For years, college sports fans and pundits have argued about the ethics of NCAA athletes' amateur status. While NCAA athletes are unlikely to be paid to compete anytime soon, several states have already signed legislation that will allow student-athletes to capitalize on their name, image, and likeness (NIL) in the form of third-party endorsements.

This means that some college wrestlers will be able start making money from their popularity as soon as July 1, 2021. Oklahoma State freshman NCAA champ AJ Ferrari plans to start inking deals as soon as he can.

In an interview with Kyle Klingman at Junior Duals, Ferrari expressed his desire to monetize on his own name, image, and likeness on July 1, the first date he legally can. He told Klingman: 

"Starting July 1st, I'll be an official professional athlete, so I'll be signing with a clothing brand...nutritional supplements, shoes, you name it."

One of the reasons Ferrari can begin pursuing endorsement deals so quickly is that Oklahoma was one of the first states to sign its Student Athlete Name, Image, and Likeness rights Act into law. Darren Heitner, a lawyer and NIL advocate, tweeted about this in early June.

On May 28, Oklahoma signed into law its Student Athlete Name, Image, and Likeness Rights Act.

Contracts must be disclosed to schools within 72 hours after they are entered into or before the athlete's next athletic event, whichever occurs first. (h/t @JoeBlesses)

— Darren Heitner (@DarrenHeitner) June 1, 2021

Additionally, Oklahoma State's Athletic Department has taken proactive steps to help its student-athletes monetize their personal brands. A major part of this process was the creation of OSU Elite powered by INFLCR.

In short, the partnership between OSU and INFCLR is designed to give student-athletes resources for gaining NIL value through courses, data, and other tools to help them understand their market value and how to capitalize on it. 

Ferrari is well-positioned to make use of these resources. His impressive performance at the 2021 NCAA Championships and his memorable post-match celebrations and interviews have made him one of the most recognizable faces in all of college wrestling.

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While the specifics of Ferrari's endorsement deals remain to be seen, his enterprising approach to this new NIL policy could help usher in a new era of college wrestling, and once the Ferrari domino falls, more will surely follow.