Deion Colzie signs with Notre Dame on Dec. 16, 2020. Photo by Ryne Dennis
NIL NETWORK INSIGHT
Recap: Deion Colzie, a senior in high school and future football athlete at Notre Dame, has launched his own website as a place to showcase his personal brand and as a landing page for potential partnerships once NIL legislation gets passed. Unfortunately, many domains utilizing his name had already been purchased with the intent to re-sell for thousands of dollars. His family is controlling his website and they hope to share information with other future collegiate athletes’ parents about this space.
Observations: The business of purchasing domains of the names of up and coming “celebrities” to monetize with a re-sell down the road is likely to become even bigger in the NIL era. I’m curious how crazy this slimy industry will get: At what young age will these domain purchasers go to? With young athletes being nationally recognized for their talents as young as 2nd grade, will domain purchasers (or are they currently) purchasing domain with intent to sell a decade later?
Athlete Tips & Takeaways:
- Buy your domain. The cost of a domain is typically less than $20/year. Even if you have no intent to build out your website in this stage of your career, this small investment can save you a major headache in the future.
Athens Banner-Herald
For Yolanda and Frank Jackson and their son, Athens Academy senior and Notre Dame football signee Deion Colzie, proactive and protective thinking has often prevailed.
The family announced Wednesday the launch of Colzie’s website. For seven months Yolanda has worked with a brand building company to create a logo, which is still pending trademark approval, and the website.
The Jacksons have followed the changing climate of college athletics and kept their mindset geared for the future.
A potential tweak to NCAA rules to allow student-athletes to be paid for their image and likeness, long discussed and introduced in 2020, is expected to pass sooner than later.
That announcement, coupled with the growing following of Colzie due to his recruitment, began the website’s process.
