The Weirdest, Most Interesting College NIL Deals To Date, Including John Daly II, DeColdest Crawford

In the year-plus since name, image and likeness has come to college sports, there have been many deals that have caught our eye.

Ahead of Week 0 of the college football season — which starts when Northwestern kicks off against Nebraska in Dublin on Saturday — here are our top 10 most memorable ones.

10. Arkansas Offensive Line, Wright’s Barbecue

A food deal for the bigguns? Amazing. This local BBQ spot has expanded their partnership beyond the “Protectors of the Pit” and sponsored other athletes.

9. Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama football, Kool-Aid

It only made sense that when the top corner of the 2021 class committed to Alabama, he was going to get this beverage deal.

His real name is Ga’Quincy, but his grandmother gave him the nickname when he was born with a big, beaming smile on his face. We’re not sure what the deal entails, but it has included two tweets so far.

8. Jordan Bohannon, Iowa basketball, Boomin’ Fireworks

Hawkeyes three-point sharp shooter Jordan Bohannon kicked off the NIL era with a meet-and-greet at a fireworks store. Bohannon also threw in his game-winning shoes from the Big Ten Semifinals to be in a raffle for the brand.

7. Malachi Moore, Javion Cohen and Jermaine Burton, Alabama football, Six Star Pro Nutrition

Almost every NIL deal includes some sort of social media, but Six Star Pro Nutrition garnered attention by doing a deal that required these three players to stay OFF social media until the start of the 2022 season.

6. Drew Timme, Gonzaga basketball, Dollar Shave Club

Dollar Shave Club saves you money because of its generic nature, but they sure spend plenty on marketing. The brand, now owned by Unilever, combined its status as the Official Razor of March Madness with Timme’s smooth chin and made him a “Chinfluencer.”

5. John Daly II, Arkansas golf, Hooters

If there’s one endorsement deal that John Daly is known for it’s Hooters. To this day, he famously parks his RV in the Hooters parking lot in Augusta to sell his autograph and his gear. So signing his 18-year-old son is hilarious.

4. Bijan Robinson, Texas football, Lamborghini Austin

Considering how car products have been so intertwined with illegal recruiting in years past, it’s nice to see current athletes get paid for car sponsorships. As part of the deal, Robinson will get a vehicle to drive around in in Austin. No word as to whether he gets to keep a car.

3. John Krahn, Portland State football, WWE

What the WWE has done with NIL is fantastic. To use NIL deals in order to sign future stars is brilliant. We’ve been impressed by their scouting too. University of Minnesota wrestling champ Gable Steveson was an easy choice, but how could you not love 7-foot, 400-pounder John Krahn?

2. Josh Paschal, Kentucky football, Steckler Pediatric Dentistry

Brilliant move by a local Lexington dentist to remake the famous “Terry Tate” office linebacker, Reebok spot using Josh Paschal as the “defender of decay.” The commercial was solid enough to garner 520,000 views on Twitter.

Here's the original "Terry Tate" skit.

And here's Paschal's spot.

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1. DeColdest Crawford, Nebraska football, SOS Heating and Cooling

Kudos to SOS Heating and Cooling in Omaha for doing this deal with the guy with the most unique name in the game. This 30-second spot has been among the most viral of the NIL era, with six million hits on Twitter in a week.