Big 12 Sponsorships and NIL Are Changing Texas Tech Football

I guess we’re patching up college football players like they’re NASCAR drivers now.

Let’s start with a sentence you’re likely to hear someday: “Welcome to Galaxy Stadium for this Monster Energy Big 12 matchup.”

I’m not sure I need to elaborate on that, but I certainly can.

How about, “Welcome to Galaxy Stadium for this Monster Energy Big 12 game, coming to you live from the Liberty Mutual Skybox, located just beyond the Ozempic End Zone.”

We could go on and on. The helmets, jerseys, sidelines, replay reviews, and even the penalty flags could eventually have sponsors attached to them.

College Football Is Becoming Big Business

Yes, it’s already ridiculous without adding all of my fictional extras, but this is also partially something we’ve already dealt with. There are even some upsides to all of this.

Some of the cash at stake will trickle down to the players, and some of it may eventually make its way through the community. These kinds of deals, along with NIL money and the transfer portal, are also making teams like the Texas Tech Red Raiders competitive when they really weren’t that competitive before.

The downside is that one important thing could get lost in this sponsorship and NIL era: hometown pride.

It’s really kind of hard to get emotionally invested in players who are just here for the paycheck. I’m certain there are some people who don’t care why a player came to Lubbock as long as the Red Raiders win, but that seems a little shallow to me.

A player can kiss the Double T today, enter the transfer portal tomorrow and be wearing a rival’s uniform before you’ve finished paying off the jersey you bought with his name on it.

School spirit is slowly being replaced by paychecks, sponsorships and business decisions. I guess that’s simply where we’re at with college sports.

That’s okay. I always found the whole concept a little tribalistic anyway. That tribalism has led to plenty of people being unable to keep the drama, anger and passion on the field where it belongs.

There’s No Putting College Football Back

So what’s the final verdict on all of this?

It really kind of doesn’t matter.

Pandora’s box has already been opened, and there’s no pushing any of this back inside. The money is here. The sponsorships are here. NIL is here. Players moving from school to school is now just part of the game.

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I do think you’ll eventually see a lot of fans drift away from the traditional concept of having a home team. When the players, coaches, stadium names and conference names are constantly changing, it becomes harder to feel like you’re cheering for anything permanent.

Then again, as college football loses some traditional fans, it may gain new ones who enjoy the chaos, the money and the yearly rebuilding of the rosters.

Either way, welcome to the Monster Energy Big 12. This message was brought to you by whoever offered the most money.