How 2 emerging collectives are aiming to keep Ohio State competitive in the NIL race

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State players and coaches finished singing “Carmen Ohio” after the spring game on April 16. Along with some recruits and family members, they exited the field via the south end zone tunnel. The scene played out mostly as normal, with the exception of one noticeable difference.

On the LED video board above the tunnel, and on the larger video board over the south stands, there was an advertisement showing the word COHESION, and a website address, cohesionfoundation.com.

Welcome to college football’s new normal, where NIL collectives such as Cohesion Foundation, which launched the week of Ohio State’s spring game, are doing whatever they can to help schools remain competitive.

Even that idea, competitiveness, is a moving target in a world where donor and/or fan-funded collectives are shelling out reported six- and seven-figure deals to prospective student-athletes if they sign with the program that those individual collectives support. Ohio State is entering the space via the establishment of Cohesion Foundation and The Foundation, both of which aim to compensate OSU athletes for providing support and awareness for local charities. Does that mean Ohio State is about to become a player in the million-dollar collective deal game? Likely not, but supporters don’t want to see the Buckeyes sidelined either.

“I think Ohio State is in a unique position not to have to take desperate steps,” said Gary Marcinick, the founder and president of Cohesion Foundation. “We just have to do things sensibly, versus that type of situation. So many schools are desperate to win. They have not enjoyed the fruits of the sports programs across the board at Ohio State. So, desperate people do desperate things. And that’s an act of desperation.”

Cohesion Foundation is unique in its ability to advertise at Ohio State events. It’s an official sponsor of Ohio State athletics through the school’s media rightsholder Learfield, and as such gets prominent placement in prominent places in the same way Coca-Cola and Donatos Pizza do. Beyond that, Maricink said his organization doesn’t get preferential treatment, nor is it bound to stricter guidelines. It also isn’t alone in its mission to keep Ohio State competitive in the increasingly murky waters of NIL collectives and the impact they can have on recruiting.

“We need to be at the forefront of this to help with recruiting,” said Brian Schottenstein, a Columbus real estate developer and OSU booster who, along with former Buckeyes quarterback Cardale Jones, started The Foundation.

The Foundation has some serious name power behind it. In addition to Schottenstein and Jones, its board of directors includes former football coach Urban Meyer; former football players J.T. Barrett, Terry McLaurin and Will Allen; and former basketball player D’Angelo Russell in addition to local business leaders.

Cohesion Foundation’s board includes Marcinick, a former walk-on receiver at Ohio State and an executive at a wealth management firm in Columbus, as well as former Buckeyes football players Jeff Heuerman, Zach Boren and Adam Griffin, son of OSU legend Archie Griffin. It also includes OSU trustee Robert Schottenstein and Gary Nicklaus, son of golf legend and Ohio State alum Jack Nicklaus. Both Archie Griffin and Jack Nicklaus have endorsed Cohesion Foundation’s mission.

The idea is to build cachet in the community, which in turn leads to donations, and with OSU athletes and prospective recruits, which in turn keeps the Buckeyes competitive on the field — all with the intended benefit of providing awareness for local charities that might not have the resources to otherwise partner with OSU’s athletes on their own.

Compensating athletes for their help with local charities is Ohio State’s way of keeping pace with the rapidly changing world of NIL in which collectives are becoming increasingly influential.

“It is a creative way to create NIL opportunities for student-athletes, and we don’t want to be so restrictive that we aren’t helping these organizations thrive,” said Carey Hoyt, a senior associate athletic director at Ohio State who oversees the NIL program. “Like everything in NIL, it has to be a legitimate NIL activity, whether that’s an endorsement, an appearance, whatever the collective’s business model is going to be. Our primary concern is to make sure our student-athletes are in fact doing an NIL activity if they are engaging with a collective, just in the same way it would be if they engaged with a brand.”

The Foundation has signed deals with football players Paris Johnson Jr. and Cameron Brown, as well as incoming basketball transfer Tanner Holden. It has partnered with three local charities thus far: LifeTown, which teaches life skills to special needs children; A Kid Again, which provides support to children with life-threatening conditions and their families; and the Buckeye Cruise for Cancer, which raises funds for cancer research. Schottenstein also said he hopes to partner with Johnson’s foundation, The Paris Johnson Jr. Foundation, which serves disabled veterans and disadvantaged student-athletes.

Cohesion Foundation to this point has not announced any athlete signings or charitable partnerships, but Marcinick said there should be news on both fronts in the coming weeks. He also said there will be educational components — such as financial literacy training — for the athletes who sign deals with Cohesion.

“Our purpose is not to just give them a fish, but to teach them how to fish — and maybe keep some fish at the end of the day,” Marcinick said.

The Foundation has been granted 501c3 status, meaning any donations to the organization are tax-deductible. Cohesion Foundation has applied for the same status. Both will seek out larger donations from corporate entities and major individual donors but also have mechanisms in place for fans to donate to their collectives on their respective websites.

Neither organization would divulge to The Athletic how much money it has raised thus far.

Schottenstein said the deals that The Foundation signs with athletes will vary in their level of compensation. Marcinick envisions for Cohesion Foundation a more balanced approach in which players will sign what he calls flat-rate “base” deals, with the potential to grow. Provided the organization gets the funds needed, and Marcinick is confident it will, the hope is that every member of Ohio State’s 2023 recruiting class can expect an opportunity to work with Cohesion Foundation once they set foot on campus — in addition to whatever NIL opportunities might be out there for them.

“We’re trying to gear up for the 2023 class,” Marcinick said. “This is now a conversation that Ryan Day and his staff, really college coaches all over the country are having with athletes. This NIL topic is front and center. It’s now table stakes. It’s non-optional. We have to bring excellence in this area to compete at the same level.”

Ohio State is trying to strike the balance between remaining competitive but also not crossing the line into territory that could be construed as bending or outright breaking the rules — what little are actually in place.

For instance, designated members of Hoyt’s staff in the athletic department can interact with collectives to answer questions, provide compliance guidelines and help in making a connection with a current student-athlete. However, OSU doesn’t want coaches to be part of those conversations, whether with current athletes or recruits.

“The potential for the impression of a recruiting inducement is very real,” Hoyt said.

The lack of uniformity across different state laws regarding name, image and likeness combined with the lack of a national standard further complicates manners.

Take for instance these three separate responses the question of what is permissible interaction between collectives and prospective student-athletes:

Marcinick: “That is a clear inducement. That’s the new four-letter word. But how could that not be construed as an inducement?”

Schottenstein: “We can talk to recruits before they’re enrolled, we just can’t make an official deal with them. We can tell them about The Foundation and everything we have to offer, and let them know what other deals we’ve done. We can talk to them and get them excited about being at Ohio State.”

And Hoyt: “The NCAA has not weighed in with directions to any of the schools or collectives who have asked that question. You know the age-old booster inducement issue, I think you can draw a parallel to the collectives working in the recruiting space. NIL is a new era that’s given people at least the presumption that they can interact with prospects. My personal opinion is that ultimately the NCAA will have to weigh in on that, but until they do, technically, in the NCAA interim policy and the state laws, there’s nothing…