University of South Carolina Announces the Future of NIL Programming
Gamecocks Partner with Three Leading Companies to Assist Student-Athletes
University of South Carolina firmly believes in student-athletes maximizing their name, image, likeness opportunities and therefore has partnered with three of the leading companies in the space to assist our student-athletes: Altius Sports Partners, INFLCR, and COMPASS.
Altius Sports Partners will continue to provide strategic guidance to the department and educational support through customized NIL programs tailed to the needs of Gamecock student-athletes and the UofSC athletics department. INFLCR will allow our student-athletes to build their brand through shared social content. COMPASS will serve as the mechanism for student-athletes to disclose their NIL activities to UofSC as required by state law.
“Being in the SEC, located in the state capital, having a passionate fan base with tremendous relationships with local and regional businesses will certainly benefit our student-athletes in building their brand,” said Athletics Director Ray Tanner. “With three NIL partners, we are among the leading NCAA institutions in providing guidance in building personal brands for our young men and women.”
Recognizing the need for a long term, sustainable NIL program, the athletics department will partner with several campus constituents to provide a collaborative environment and enhance the number of resources available to our student-athletes. Currently, these include two UofSC academic programs – the School of Journalism and Mass Communications and Sport and Entertainment Management. The UofSC Association of Letterman and UofSC Black Alumni Council will also serve as a campus constituent.
“The college athletic landscape is changing with name, image, and likeness,” said Chance Miller, Senior Deputy Athletics Director. “When we started embarking upon name, image, likeness, we wanted to be intentional and wanted to build a good foundation.”
To provide strategic guidance and oversee the University’s NIL efforts, Hilary Cox has been named associate athletics director for administration. Cox has been with the South Carolina athletics department since 2014, working in the compliance department. In her new role outside of compliance, she will continue to facilitate a collaborative approach to NIL programming.
“I am excited to help the athletics department navigate this new space in college athletics,” said Cox. “We have been working hard for the last year to ensure that we are providing the best resources to our student-athletes. We believe that bringing a variety of resources and partners to the table for our student-athletes will allow them to achieve their personal goals and take advantage of these new opportunities.”
“Hilary has proven herself to be an asset to South Carolina Athletics,” said Tanner. “I am confident that with her oversight, this program will continue to evolve and adapt to the inevitable changes. Her prior compliance experience and institutional knowledge have been invaluable when working with the different groups regarding name, image, likeness.”
The NIL education program at South Carolina falls under the athletics department’s “Gamecock CEO” program, started in 2020. CEO is an acronym for “Commit, Engage, Own It” and empowers student-athletes to take charge of their lives.
Under the leadership of Tanner, Gamecock athletics has had a strong commitment to student-athlete development. In 2014, the Gamecock Student-Athlete Promise made Carolina the first school in the SEC to offer multi-year scholarships. It also included the Carolina Degree Completion Program, which allowed for student-athletes to return to school who left the University in good academic standing to pursue a professional career or did not complete their degree for personal circumstances.
The Beyond Sports Professional Development and Internship program was developed in 2017 to assist student-athletes for future success outside the fields of competition by giving them real-world experiences in their academic interests.
Policies and guidelines for Gamecock student-athletes to participate in NIL activities are located at gamecocksonline.com/NIL
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:
Ray Tanner, Director of Athletics: “It is important for us to get our student-athletes to understand how to market themselves and be the CEO of their brand. To be able to have three partners that can address specific issues and concerns with our student-athletes shows how committed we are to assist our student-athletes building their brand.”
Casey Schwab, CEO and Founding Partner of Altius Sports Partners: “The University of South Carolina has been a great partner as NIL has evolved. From working with the student athletes, to the coaches and school administrators, we look forward to providing ongoing educational expertise to position everyone for success. We’re excited to continue building the NIL foundation for all Gamecocks.”
Jim Cavale, INFLCR CEO: “We are extremely excited to launch our department-wide partnership with South Carolina Athletics. Gamecock student-athletes will have readily available resources and content delivered directly to their INFLCR apps so they can build their personal brands. Through this partnership, South Carolina is positioning its current athletes and future recruits for success in monetizing opportunities for name, image, and likeness.”
Cory Moss, CEO of CLC: “COMPASS was built to serve as the transparent infrastructure for athletic departments to manage NIL, and we are excited to be selected to serve as that foundation role as a part of South Carolina’s comprehensive approach to NIL. Our COMPASS solution will work alongside South Carolina’s other partners to best position Gamecock student-athletes and staff for success.”
About Altius Sports Partners:
Altius Sports Partners will continue to provide strategic guidance to the department and educational support through customized NIL programs tailored to the needs of Gamecock student-athletes and the USC athletics department. The arrangement between Gamecock Athletics and Altius was announced in early March 2021.
About INFLCR:
INFLCR is the leading content and compliance software platform for college athletic programs, educating and preparing staff and student-athletes for new opportunities and guidelines from current NIL legislation, all powered by best-in-class content delivery via the INFLCR mobile app. INFLCR works with more than 1000 collegiate and professional sports teams with a network of over 35,000 athlete users.
About COMPASS:
CLC’S COMPASS will serve as the NIL administrative solution for South Carolina through its fully integrated NIL education, deal disclosure and compliance monitoring platform. COMPASS also contains the leading NIL reporting feature to allow South Carolina Athletics staff to analyze NIL activity across a number of variables to better understand and articulate NIL activities and opportunities for current and prospective student-athletes.
