The advent of NIL in college athletics has led to some pretty bizarre sights in recent years.
From quarterbacks making more money than their offensive coordinators to backup defensive linemen driving around in Lamborghinis, it's safe to say this ain't your granddaddy's college football.
Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen, but another aspect of the NIL era that has taken some getting used to is on-field sponsorships.
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Yes, much like when the Red Sox started to let companies advertise on the Green Monster, several Power 4 football teams are starting to turn to big-time companies for NIL revenue in exchange for allowing them to emblazon their logos on the 25-yard lines of their home field.
It's something a lot of traditionalists have held their nose about while acknowledging that the added revenue is a positive when it comes to building a championship roster.
Many of the companies make sense too, given their geographic location or relationship with the university, but one Fortune 500 company took their assignment a little too literally when it came to picking a football program to partner with.
Believe me, I had to look at it multiple times and check the X handle at least twice to make sure this wasn't a parody account, but that is the real-life Georgia football account announcing a sponsorship deal with none other than Progressive Insurance.
For the uninitiated, the reason this is so funny is that the University of Georgia — more specifically, the Georgia Bulldogs' football team — has a bit of a checkered recent history with regard to automotive incidents.
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Since January 2023, shortly after capturing their second straight national championship, the Georgia Bulldogs have had over 30 players arrested, the majority of which have been for vehicular incidents such as reckless driving.
Even players who are no longer playing for the university and have gone onto the NFL, such as Philadelphia Eagles edge rusher Nolan Smith, have had run-ins with the law thanks to their proclivity for "aggressive driving."
Maybe this is a smart business move by Progressive and they are just double-dipping by advertising both to the fans in the stadium and the players who take the very field their logo is plastered all over.
Who's to say? Regardless, it is hilarious how on-the-nose this is from UGA and Progressive.
I can't wait for the day when Rutgers puts a big "Sopranos" logo on the 25-yard line at SHI Stadium.
Now THAT would almost make this whole thing worth it.