Why Running Brands Are Signing College Athletes Who Can’t Race in Their Gear

December 12, 2023

It’s been a long time coming, but with an estimated 17 percent of all NCAA Division I athletes signing promotional deals to profit off their “name, image, and likeness” (NIL) in 2022, the era of stringently enforced amateurism in college sports seems to finally be over. To be fair, with a few notable exceptions, the splashiest NIL deals are going to football and basketball players, who have been anointed by the lords of high capitalism to sell us everything Tampax to Dr. Pepper. But athletes from some of the NCAA’s non-revenue sports have gotten in on the action as well. In November 2022, just days after winning the individual title at the NCAA cross country championships, North Carolina State’s Katelyn Tuohy announced that she signed an NIL partnership with Adidas. Outside Online (Possible Paywall)