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8 CAVALIER CORNER cavalier sports The advent of name, image and likeness (NIL) for student-athletes has altered the landscape of college sports, and the Univer- sity of Virginia is changing with the times. In March, Cav Futures was named the of- ficial NIL collective of UVA athletics, through an association with Virginia Sports Proper- ties. Cav Futures, a non-profit, non-stock organization, was created in the spring of 2022 to help UVA student-athletes capital- ize on NIL opportunities. "Cav Futures' values are consistent with our values," Virginia's director of athletics Carla Williams said when the association was announced, "and their holistic ap- proach to serving student-athletes has already been extremely beneficial." The organization's goals include help- ing student-athletes build their brands for long-term success and not just immediate compensation. The UVA athletic department shares that goal. Having Cav Futures as its official NIL collective "not only strengthens that effort but allows for substantial growth and impact," Williams said. The executive director of Cav Futures, Lo Davis, knows Charlottesville, the University and UVA's athletic department well. A 1991 graduate of UVA, where he was on the base- ball team for two years, Davis is a former associate director for the Virginia Athletics Foundation. Cav Futures "is looking forward to ex- panding our platform as we continue to assist UVA student-athletes in the areas of brand building and educational support," Davis said, "as well as personal and profes- sional development." The organization's advisory board in- cludes six former UVA student-athletes — Ralph Sampson, Matt Schaub, Kyle Guy, Dana Boyle, Drew Fox and Valerie Morini — as well as Brian Socolow, a UVA law school graduate who has extensive experience in sports law. Former UVA football player Matt Link chairs Cav Futures' board of directors, whose other members include Stephanie Garcia Cichosz, Joey Smith, Hank Dudgeon, Hayes Smith and Kimberly Moseley. On its website, www.CavFutures.com, Cav Futures lists its three organizational pillars. First, it wants to provide "an inclusive marketplace for student-athletes to capi- talize on their NIL and allow prospective sponsors to engage in compliance with cur- rent and future University, NCAA, state and federal policies/legislation." Second, Cav Futures wants to use NIL branding to "better the University and Char- lottesville communities through community/ social activism." Third, the organization provides "educa- tion, readiness and networking in order to maximize student-athletes' potential through NIL, professional readiness and long-term career placement." Cav Futures has individual and corporate partners. Individual partners donate to the organization to support its mission. Corpo- rate partners may form business relation- ships with UVA student-athletes, who are compensated in exchange for use of their NIL. NIL compensation can come from vari- ous sources, including traditional endorse- ments and social media, appearances and autographs, in-kind deals and NFTs. Moreover, Cav Futures helps student- athletes hire marketing agents and other representatives to assist them in the NIL marketplace. "NIL is part of the student-athlete experi- ence now, and we're going to embrace it," Jim Booz, UVA's deputy athletics director for administration, said last summer. "If it weren't for our student-athletes, we wouldn't be here. We want to embrace it and help them maximize it." — Jeff White behind the scenes Cav Futures NIL