Cha-ching! USF football "kicking teeth" in the new NIL world in college athletics

It has generally been accepted by those outside the USF football program that the Bulls are among the have-nots – or, at least among the have-not-enough – in the new NIL world of college athletics.

However, a couple of recent developments may challenge that theory.

At the season's opening game, the logo of supermarket giant “Publix” was printed on the turf at Raymond James Stadium. USF quickly took advantage of an NCAA rules change during the summer to allow such sponsorships.

"We are continuing to make South Florida a model athletic department for modern times, and on-field commercial logos give us a unique opportunity to further provide for our student-athletes and athletic programs," USF's Vice President for Athletics Michael Kelly said.

"Publix is a nationally recognized brand that has local ties and has been around for nearly a century. We are excited to team up with Publix for this historic sponsorship."

There also is this: The 2024 USF football season presented by Tampa General Hospital.

Cha-ching!

USF has been aggressive in exploring new ways to take advantage of the relaxed sponsorship rules by the NCAA. In July, it formed a new NIL strategy department named Bulls Unlimited. It is led by Andrew Warsaw, who had previously served as football coach Alex Golesh’s chief of staff.

"College athletics is changing and evolving rapidly and the University of South Florida intends to be on the forefront of that evolution," Kelly said then.

"We are building a model athletic department for these modern times. As the era of permissiveness with what we can provide student-athletes and revenue sharing continues to evolve, South Florida intends to be as aggressive as we can be and continue to meet every new standard."

Do you think it’s working? Before you answer, consider this recent comment from American Athletic Conference rival Jeff Traylor, the head football coach at UTSA.

Brobible.com reported Traylor “made a public plea for a major donation during his weekly radio show on Tickets 760.”

“We’re getting our teeth kicked in (on NIL) by Memphis and South Florida,” he said.

NIL money is the x-factor for all major college programs now.

The website On3.com reported that Colorado quarterback Shadeur Sanders has an NIL valuation of $4.7 million. Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, who faces USF this weekend, has a deal worth $1.7 million. Miami quarterback Cam Ward, who the Bulls face in Week 4, has an NIL deal just under $1 million.

By contrast, On 3 says USF quarterback Byrum Brown’s deal is worth $283,000. While that might not compare to those other deals, it’s a lot better than the books, board, and tuition fees the NCAA decreed were the only permissible benefits to athletes for decades.

And with USF in a teeth-kicking mode, we can expect the funds to increase as the Bulls try to keep pace in an ever-changing world.

Oh, would we be surprised when USF’s new football stadium opens it might be named after a certain gigantic supermarket chain?

I wouldn’t.