NIL Is Moving From Chaos to ROI with Brent Wall of Student Athlete Score
College sports is changing fast. NIL, social media, transfer rules, donor money, brand deals, and youth sports are now connected in ways that did not exist a few years ago. Eric Kasimov talks with Brent Wall, co-founder and CEO of Student Athlete Score, about athlete branding, NIL data, and why personal brand is becoming part of the athlete journey earlier than ever. Topics covered: What Student Athlete Score does for schools, athletes, and brands Why NIL still feels like a new Wild West How local businesses can work with student-athletes Why follower counts, engagement, and fake followers all matter The pressure on young athletes to build a personal brand How the transfer portal is reshaping recruiting Why Olympic sports and non-revenue sports face hard questions What athletes can build beyond their playing careers Chapters 00:00 — Sports towns, fandom, and life around Michigan athletics 01:50 — The professionalization of sports at every level 03:00 — Why young athletes now have to think about personal brand 04:39 — Social media cleanup, exposure, and the pressure on kids 06:32 — What Student Athlete Score does 07:56 — Measuring athlete value on social media 08:35 — How universities use the platform 10:05 — AI, discovery, and local brand deals 11:39 — NIL education, taxes, and athlete responsibility 13:36 — The old Wild West of NIL and the new one 15:59 — Compliance, NIL Go, and the fight around regulation 16:22 — Eligibility, the five-and-five rule, and college sports consistency 19:35 — Tournament expansion, TV money, sports betting, and more games 23:00 — What happens to tennis, Olympic sports, and non-revenue programs 26:17 — Donor fatigue and the need for NIL ROI 29:41 — Why money does not guarantee winning 31:19 — The transfer portal and mid-major programs as proving grounds 36:00 — International athletes, age gaps, and roster pressure 38:49 — Olympic athletes, NIL, and personal brand gaps 40:28 — Bots, fake followers, and better data 42:31 — Why athlete interests matter to brands 43:31 — Building a platform for life after sports 44:11 — Youth sports, high school athletes, and brand education 46:21 — NIL as a sales and marketing education 47:21 — Team dinners, micro-influencers, and local business value 50:40 — How Student Athlete Score grew with universities 51:26 — New commercial roles inside athletic departments 52:57 — Where to find Brent Wall and Student Athlete Score Connect with Brent Wall | Student Athlete Score: StudentAthleteScore.com Instagram: @studentathletescore Brent on LinkedIn Connect with Eric & SportsEpreneur: SportsEpreneur.com | X | LinkedIn Eric on LinkedIn | X Related SportsEpreneur posts: Youth Sports Has Become a Full-Time Job for Parents | Dave Yoo of Onsides High School Athletes and NIL: The Future of Youth Sports The Real Cost of Youth Sports in 2026 NIL Hub | SportsEpreneur’s NIL News, Insights & Resources