The Players' Platform: Recent Episodes
Emily Cole and Kristi Dosh
Duke track and field athlete Emily Cole and Business of College Sports founder Kristi Dosh have teamed up for The Players' Podcast. Every week, they interview student athletes who are leveraging their name, image and likeness and personal brands to make money and make a difference. Guests share their ups and downs—both in and out of the jersey—to help and inspire their fellow athletes.
We are joined on this episode by Anna Camden of Penn State women’s basketball. Anna was quick to embrace NIL during its infancy and has since taken part in numerous NIL deals ranging from food to skin care and even deals to benefit charitable causes, such as her basketball camp for girls in State College.
We discuss:
- Her experience being an early adopter of NIL
- How she feels NIL has changed since its inception
- Her basketball camp (Camp Camden) and the opportunity it presented to raise money for charity
- The evolution of her deal with Roots Natural Kitchen, including having her own menu item
- What NIL marketplace apps she uses and the success she’s experienced with them
- The defining lessons she has learned that may help those just getting started in NIL
- The importance of her faith and how it has changed where she finds her value and identity
- ...and so much more!
Follow Anna Camden on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
As a sixth-year senior, Clemson guard Brevin Galloway has seen a dramatic evolution in NIL opportunities during his time as a student athlete.
He joins the show to talk about his NIL experiences, including:
- His unique transfer process from Boston College to Clemson
- Goals he has for his brand during his final year as a student athlete
- His deals and custom apparel with Amazon and iSlide
- Advice he has for other student athletes who are just starting in NIL
- His favorite NIL deal thus far and lessons he’s learned while building his brand
- His passion for mental health awareness
Follow Brevin on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
Known for her dunks on the court, Stanford forward Francesa "Fran" Belibi is also scoring in the NIL space. She joins the show to talk about her NIL journey, her clothing
line, and how she’s already leveraging NIL for her future after basketball.
We talked with Fran about:
- The start of her NIL journey
- FHABS - The brand and clothing line created by Fran and her family
- Her experience in the Meta NIL Empower program
- Her “Thinky Thought Thursdays” series on Instagram
- What her plans are for after basketball
- Advice she has for other athletes entering the NIL space
- How she evaluates each NIL opportunity and what her dealbreakers are
- Her favorite NIL deals thus far
- And much more!
Follow Fran: Instagram, Tik Tok, and Twitter.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
We're joined this episode by University of Kentucky QB Will Levis to talk all things NIL. From the first NIL deal with a horse farm to a car deal—and everything in between—he shares his strategy and how he's helping his teammates.
We discussed:
- How he decides whether to accept an NIL deal
- Why he embraced doing a deal with a horse farm
- Lessons from trying to balance NIL while in-season
- Battling being a "yes" man
- The NIL conversations happening among him and his teammates
- Choosing an agent
- Having both local and national representation
- How his car deal came about and what it looks like
- Planning for life after football
- ...and so much more!
Follow Will on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
We're joined this episode by Geo Baker, former Rutgers men's basketball athlete and co-founder of The Knight Society. We get into so many great topics with Geo, starting with how he advocated for student athlete rights before NIL rules were changed in 2021.
Geo shares with us:
- What it was like being part of the #NotNCAAProperty movement in the spring of 2021
- How coaches and administration reacted to his involvement in #NotNCAAProperty
- His experience meeting with the NCAA
- What he thinks his group did through the #NotNCAAProperty movement that was effective in creating change
- How to use your platform to have a voice in issues that matter to you
- Advice for leaning into being a creator, even if your following is small
- How he's giving back to youth athletes and fans
- How NIL changed his path
- ...and so much more!
You can follow Geo on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
This episode, we're joined by University of Florida gymnast Leah Clapper, who has definitely made the most of NIL so far. Not only had Leah done numerous brand deals, she's also consulted with companies on their NIL strategies, built her own boardgame and started her own NIL education company for student athletes. She's even the TA for our host Kristi Dosh's NIL classes at UF.
Leah is currently getting her second masters degree at Florida while competing in her final season of eligibility as a gymnast. She shares with us:
- How creating content with athletes in other sports at gymnastics has been a win for everyone involved
- How NIL has changed her academic and career path
- Her entrepreneurial ambitions
- Where she sees herself in 10 years
- Why she wants to live overseas after graduation
- How athletes can hone in on their passions as they create content
- The idea for her boardgame and how she created, marketed and sold it
- How she started NIL Island and how she plans to help other student athletes through it
- ...and so much more!
Athletes, check out these resources on Leah's NIL Island site:
- What's my worth?
- How do I negotiate?
- Should I sign the deal?
You can follow Leah on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
In this episode, we're joined by Rayquan Smith, the "King of NIL." Rayquan is a decathlete at Norfolk State and previously was a dual-sport athlete who also played football for the Spartans.
Rayquan received the Hustle Award at the 2022 NIL Awards and closed 70 NIL deals in Year 1 of NIL. He joins us to share:
- How he found his agent, including the questions he thinks other athletes should ask before signing with an agent
- Advice for reaching out to companies to land NIL deals
- How he's helped educate potential brand partners on NIL
- His strategy for negotiating with brands
- How his school has supported his NIL efforts
- What he wants out of Year 2 of NIL
- How he became the "King of NIL"
- ...and more!
Check out his website and merchandise at KingofNIL.com, and follow Rayquan on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
In this episode, we're joined by UNC women's basketball athlete Deja Kelly. Deja has seen incredible success with NIL, inking partnerships with major brands such as Outback Steakhouse, Beats by Dre, Dunkin Donuts and more.
However, it's not all about flashy brands and dollar signs for Deja. She's been very strategic about using her NIL to have a positive impact on younger athletes and to support single mothers, having been raised by one herself.
We chat with Deja about:
- How she prepared for NIL last year
- The partnerships she's leveraging to benefit single mothers
- Developing her camps with a focus on life skills, business skills and financial literary, and not just basketball
- Balancing NIL during the season
- Working with Forever 21 and Sports Illustrated to showcase her personality
- Taking equity in companies to create generational wealth
You can learn more about Deja's camps at DejaKellyCamp.com.
Follow Deja on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter.
You can follow The Players' Platform podcast on Instagram: @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole
Duke track and field and cross country athlete Emily Cole and Business of College Sports founder Kristi Dosh are teaming up for a new podcast all about personal branding and entrepreneurship for college athletes in the era of name, image and likeness.
In this first episode, the ladies interview each other and share how they met, their plans for the podcast and dive into some of the projects they're each working on as entrepreneurs and authors.
Future episodes will feature interviews with a variety of student athletes who are leveraging their name, image and likeness and personal brands to make money and make a difference. Guests share their ups and downs—both in and out of the jersey—to help and inspire their fellow athletes.
You can follow the podcast on Instagram @playersplatformpod.
Kristi Dosh: @SportsBizMiss
Emily Cole: @EmilyCole