Notre Dame football gets its own NIL Collective, the FUND Foundation
The Notre Dame football team has its very own NIL Collective, a collective named the “FUND Foundation,” which was created by former QB Brady Quinn.
By now, you’ve heard plenty about NIL Collectives. Most of the stories out there concern things like the NIL Collective which is reported to be getting $8 million by a collective to play for their school. The rumor goes that this is at Tennessee, but it’s also just an example of what is starting to happen all around the country, raising some concerns about pay-for-play.
Of course, others will just as soon point out that pay-for-play has always happened, just under the table. Others, still, argue that it’s a good thing and there isn’t anything to worry about.
Whether this is a good or a bad thing doesn’t matter, though. At least, it doesn’t matter to individual programs. What matters is that it is happening, and trying to keep up in a new college football arms race.
Notre Dame football lands its own NIL Collective
Notre Dame football, who chickened out of the facilities arms race under Brian Kelly, isn’t backing out of this one, though. The Irish have officially gotten their own NIL Collective. It’s called the FUND Foundation, and it was founded by Brady Quinn.
FUND stands for ‘Friends of the University of Notre Dame,’ for those interested.
The FUND Foundation website is brand new. It both explains how things work and gives those interested a place to donate. Broadly speaking, this NIL Collective is designed to help student-athletes promote charitable organizations. For instance, if a player has had a family member battle cancer, FUND would help them promote something like Jimmy V.
Donations given will be distributed to student-athletes as a stipend for their charitable work. In this way, FUND is a little bit different than many of the more infamous NIL Collectives, which raise money to give to players for something to be determined at a later date.
It’s also important to point out that FUND is not affiliated with Notre Dame. It’s a non-profit that is run independently by boosters of the program. This is the case with all NIL Collectives, no matter their scale. They cannot be affiliated directly with a university.
As of now, donations appear to be on a one-time basis and can be in any dollar amount that you choose to give. For many fans, knowing that their donations are going directly to players instead of things like facilities can be a rewarding experience.