MISSOULA — Name, image and likeness is one of if not the most talked about subjects in college athletics today, and has grown exponentially since 2021.
Recently at Montana, the Good Ol' Grizzlies NIL collective was absorbed under the UM athletics umbrella as part of the recent House settlement.
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"So now instead of donors and boosters and businesses being able to pay Good Ol' Grizzlies to then contribute to our student-athletes, now people can just contribute straight to the University of Montana Foundation where there's revenue share accounts set up for our student-athletes," said Marcus Welnel, the assistant athletic director and chief revenue officer at Montana. "You can contribute there, get a tax deduction."
The two used to be separate entities. But now together, the process is streamlined when it comes to outside contributions for paying student-athletes at Montana.
"And I'm excited for our student-athletes, because a lot of times they had questions, they didn't understand what was going on," Welnel said. "But now we have a process in place. I think athletes are going to feel very confident that things are right here at the University of Montana."
NIL has taken off, and locally the state of Montana has been no exception as businesses have had a profound impact as they've started embracing it.
Related: Montana athletics changes course, opts into House settlement as new era of NCAA begins
In Missoula, Draught Works Brewery crafted a beer called "Up With" where every pint or can sold sees proceeds go to Good Ol' Grizzlies and UM for all of Griz student-athletes.
Owners Paul Marshall and Jeff Grant are both Montana natives and UM alums, and they wanted to pitch in and create a beer they describe as an all-day tailgate style of brew.
"It was an easy decision," Grant said. "We were kind of giddy about it and excited about it and did really everything we could to work with Marcus, who was excellent to work with. Everyone at the university was great to work with and see it come to fruition. We're really excited. It means something to us."
The beer's sales have grown since it launched last January, and Draught Works has worked with UpTop to create merchandise for it, as well as local vendors to distribute more of the beer, which in turn results in more sales and more money benefiting the athletes.
"I'm still very bullish on the idea that we'll be writing bigger and bigger checks every month," Marshall said. "I think we're still definitely in the growth phase with Up With and that'll grow pretty dramatically over the next year."
Athletes are appearing in more commercials too, and sponsorships, brands, and more continue to develop for all sports including local restaurants providing meals.
"Not every business can write big checks or do a lot of stuff, but a lot of businesses can do co-branded stuff, get them food, get them different merch," Welnel said. "So I think any way we can support student-athletes, the better."
The landscape is head-spinning and ever-changing, but it's the present and future, and finding ways to get the community involved is an advantage UM is hoping to continue to utilize and grow.
"I think now businesses are really starting to learn like, we can really work with our athletes, get some great marketing and influencers like that," Welnel said. "The university has to be able to help our business out and support our student-athletes and the university. So I think that's great, wrapping their arms around that."
