🧠 From Scottie…

The World Cup has begun!!!

Outside of March Madness, this is my favorite time of the year. When I was younger, I always enjoyed watching the national teams play. Something about the anticipation of the first goal, not really seeing much of the players outside of the world games really excited me to see them when the time finally came around.

If you watch or have watched the Men’s FIFA World Cup last year, you might notice the difference in promotional marketing between the two national teams. The women's team is going all out, engaging in thousands of interviews and social media content to promote the World Cup and their players. As a fan, I love the content they are putting out—it allows us to get to know them beyond the field. But it got me thinking about the extra effort they have to put in to gain exposure and shine a spotlight on the team. In contrast, it seems the men can just show up and play without the need to churn out 10 TikToks and YouTube videos per day.

Seriously, it looks like the women are producing an average of 10 Instagram posts, TikTok videos, and YouTube videos per day. I’m exhausted for them. I can’t even maintain my 6:30 p.m. deadline for this…

Now, don't get me wrong—I'm all for this bonus content! It's great, enjoyable and adds another layer of excitement. However, imagine preparing for the most significant tournament of your life, only to know that you also have to find time to film a 30-second TikTok dance in your hotel room with an additional hour plus for choreography, all in the hopes that Craig in Omaha, Nebraska might stumble upon it and tune into the games.

If you’re watching the game tonight, GO USA! If you’re not, you should watch it. It’s gonna be a great game against the Netherlands.

SS

💰️ Should Players Leave College To Pursue Influencer as a Career?

Let’s dive into an intriguing tale of a former Texas A&M distance runner turned YouTube sensation, Ryan Trahan. This guy has over 13 million subscribers and was once a student athlete, but things took an unexpected turn when he got in to hot water with TAMU for using his name, image, and likeness on his YouTube channel to promote his company and showcasing what it was like to be a student athlete at TAMU, pre-NIL era. SUCKED 2 BE RYAN

Ryan faced a tough choice back then—stick with social media and talk about whatever you want and promote whatever you want, or remain a student-athlete and never promote the company you built. Ultimately, he dropped out of college to pursue the digital world full-time and it paid off and then some. Ryan’s current net worth is now around $8 million dollars. It’s hard to imagine if he would have been able to make the same amount of money or grow his channel at the level he did, had he stayed in college.

While Ryan’s situation is pre-NIL era, I wonder if we will start seeing athletes leave college to pursue the digital world with social media, content creation, influencing, etc. Even though NIL should prevent this from happening in the way that it happened to Ryan, we are now seeing college athletes turn into overnight millionaires and it’s a reasonable question to consider. Who’s to say they won’t be tempted to chase the fame and fortune? Would it be worth the payout?

Think about it.

A player's career takes off, brand deals roll in, and their social media following skyrockets. Suddenly, the sport that once brought joy may seem less enticing compared to the allure of the digital realm. Who wouldn't dream of experiencing the glitzy life in L.A., right? If this is what the first round of checks look like for players, what would it look like if it was their full time focus? Social media influencers dream of the type of experience these student athletes are getting in college, so they’re already a leg up if they choose to do so! (Maybe not with the looks, but that’s neither here nor there)

Women's college basketball might just see its fair share of "Ryan Trahans." With athletes raking in life-changing money, helping universities gain recognition, and impacting their families' lives, the temptation is real. But here's the catch—many players might lack proper representation or financial know-how, leaving them with nothing but a Prada bag to show for it all.

Let’s explore the “Ran Trahan approach.” Players, if you capitalize on your name, image, and likeness, you could multiply your value tenfold. Sure, you can stay true to the game, follow your dream an aim for the WNBA, but do you really want to spend the rest of your life fighting for chartered flights, a locker room, a livable salary, and equal coverage and treatment compared to the NBA? Or would you rather increase cash flow, maximize your investments, and become part-owner in one of the WNBA teams?

Let’s walk through a scenario. If I was a player at a decent school like Mia and Mastrov at Cal Berkeley, in the Top 10 for NIL deals, I would seriously consider quitting college to pursue social media full time. She has a massive following, good engagement, partnerships out the wazoo, and enough basketball accomplishments that I would consider leaving the game and college early. Now that the checks are rolling in and nowhere near ending, why not capitalize and build something of your own to promote or dedicate towards full time? Build out a product, cofound a company, or invest in a company that will continue maximizing your income while taking advantage of your unique situation.

Over the next 3-5 years, we might witness a wave of players dropping out of college as the allure of social media becomes too tempting to resist. Not all of them may strike gold like Ryan Trahan, but you never know—success could be just a few posts away.

Will we witness a seismic shift in the world of women’s college basketball?

Here is Ryan’s video from 2017 talking about the situation while he was in college

Here is one of Ryan’s current videos

👂️ This Week’s Locker Room Drama

What’s been going on in the world of women’s college basketball recently? We’ve got you covered.

• Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s ZOA Energy launces NIL campaign headlined by Angel Reese (on3)

• UConn’s Jana El Alfy suffered an Achilles tendon rupture during the 2023 FIBA U19 World Cup. She will miss the 2023-24 season (UConn)

• Coach Yo from Ole Miss nears contract extension (Clarion Ledger)

• Kenny Brooks from Virginia Tech signs a 3 year contract extension (The Athletic)

👇️ Video of The Week

Day in the life with Sydney Parish from Indiana during summer training

@sydney_parrishh

Day in my life🤭 #basketball #d1 #athlete #bball #indiana #iu #bloomington #hoosiers #bigten

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