Late last year, when I was approached about helping Ohio State out on the Name, Image, and Likeness front, I knew it was an opportunity I couldn't let pass. Despite a lot of hard work from the NIL collectives supporting Ohio State at the time, Gene Smith had just issued a statement politely calling on fans to step up and contribute what they could to the efforts of collectives.
There was also a sense within the department that other schools, working with collectives operating under a for-profit model, had been quicker to weaponize the space than Ohio State had at that point. As a lifelong Buckeye fan, I wanted to do what I could to help.
A series of lunch meetings brokered by Gary Marcinick of the Cohesion Foundation led me to a partnership with two other fans, Aidin Aghamiri and Mark Stetson. Aside from the fact that they cheer for the correct team, they are two of the smartest people I've ever worked with. Two innovators who weren't afraid to invest their own capital into the project, along with countless hours of intense work.
Today, we're proud to announce the first for-profit NIL collective supporting Ohio State athletics, The 1870 Society.
We're also announcing the hires of three members of our leadership team: Todd Markiewicz, the general manager of 97.1 the Fan here in Columbus, will serve as the organization's president. Drew Esler, a former club baseball player for Ohio State, is our Director of Operations. Tyvis Powell, who many of you know well and adore, is our Director of Player Engagement.
Why a for-profit model? This designation was crucial in giving The 1870 Society greater flexibility in how we engage with fans, businesses, and student-athletes. It's essentially a math problem: with NIL deals for star athletes inching higher and higher, fulfilling NIL obligations with charitable appearances and promotions can be challenging. We also took some inspiration from two for-profit collectives that are really setting the tone in this space: Georgia's Classic City Collective and Oregon's Division Street.
So how does this all work? Ohio State has been a great partner as we've planned this out, and they've stepped up to provide a series of extraordinary perks and rewards for members, whether you're a fan, you own a small business, or you're a decision-maker at a Fortune 500 company. And it was important to us to get this right because our goal is to assist in bringing NIL opportunities to all Ohio State student-athletes across all sports.
First, every member will receive access to unique and exclusive content at The 1870 Society, and we have some great ideas in store for you. I'm excited about The Ryan Day Podcast, a new podcast that will dive deep into football topics and give you a chance to know the man away from football better, which will be exclusive to members.
From there, depending on what you're comfortable contributing, everything from a virtual film session with a coach and/or athlete and access to watch football practice to a football autographed by the freshman class and participation in the team walk to the Shoe for a game is available.
I'm sure you're wondering how this might impact our coverage at Eleven Warriors, and I'm happy to say that it won't. We're still a fan site at heart, but if a team struggles with red zone execution or missed free throws, we will still write about those topics.
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I invite you all to check out the membership opportunities at The 1870 Society and give the collective a follow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
