SWARM CEO Brad Heinrichs Explains why they Currently are Unable to Support the Men's Basketball Program like they Need To

[WadeLookingbill]

Sorry, but the day it becomes the average fans "Job" to PAY high schoolers and transfers to come to school AND get a free education, so they can play basketball or football, with the chance of becoming a pro and making millions, (which is a pretty damn high propability under KF) is the day I could care less if we compete at an above average place in the B!G. Getting close to retiring and all that come with that and family all comes first. Love my Hawks, and always will, BUT this train has gone so far off the tracks. Nope, no thank you. I may find ways to contribute here and there, but I'll not be told I'm not a fan, because I'm not down with this whole crap show thats gone totally sideways. You all do what you do, and good for you.......

No one is saying you aren’t a fan. Some are saying those who don’t support NIL shouldn’t bitch when the results aren’t as hoped, for obvious reasons.

It’s an absolute truth going forward that recruiting/portal results will directly correlate to strength of NIL at a university.

 

[kceasthawk]

No one is saying you aren’t a fan. Some are saying those who don’t support NIL shouldn’t bitch when the results aren’t as hoped, for obvious reasons.

It’s an absolute truth going forward that recruiting/portal results will directly correlate to strength of NIL at a university.

My issue above it all, is they've created this giant $$$ machine between TV revenue from football, the NCAA basketball tourney, ticket sales etc...B1G schools alone getting 80 million a year soon, (or whatever). Well who generates all that cash. WE do! The fans. All the $$ we throw out for these TV contracts, tickets, Tshirts. Every year I pay more for TV service, extra for the B1G network, and all the $$ fans dump inti this thing, The schools get richer, the coaches. And yet no way to put toward an allotment for players? Now on top of everything they get as D1 athletes, we have people telling us that WE the fans need to come up with $$ to pay the players through these collectives to RECRUIT players? What? Before, anyone goes there, NIL as decided by the courts is what Clark is doing. She works for sponsers, like Hyvee and Nike. That is NIL, Name Image Likeness. This collective is NOT that. This is throwing money at players to go to a certain school. I mean whats next?

 

[amahawk]

My issue above it all, is they've created this giant $$$ machine between TV revenue from football, the NCAA basketball tourney, ticket sales etc...B1G schools alone getting 80 million a year soon, (or whatever). Well who generates all that cash. WE do! The fans. All the $$ we throw out for these TV contracts, tickets, Tshirts. Every year I pay more for TV service, extra for the B1G network, and all the $$ fans dump inti this thing, The schools get richer, the coaches. And yet no way to put toward an allotment for players? Now on top of everything they get as D1 athletes, we have people telling us that WE the fans need to come up with $$ to pay the players through these collectives to RECRUIT players? What? Before, anyone goes there, NIL as decided by the courts is what Clark is doing. She works for sponsers, like Hyvee and Nike. That is NIL, Name Image Likeness. This collective is NOT that. This is throwing money at players to go to a certain school. I mean whats next?

It might be time to forget the whole thing. I can watch the NFL and NBA.

 

[LarryMullenJr.]

Sorry, but the day it becomes the average fans "Job" to PAY high schoolers and transfers to come to school AND get a free education, so they can play basketball or football, with the chance of becoming a pro and making millions, (which is a pretty damn high propability under KF) is the day I could care less if we compete at an above average place in the B!G. Getting close to retiring and all that come with that and family all comes first. Love my Hawks, and always will, BUT this train has gone so far off the tracks. Nope, no thank you. I may find ways to contribute here and there, but I'll not be told I'm not a fan, because I'm not down with this whole crap show thats gone totally sideways. You all do what you do, and good for you.......

EXACTLY where I am at! Well said.

 

[WadeLookingbill]

My issue above it all, is they've created this giant $$$ machine between TV revenue from football, the NCAA basketball tourney, ticket sales etc...B1G schools alone getting 80 million a year soon, (or whatever). Well who generates all that cash. WE do! The fans. All the $$ we throw out for these TV contracts, tickets, Tshirts. Every year I pay more for TV service, extra for the B1G network, and all the $$ fans dump inti this thing, The schools get richer, the coaches. And yet no way to put toward an allotment for players? Now on top of everything they get as D1 athletes, we have people telling us that WE the fans need to come up with $$ to pay the players through these collectives to RECRUIT players? What? Before, anyone goes there, NIL as decided by the courts is what Clark is doing. She works for sponsers, like Hyvee and Nike. That is NIL, Name Image Likeness. This collective is NOT that. This is throwing money at players to go to a certain school. I mean whats next?

I completely agree with you. The problem is, right now this is the system.

I absolutely despise the fact we have free agency starting when a kid commits thru their senior year, but it’s the reality for now. If we (both the fans and U of Iowa) don’t adapt, a long period of losing is coming.

 

[LarryMullenJr.]

I completely agree with you. The problem is, right now this is the system.

I absolutely despise the fact we have free agency starting when a kid commits thru their senior year, but it’s the reality for now. If we (both the fans and U of Iowa) don’t adapt, a long period of losing is coming.

Wade, seriously not trying to sound like a Richard here, but help me with the math (cuz I'm not sure on some of it):
So the Swarm membership is $20 per month, $240
I just looked at available tickets and $690 for a pair of the cheapest, plus $100 for seat backs.
Now, without looking at the travel, parking, tailgating, apparel, etc., that's $1,030.00. I know there are the priority points things and other stuff, so others could help out with additional associated costs.
Everyone's disposable income is unquestionably theirs to spend how they wish, but now folks are supposed to chip in more so they product they're spending a grand on doesn't suck? I TOTALLY understand what you're saying and it's very most likely true. I just think folks--like myself--will choose to not pay as close attention as we have for our lives up to this point if we're supposed/expected to pony up money to be competitive. Would it be better to give the $790 for tickets to the Swarm and just watch on TV?
Again, I'm not faulting your sound logic, or Brad doing the Swarm or anything else other than the path that led us to where we are, and the fact that we are indeed here.

 

[Hawkeyes4Life247]

I just find it amusing that the thing SMU football was given the death penalty for has now become the open norm in NCAA sports.

 

[WadeLookingbill]

Wade, seriously not trying to sound like a Richard here, but help me with the math (cuz I'm not sure on some of it):
So the Swarm membership is $20 per month, $240
I just looked at available tickets and $690 for a pair of the cheapest, plus $100 for seat backs.
Now, without looking at the travel, parking, tailgating, apparel, etc., that's $1,030.00. I know there are the priority points things and other stuff, so others could help out with additional associated costs.
Everyone's disposable income is unquestionably theirs to spend how they wish, but now folks are supposed to chip in more so they product they're spending a grand on doesn't suck? I TOTALLY understand what you're saying and it's very most likely true. I just think folks--like myself--will choose to not pay as close attention as we have for our lives up to this point if we're supposed/expected to pony up money to be competitive. Would it be better to give the $790 for tickets to the Swarm and just watch on TV?
Again, I'm not faulting your sound logic, or Brad doing the Swarm or anything else other than the path that led us to where we are, and the fact that we are indeed here.

You don't sound like a Richard at all, these are the questions all of us longtime college sports fans have to process in this strange new era. I'd say everyone struggles with the threshold questions such as:

Aren't these amateur (non-professional) student-athletes?
Is the concept of amateurism and/or college sports as we know it dead?
Are student-athletes now (or will very soon become) employees given this pay structure in place?

NIL had/has good intentions, but it's caused a fundamental shift in the college experience for student-athletes. You have kids doing everything they can to increase eyeballs on their twitter/instagram, etc. because that means more money in their pocket as they become more bankable (see: Angel Reese from LSU, she's probably building lifelong, if not generational, wealth from her increased visibility the last 2 months). I mean there even are multiple sites that track NIL-value for certain student-athletes. Couple this with the ease of gambling now, and we have the wild-West in college athletics.

At some point, the structure of NIL will get clearer, and the free agency will probably be reigned in a little bit, but overall the concept of paying student athletes is here to stay, I think that's irrefutable. It's completely understandable why so many of us have a very strong aversion to this new world, it seems to undercut what we love about college sports, where athletes play for the name on the front of the jersey rather than the name on the back. I guess all I can say/hope is, at some point this will get reigned in a bit (maybe 1 unencumbered transfer and then you have to sit out a year, caps on the amount a player can receive, etc. ), not to mention the vast majority of student-athletes aren't getting these huge sums of money, just some "nominal" compensation for the blood, sweat, and tears they put into college sports (as an aside, I know many football walk-ons for example who worked their ass off for many years proudly representing U of Iowa, paid their own way, have lifelong nagging injuries, and I think they are deserving of compensation for all of that).

Regarding your Swarm comments, the lowest level of Swarm contribution could be $200 for a one-time payment, or $240 at $20/month, then any amounts higher, and this is for the charitable side. Then you have the arm of Swarm where businesses can make larger deals directly with the student-athletes, and this is where the big bucks are for some of the more well-known players.

As to the math, most of the money you're talking about is necessary for athletic department operations. Of course, these budget numbers keep growing so they keep asking for more and more from all of us (despite the monstrous tv deals, etc), and it can start to feel like too much rather quickly. The money to Swarm on the other hand, goes directly to the student-athletes (rather than paying for upgrades to the troughs at Kinnick via the athletic department budget), provided they do some charity work and other Swarm activities.

Brad at Swarm is likely hundreds of thousands "in the hole," all for the benefit of Iowa athletics. It's an unbelievable time and money commitment, when he's got plenty on his plate. Folks that are skeptical seem to be more focused on this whole concept in the abstract (both NIL and 501c3-skepticism), rather than look at the Swarm and the people behind it specifically. Brad has been extremely open about the whole process and the difficulties related to fundraising and educating the general public. All of that said, I think Swarm has launched into this wild-West about as good as can be expected (and I'd guess much better than the vast majority of major universities around the country).

And that is the longest message board post of my life, so if you made it this far, congrats and TLDR please support Swarm if you can.
Go Hawks

 

[HoustonREDHawk]

No, it tells us that the average Iowa fan's financial priorities lie elsewhere...

Yes, but I was mostly referring to FB having money to sign big-time transfers, but Fran not have as much.

 

[LetsGoHawks83]

It is funny as someone quoted earlier, the point was the school is making millions off these kids and they should get paid. Now they can get paid but it is by the fans... the rich lose nothing.

This! The whole situation is a damn mess. The big universities are still living in the imaginary world where you make MILLIONS and pay your "workers" with a scholarship and some spending cash.

I liked the way things were before NIL, but the cat is out of the bag now and they probably should just move to schools paying players directly, so their can be some kind of damn salary cap and rules in place.

But the universities have no motivation to try paying players themselves, when they can just keep taking money and let others pay players for them.

Will be interesting to see it all play out...... if they manage to just kill off major college sports as we know them.

 

[Fran-Con-2]

This! The whole situation is a damn mess. The big universities are still living in the imaginary world where you make MILLIONS and pay your "workers" with a scholarship and some spending cash.

I liked the way things were before NIL, but the cat is out of the bag now and they probably should just move to schools paying players directly, so their can be some kind of damn salary cap and rules in place.

But the universities have no motivation to try paying players themselves, when they can just keep taking money and let others pay players for them.

Will be interesting to see it all play out...... if they manage to just kill off major college sports as we know them.

The gap between the Iowas and the Kansas' of the world won't change much. The really good schools were paying really good players long before NIL became a thing.

I just don't want the gap between a solid program (Iowa) and a pretty good program (Iowa State) to get bigger simply because Iowa State has a billionaire donor and Iowa doesn't. That just sucks.

 

[cm8124]

He's calling them; they are not picking up the phone. He's leaving a message; they don't return the call or reply to his message. Not sure what else he can do.

He could get some former players who went pro to help get more $$$ and pay them a small cut just for ads… we need more collective not just SWARM branch out hire some real marketing gurus.

 

[Bishop1971]

Sorry, but the day it becomes the average fans "Job" to PAY high schoolers and transfers to come to school AND get a free education, so they can play basketball or football, with the chance of becoming a pro and making millions, (which is a pretty damn high propability under KF) is the day I could care less if we compete at an above average place in the B!G. Getting close to retiring and all that come with that and family all comes first. Love my Hawks, and always will, BUT this train has gone so far off the tracks. Nope, no thank you. I may find ways to contribute here and there, but I'll not be told I'm not a fan, because I'm not down with this whole crap show thats gone totally sideways. You all do what you do, and good for you.......

Unfortunately that day is now. I donate to the swarm and st judes. Feels like it evens out for me.

 

[Bishop1971]

My issue above it all, is they've created this giant $$$ machine between TV revenue from football, the NCAA basketball tourney, ticket sales etc...B1G schools alone getting 80 million a year soon, (or whatever). Well who generates all that cash. WE do! The fans. All the $$ we throw out for these TV contracts, tickets, Tshirts. Every year I pay more for TV service, extra for the B1G network, and all the $$ fans dump inti this thing, The schools get richer, the coaches. And yet no way to put toward an allotment for players? Now on top of everything they get as D1 athletes, we have people telling us that WE the fans need to come up with $$ to pay the players through these collectives to RECRUIT players? What? Before, anyone goes there, NIL as decided by the courts is what Clark is doing. She works for sponsers, like Hyvee and Nike. That is NIL, Name Image Likeness. This collective is NOT that. This is throwing money at players to go to a certain school. I mean whats next?

That's what my problem is. NIL itself doesn't actually exist except in cases of Cark or thr Alabama qb in Dr. Pepper ads. There is no way someone like that tackle that flipped to Alabama and said the NIL deal was just a bit bigger than Iowa's offer is doing anything that earns his NIL money. What name, image, or likeness is a highschool kid doing for the money. NIL doesn't exist in most cases. It's strictly pay to play. That's why there should be a governing body for this issue. Also a division set up to protect the kids getting deals as I'm sure some schools set up a shady agreement or just break it like Miami did with thst 4 star recruit.

 

[Franisdaman]

Great to get a lot of regular fans donating a little, but Iowa needs some big donors to really make a difference. So, does this tell us that Iowa is not a basketball school?

I guess you can now officially say Michigan is not a basketball school and is "just" a football school.

As you can see below, Michigan collectives paid Hunter under $100,000 last year. Poor thing; he was not paid enough so he entered the transfer portal potty.

When it came down to picking between Kentucky or Kansas, he picked Kansas (because Kansas guaranteed what he would make & Kentucky would not).

Pay for play is alive and well. And Kansas has been a pro at it for a LONG time.

 

[kceasthawk]

I completely agree with you. The problem is, right now this is the system.

I absolutely despise the fact we have free agency starting when a kid commits thru their senior year, but it’s the reality for now. If we (both the fans and U of Iowa) don’t adapt, a long period of losing is coming.

Honestly, I don't believe that we are. I do NOT believe that long term alot of other teams (even in the B1G) are going to keep this thing going. I think the whole thing will fall off a cliff, and I hope it does. Look, the OSU, and Michigans, are going to be spending too, and they are going to keep on getting the the top players. We may get a few, but this whole thing isn't going to change who the rich are, only that some kids are going to make bank. Then you'll have schools like TA&M who dropped 30 million on ONE class, lost a lot of games, and now almost ALL of those kids are gone already transffered out with their bag-o-cash.....

 

[Bishop1971]

Honestly, I don't believe that we are. I do NOT believe that long term alot of other teams (even in the B1G) are going to keep this thing going. I think the whole thing will fall off a cliff, and I hope it does. Look, the OSU, and Michigans, are going to be spending too, and they are going to keep on getting the the top players. We may get a few, but this whole thing isn't going to change who the rich are, only that some kids are going to make bank. Then you'll have schools like TA&M who dropped 30 million on ONE class, lost a lot of games, and now almost ALL of those kids are gone already transffered out with their bag-o-cash.....

I agree. With Miami promising a 4 star qb 13 million and the reneged on it i can see teams can't keep up the amounts that have been going on. The tackle that switched to Alabama ended up with 2.8 million from just rumors. That kind of money is tough to maintain for an entire team. The swarm does a higher percentage to football then a percentage to men and women's basketball. Iowa needs some millionaires.

 

[Franisdaman]

I agree. With Miami promising a 4 star qb 13 million and the reneged on it i can see teams can't keep up the amounts that have been going on. The tackle that switched to Alabama ended up with 2.8 million from just rumors. That kind of money is tough to maintain for an entire team. The swarm does a higher percentage to football then a percentage to men and women's basketball. Iowa needs some millionaires.

This is why I think people need to stop and think why Fran is struggling getting some of these transfer guys and highly rated 4 star high school guys. If it becomes a bidding war, SWARM doesn't have the money and Fran is going to lose out.

Fran has a lot to offer. Well, everything but a lot of cash.

 

[onlyTheObvious]

Gross = I am CEO of a fake company ( they produce/sell nothing) who’s sole existence is for the purpose of funneling money to good athletes.

I am fine with NIL but it’s too bad the rule couldn’t have been written in such a way the the recipient of money had to appear in ads or name on clothing with some sort of chart of compensation.

Fran wasn’t exactly pulling in studs before NIL. If you want to argue he was, the results don’t show it.

 

[ChiPackHawk]

The potentially sad result to this could be that many of the charities/service organizations that actually rely on donations to do their work will see a decrease in charitable contributions now. There is only so much money to go around. But hey, who needs a well stocked food kitchen when a Big Man is needed to guard the rim. Time will tell.

 

[Rustys Dad]

Men’s BBall in particular is not a gravy train. Overall, has been “average” going back to end of Dr Tom days…For many Iowa fans, Mbball is viewed with a passing interest.

Football is where the majority of fan interest is focused … and football is the money maker.

Going to be hard for Iowa (or many schools) to have a full bag of cash every season for multiple sports. Not sustainable…

 

[Packer54]

Do any of the folks with the Swarm have new biz dev experience? Seems as though the quickest potential impact besides wealthier individual donors are businesses throughout the state. Maybe they have been hitting this hard but when I hear them say they need 10,000 donors and they only have 1,800 it would be interesting to see the makeup of that 1,800

Not bagging on them. Just would like to understand better. I wonder, for example, would it be easier to get a 10k business donation vs 8 or 9 individual donations totaling a similar amount?

Again not being critical and not sure how they are approaching businesses.

 

[Franisdaman]

@Tx_Hawk there's some men's basketball questions for you in this thread.

 

[WadeLookingbill]

The potentially sad result to this could be that many of the charities/service organizations that actually rely on donations to do their work will see a decrease in charitable contributions now. There is only so much money to go around. But hey, who needs a well stocked food kitchen when a Big Man is needed to guard the rim. Time will tell.

So now the argument against is $200 to Swarm = a reduction in food kitchen supplies? Come on.

Do any of the folks with the Swarm have new biz dev experience? Seems as though the quickest potential impact besides wealthier individual donors are businesses throughout the state. Maybe they have been hitting this hard but when I hear them say they need 10,000 donors and they only have 1,800 it would be interesting to see the makeup of that 1,800

Not bagging on them. Just would like to understand better. I wonder, for example, would it be easier to get a 10k business donation vs 8 or 9 individual donations totaling a similar amount?

Again not being critical and not sure how they are approaching businesses.

The head of Swarm is a very successful businessman/actuary, and former Iowa student-athlete. From all accounts he is working as hard as he can to solicit business gifts (see the recent/rather untimely $500k from Elite Casinos https://www.nildealnow.com/iowa-nil-collective-the-swarm-500000-commitment-elite-casino/ ). And he does this while running his full-time day job, raising kids, dealing with hurricane clean-up, and all at a salary of $0.

 

[ChiPackHawk]

So now the argument against is $200 to Swarm = a reduction in food kitchen supplies? Come on.

The head of Swarm is a very successful businessman/actuary, and former Iowa student-athlete. From all accounts he is working as hard as he can to solicit business gifts (see the recent/rather untimely $500k from Elite Casinos https://www.nildealnow.com/iowa-nil-collective-the-swarm-500000-commitment-elite-casino/ ). And he does this while running his full-time day job, raising kids, dealing with hurricane clean-up, and all at a salary of $0.

It was a simple "what if" type of comment - relax. I could not care less to what and who people give their money to. But I can tell you that if I had to choose giving to a public service type charity or one that is giving money to college athletes, it won't be a hard choice.

 

[Bishop1971]

This is why I think people need to stop and think why Fran is struggling getting some of these transfer guys and highly rated 4 star high school guys. If it becomes a bidding war, SWARM doesn't have the money and Fran is going to lose out.

Fran has a lot to offer. Well, everything but a lot of cash.

And by Hunters tweet the NIL money is the deciding factor probably in almost every case.

 

[Bishop1971]

So now the argument against is $200 to Swarm = a reduction in food kitchen supplies? Come on.

The head of Swarm is a very successful businessman/actuary, and former Iowa student-athlete. From all accounts he is working as hard as he can to solicit business gifts (see the recent/rather untimely $500k from Elite Casinos https://www.nildealnow.com/iowa-nil-collective-the-swarm-500000-commitment-elite-casino/ ). And he does this while running his full-time day job, raising kids, dealing with hurricane clean-up, and all at a salary of $0.

He has gone above and beyond for iowa sports. I have nothing but respect and awe at what he has done. Even Cade commended that Iowa's NIL situation is far and away set up better than what's at Michigan. We just don't have the donors. Even 100 is a help.

 

[WadeLookingbill]

It was a simple "what if" type of comment - relax. I could not care less to what and who people give their money to. But I can tell you that if I had to choose giving to a public service type charity or one that is giving money to college athletes, it won't be a hard choice.

Cool. And I'm going to choose one less dinner out on the town, and then I don't have to choose between giving to a public service type charity and Swarm. Priorities/choices, like you said.

 

[WadeLookingbill]

For what it's worth, here is some discussion on attempts to regulate NIL for those interested...

NCAA president continues push for NIL legislation | The NIL Deal

Charlie Baker, who replaced Mark Emmert as the president of the NCAA, has met with lawmakers in an effort to push forward a federal NIL bill.

www.nildealnow.com

 

[Franisdaman]

And by Hunters tweet the NIL money is the deciding factor probably in almost every case.

It is kinda crazy that Michigan was not paying him enough and that blue blood Kansas outbid blue blood Kentucky.

Well, maybe it's not so crazy. Kansas has a lot of money to throw around. The sources of that money? Not sure. I wonder, after the FBI scandal, if Adidas is signing Kansas players now to 6 figure shoe deals where it's all now perfectly legal.

 

[GHawk]

He has gone above and beyond for iowa sports. I have nothing but respect and awe at what he has done. Even Cade commended that Iowa's NIL situation is far and away set up better than what's at Michigan. We just don't have the donors. Even 100 is a help.

I get a kick reading how some of these posters think it should be easy getting more donors to the Swarm. And then there are those who ask how it works and infer it could be shady. These are people who are on an Iowa message board and they know virtually nothing about the Swarm.

If people on this board are so uninformed think about the lack of knowledge that the average Iowa fan has. Message board posters are NOT the typical fan. We are supposedly the more informed. The majority of fans don't read message boards. Some times those of us on the boards get the false inpression we are the majority of fans.

Brad has fought a hard battle getting the word out to the average fan. He has had to fight a tough battle with Barta, who was NOT an early supporter (still don't think he is 100% in, but may be a little more supportive).

Noone is forcing anyone to join the Swarm. And, you can be a great fan of the Hawks without giving a dime to NIL. But, some of the completely ilinformed attacks on Brad and the Swarm are stupid. Most of us (we all know there are some posters on here who are not Hawk fans) support the Hawks in our own way. Some with cash, some buying tickets and some simply cheering them on.

Brad has put a lot of his own time and money into this when nobody else would. I say, thank you!!!!

 

[Packer54]

So now the argument against is $200 to Swarm = a reduction in food kitchen supplies? Come on.

The head of Swarm is a very successful businessman/actuary, and former Iowa student-athlete. From all accounts he is working as hard as he can to solicit business gifts (see the recent/rather untimely $500k from Elite Casinos https://www.nildealnow.com/iowa-nil-collective-the-swarm-500000-commitment-elite-casino/ ). And he does this while running his full-time day job, raising kids, dealing with hurricane clean-up, and all at a salary of $0.

Appreciate the feedback. I guess part of it makes my point and raises more question. I don’t understand the balance of Elites $500k donation and needing 10,000 donors. Just trying to understand the balance of business vs individuals. What is the strat plan that spells mother. I do NOT doubt the dude is working hard and it’s greatly appreciated but just wish there was more info…. If there was maybe more businesses and/or individuals would join in.

 

[Bishop1971]

It is kinda crazy that Michigan was not paying him enough and that blue blood Kansas outbid blue blood Kentucky.

Well, maybe it's not so crazy. Kansas has a lot of money to throw around. The sources of that money? Not sure. I wonder, after the FBI scandal, if Adidas is signing Kansas players now to 6 figure shoe deals where it's all now perfectly legal.

I remember Muami and Arizona were on tape bidding around 800 grand for a top 10 high school kid. Then NIL started and i never heard a thing about it again. Sad.

 

[Packer54]

I just think one of the complications is understanding “what am I getting for my money”? Legitimate question frankly. When the casino deal was signed the comment was made that SWARM was ahead of the other big ten schools. If that is the case then the entire BT is in trouble……right?

 

[WadeLookingbill]

I just think one of the complications is understanding “what am I getting for my money”? Legitimate question frankly. When the casino deal was signed the comment was made that SWARM was ahead of the other big ten schools. If that is the case then the entire BT is in trouble……right?

Not sure I'm totally following, but regarding what businesses may get, "The business community can amplify their brand by connecting with Hawkeye student-athletes to promote their products and services. All University of Iowa student-athletes, regardless of sport, are eligible to partner with companies through Swarm, Inc. who may want to leverage NIL opportunities to enhance their business." It's just like with any sponsorship. And it also has the charitable work component, so it makes people/businesses feel better about what they are giving to.

About | Iowa Swarm

iowaswarm.com

In sum, the way I understand it, you have Swarm Collective, which is the big pool/capital raise. Individuals and businesses can give to this big pool, to be allocated by Swarm (for ease of discussion, say, each participating football player gets $1k of the pool, provided they "earn" it). Then you have Swarm Inc., which allows Joe Blow Ford to give an individual player a car or whatever you can think of, under certain conditions. I think this arm of Swarm is where the "star" players can make the most bank. Happy to be corrected if any of this is wrong.

 

[43Beels]

This is a matter of how Swarm donations can also count towards priority seating. Else One or the other may suffer

 

[ChiPackHawk]

Cool. And I'm going to choose one less dinner out on the town, and then I don't have to choose between giving to a public service type charity and Swarm. Priorities/choices, like you said.

Fair enough.

 

[Franisdaman]

I remember Muami and Arizona were on tape bidding around 800 grand for a top 10 high school kid. Then NIL started and i never heard a thing about it again. Sad.

These bidding wars are all now legal, correct?

 

[Bishop1971]

Not sure I'm totally following, but regarding what businesses may get, "The business community can amplify their brand by connecting with Hawkeye student-athletes to promote their products and services. All University of Iowa student-athletes, regardless of sport, are eligible to partner with companies through Swarm, Inc. who may want to leverage NIL opportunities to enhance their business." It's just like with any sponsorship. And it also has the charitable work component, so it makes people/businesses feel better about what they are giving to.

About | Iowa Swarm

iowaswarm.com

In sum, the way I understand it, you have Swarm Collective, which is the big pool/capital raise. Individuals and businesses can give to this big pool, to be allocated by Swarm (for ease of discussion, say, each participating football player gets $1k of the pool, provided they "earn" it). Then you have Swarm Inc., which allows Joe Blow Ford to give an individual player a car or whatever you can think of, under certain conditions. I think this arm of Swarm is where the "star" players can make the most bank. Happy to be corrected if any of this is wrong.

Yes, from what i saw months ago iowa was around 8th to 10th as far as each individual getting the same amount. I think it was 10 grand. It went up to close to 30 at Michigan State. I'm kinda guessing the numbers as this was awhile ago. Then yes, you have the other part of the swarm collective giving more. I know the football players did charity work for their piece of the swarm money.

 

[Bishop1971]

These bidding wars are all now legal, correct?

They weren't when it happened and coaches and team never got in any trouble.