABC time slot,” Epps said.
Peach Bowl, Inc., is not only giving to the players; it is also supporting charitable causes. The Aflac Kickoff Game includes its “Kickoff for a Cause” initiative, where proceeds will go to childhood cancer awareness and treatment near the beginning of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
The game will feature Heisman Trophy winners Robert Griffin III and Cam Newton to represent their alma maters as honorary captains. The pair of legendary quarterbacks will have multiple children who are battling cancer by their side.
“One of the other things we do is we bring some former or current patients who have gone through a struggle with childhood cancer,” Epps said. “When RGIII comes out from the Baylor side, he’s going to have a couple of kids with him, and the same thing on Cam’s side.”
The Aflac Kickoff game presents a premier matchup on the field with notable storylines to make it one of the best products in week one. Both sides have seen drastic changes to their rosters and coaching staffs, and Baylor looks to avenge its 38-24 loss to Auburn in last season’s opener.
Neither team looks to ease into the matchup. They want to make a splash on primetime to start their seasons.
“A lot of years, coaches and teams ease into week one, and you can afford to not be at your best,” Epps said. “With a matchup like this, what coaches tell us is that it focuses their entire offseason. It makes sure that they understand, ‘Hey, when we come out of the gate, we got to be firing on all cylinders.”
The Bears have incorporated the unfamiliar territory into their preparation. Head coach Dave Aranda has helped his players prepare for every aspect of their game day schedule.
“It is important to recognize that it’s going to look different,” Aranda said. “The stadium is going to look different, the environment will look different, but our prep is going to stay the same.”
While it is going to be a battle on the gridiron, Aranda and new Auburn head coach Alex Golesh have shown their support for each other in their meeting a few months prior to the game.
“I had a chance to sit down with him. So, I’m a big fan of his,” Aranda said. “Seems like a really good person underneath the coach. We were talking about it earlier that college football probably needs more guys like him.”
Baylor opens its season against the Tigers at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
