Penn State Sports Magazine
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M A Y 2 0 2 3 11 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M "We lost Micah for a number of reasons, but one of the biggest rea- sons was a lack of support through NIL," Short said. "It's a wake-up call for me. When he chose Notre Dame over Penn State, I felt heartbroken and embarrassed that a school could come and take our coach. We're Penn State. We're not a stepping-stone job. Penn State is a destination job, and I think we need to do everything that we can to make sure that never happens again." Kerry Small, the new executive director of Success With Honor, acknowledged in a recent interview with BWI that the group's efforts fell short. He noted that Success With Honor was in the midst of a leader- ship transition in January and Febru- ary that impacted its messaging. "I think publicly, we didn't put it out there," he said. "During that transition time, we were doing things behind the scenes and we made progress privately, but we could have done a better job pub- licly with the social media and the mes- sage boards, engaging with them. We were not as effective as we should have been publicly. Period. "Privately, we had met with the folks and understood their needs and began speaking to key donors, and we were making significant progress there." Small said he's confident that the rela- tionships Success With Honor is devel- oping with athletics administrators and coaches will yield positive results for all. He said he believes the focus on NIL is- sues that followed Shrewsberry's exit will ultimately prove beneficial. "I think this is actually a good thing in the sense that we have the attention of people," he said. "Once we educate them on what these athletes need in support and what they're going to do, yes, with- out a doubt, the new model that we're launching is the solution that's needed by basketball. "We're excited, and the tip of the ice- berg of what we saw with support leaves me incredibly optimistic that Penn State is going to be competitive on a national level. And while NIL is not the only story here, it's the team culture, it's the coach, it's a lot of things. Penn State's NIL efforts are going to be extremely competitive." Small also noted that neither Paterno nor Lubrano are on the board of Success With Honor, participate in its day- to-day operations or speak on its behalf. Mauti said that the desire for a broad-based approach to NIL, while well-intentioned, does not reflect "actual marketplace condi- tions." "Right now, it's not working," he said. "And if it's not working for basketball, where do you think football stands in that? "A rising tide lifts all ships. If the football product elevates, then ev- ery other sport elevates by exten- sion. You can't argue that. It's not that we're prioritizing sports over academics. It's no secret that foot- ball drives this entire ecosystem, so we have to focus there first. And for me, it's to propel and enhance the legacy that is Penn State. I'm a prod- uct of that. And that's got to evolve. It's progress. We're moving this program into the next era." ■ Nicholas Singleton Leads Penn State's NIL Valuation List The Penn State football team's 2022 recruiting class wasn't just an on-field success in its first year in the program. Three of the top players in that class — running back Nicholas Singleton, linebacker Abdul Carter and quarterback Drew Allar — are among the school's top 10 athletes in name, image and likeness valuation, according to On3's NIL tracker. In addition, a fourth member of the class — defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton — is close behind, ranking 11th among all PSU athletes with a $153,000 valuation. On3's formula incorporates on-field performance, social media influence and overall media expo- sure. The formula projects a player's earning potential over the next 12 months. Penn State's list is, for obvious reasons, dominated by football players. The highest-ranked athlete from a team other than football is Jalen Pickett of the men's basketball team, a recently graduated All-American who places sixth. The highest-ranked female athlete on the list is Lady Lion basketball forward Anna Camden at No. 18 with a valuation of $96,000. Here's a look at PSU's top 10: RK NAME POS CLASS VALUATION 1. Nicholas Singleton RB So. $864,000 2. Chop Robinson DE Jr. $671,000 3. Olumuyiwa Fashanu OT Jr. $522,000 4. Abdul Carter LB So. $468,000 5. Kalen King CB Jr. $377,000 6. Jalen Pickett PG Sr. $373,000 7. Drew Allar QB So. $243,000 8. Curtis Jacobs LB Jr. $242,000 9. Dante Cephas WR Sr. $204,000 10. J'ven Williams OL Fr. $181,000 Former Penn State linebacker Michael Mauti, shown here with fellow Nittany Lion great Saquon Barkley, has been leading efforts to generate NIL support for the football program. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL