Nebraska has announced today that they will be the first to launch a custom program designed to help their student athletes build their individual brands. The program - OpenDorse - will work with all 650+ Cornhusker athletes to provide some really valuable tools and
Blake Lawrence, a Nebraska football alum, founded OpenDorse and noted that he and his company have been preparing for this moment for over seven years.
How will it work? Well, the Ready Now Program will offer every Nebraska student athlete a current valuation of their brand and will also review and flag content that could have a negative impact on their brand and provide insight to help increase the individual's brand value as well, the announcement points out. Currently, OpenDorse works with over 10,000 athletes worldwide including players in the NFL, PGA tour, and MLB among a host of others.
A traditionalist in a lot of ways, Frost shared just six months ago that he wasn't convinced that the NIL movement to pay players was a great idea, calling it a "slippery slope" in a piece by Omaha.com.
However, as more and more states have introduced NIL legislation forward, it has become a matter of "when" an "how" compensating players for name, image, and likeness is going to look in college athletics moving forward, and it is no longer considered an "if" as it once was. For Frost and his staff, it sounds like being on the cutting edge has become a matter of player development.
Frost shared the following thoughts on being the leader in this space via an announcement from the school:
“We believe social media is at the core of this next frontier for player development,” Nebraska Head Coach Scott Frost said. “There’s an opportunity for our players that transcends compensation today – we as coaches and leaders can provide our student-athletes the tools to maximize their future value while they’re competing for the University of Nebraska.
“Regardless of what change comes in NIL legislation, we want every Nebraska athlete to be prepared with the blueprint for success beyond the field. With Ready Now and the unrivaled passion of the Husker fanbase, I believe a current student-athlete’s brand can be considerably more valuable at Nebraska.”
Head here to read the full announcement from Nebraska.