exas HC Steve Sarkisian leads the Longhorns out of the tunnel against Colorado State
As the calendar turned to July 1 and the era of college athletics under the guidelines of the House v. NCAA case settlement began, the status of Name, Image, and Likeness collectives like the Texas One Fund was up in the air. Schools are going to be able to directly pay student-athletes as part of a revenue sharing model. No need for collectives anymore, right?
Actually, there is still a need, and the Texas One Fund is not going anywhere.
Texas One Fund president Patrick “Wheels” Smith told Inside Texas on Monday that the Longhorns’ primary NIL collective will continue operating and providing direct support to UT student-athletes even as athletic departments pay their athletes for ‘publicity rights.’ The mission and end goal of the Texas One Fund remains the same, providing fans with a way to directly support Texas Longhorns athletes in all sports and facilitating payments to them. The way that money will get to players just has to look a little different.
“July 1 and after July 1, that core mission and purpose remains,” Smith told Inside Texas. “All your donations are now going to now be membership contributions. Those are going to go to directly impacting winning at Texas, period. Recruiting. Retention. All those things. That money was going to NIL opportunities for kids. What once was charitable is now going to be on a for-profit brand side.”
Put simply, fans who want to support players can achieve their goal by supporting the Texas One Fund even as the collective begins operating in the House era.
The Texas One Fund’s main method of providing NIL payments to Texas athletes for most of its history was to connect Longhorns to charitable causes in and around the Austin area. Student-athletes would receive payment from the Texas One Fund for appearing at a charitable event or cause and promoting it on social media.
Because of the House settlement, those types of deals are no longer allowed. To respond, Texas One Fund over time shifted many of its agreements from the non-profit variety to more for-profit associations like with local businesses and car dealerships. Ahead of July 1, Smith and company hustled to ensure all agreements and deals with charitable aspects were completed. Now, the Texas One Fund will operate as a for-profit entity and the non-profit aspect of it will go dormant.
A Night for Texas from the Texas One Fund
A Night for Texas from the Texas One Fund (photo special to Inside Texas)
As a result, donations to the Texas One Fund will no longer be tax deductible. However, TOF donations will still accrue Longhorn Foundation Loyalty Points at the rate of two points per $100 donated.
IT asked Smith directly if the Texas One Fund was going to remain independent.
“We are fully independent, and we should be because having independence helps Texas as much as it helps us,” Smith said. “We can move, adapt, and change and float whatever necessary.”
The Texas One Fund will send an email from Smith to donors today outlining some of the changes being made to the collective. It explains how in 2023, “with eyes on the future of the NIL era, Texas One formed a limited liability company for the purposes of obtaining brand deals and enhancing business partnerships for our student-athletes.” That model is ready to go.
“We will continue to provide the very best that NIL has to offer,” the email states.
Members will be able to access new benefits, too. The Texas One Fund will allow members the opportunity to take part in or receive “exclusive memorabilia, content, and opportunities to interact with some of your favorite Longhorn coaches and athletes through private events, clubs, and more.” At previous Texas One Fund events, fans have been able to bid on opportunities to travel with Vic Schaefer’s women’s basketball team or go on a mock “official visit” with Steve Sarkisian’s program.
“Now you become a member of Texas One, and we’re going to beef up more of that and try to get people more experiences,” Smith said. “But really with that money, continue to provide this time instead of promoting a non-profit, they’ll be doing brand deals for third parties.”
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Smith reiterated several times that the continued mission of the Texas One Fund is critical for the entire athletic department. House revenue sharing payments only go so far. That’s not just for the sports like football, which at Texas will receive 75% of the money available for student-athletes.
It’s for the entire athletic department including baseball, softball, volleyball, and more. Smith said the Texas One Fund has to provide opportunities for athletes in all sports so that the Longhorns can achieve athletic director Chris Del Conte’s goal of national title contention in every sport.
“What we’re going to need and what Texas is going to need is people to continue to give monthly,” Smith said. “We will and have figured out the best ways to implement that with athletes.”
Even with House restrictions in effect, the landscape is likely to change again at some point. The Deloitte “NIL Go” clearinghouse meant to determine whether NIL deals are in line with fair market value already looks like an easy target for lawsuits. Whether change is to come from challenges to the clearinghouse or challenges elsewhere, Smith knows the Texas One Fund has to be ready to adapt. He believes it is.
“We’re going to be ready for what is July 5 rules, but with an eye towards if those go away, we’re going to be full system go this way,” Smith said. “If they are modified this way, here’s how we’re going to pivot. Just staying on top of it.”
While the way the money is being processed had to change, the end goal of the Texas One Fund did not. Smith reiterated how important donations to the Texas One Fund were to not just the Longhorn football program as it rose out of 5-7 depths, but also to baseball’s first-year success in the SEC and softball’s national championship efforts.
And to keep those successes in all sports going, continued support of the Texas One Fund is something Smith labeled as essential.
“It’s directly because we had people step up,” Smith said. “It had a direct impact on what we’re doing.”
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