Below are the top NIL headlines from March 25th:

Weetabix Mania: Kentucky Fans Fuel NIL Impact

A quirky NIL story has emerged, showcasing the immense power of the Kentucky Wildcats' fanbase, the Big Blue Nation. Amari Williams, a Kentucky MBB player, attributed his standout March Madness performance against Illinois to eating Weetabix, a British breakfast cereal, leading to an unprecedented surge in its sales.

From Post-Game Revelation to Amazon Bestseller

Following Kentucky's victory, Williams revealed that he switched from his usual toast to Weetabix, his childhood favorite, for breakfast. This revelation, encouraged by coach Mark Pope, sparked a frenzy among Kentucky fans, who propelled Weetabix to the top-selling cold cereal on Amazon.

Team Unity and a Cereal Craze

The Kentucky basketball staff even joined in, buying out the local Lexington store's Weetabix supply. Coach Pope, embracing the moment, encouraged the entire BBN to join the "Kentucky Weetabix Unity March Towards March Madness," suggesting warm milk, sugar, and even honey or bananas as accompaniments.

NIL's Wholesome Impact

This unexpected cereal craze highlights the unique and often lighthearted ways NIL deals can impact both athletes and fans. The story exemplifies how a simple post-game comment can translate into significant sales and brand awareness, all driven by the passionate support of a dedicated fanbase.

The Future of Weetabix and Amari Williams

It's predicted that Amari Williams will soon be featured on a Weetabix box, solidifying this unique NIL moment. The story serves as a perfect example of how NIL can create wholesome, engaging content that resonates with fans and drives unexpected market trends.

NIL Spending Disparity

The NCAA's new revenue-sharing rules are set to create an unexpected financial landscape in college basketball. While power conference schools focus on funding their football programs, some teams in other conferences, particularly those in the Big East, have the potential to significantly outspend power conference schools in men's basketball. This shift is generating concern and discussion within power conferences, as they grapple with the implications for their basketball programs' competitiveness.

Football's Dominance vs. Basketball's Opportunity

Power conference schools, driven by the "cash cow" of football, plan to allocate the majority of their revenue-sharing funds to football, leaving a smaller portion for basketball. In contrast, mid-major schools, without the financial burden of a power football program, can dedicate a larger share to basketball. This allows them to offer substantially higher revenue-sharing amounts to their basketball rosters, potentially reaching $5-7 million annually for top basketball programs in the Big East, Gonzaga, VCU, Memphis. This is a big reason why current Maryland Men's Basketball coach Kevin Willard is expected to leave for the Villanova job.

Third Party Clearinghouse

To remain competitive, schools may circumvent the revenue-sharing cap ($20.5M) through third-party and booster-backed NIL deals, which could violate the House settlement agreement.

Strategic Adjustments and Financial Creativity

Power conference schools are considering various strategies to remain competitive in basketball. Some are "frontloading" NIL deals to distribute funds before the new regulations (the clearinghouse) take effect. Deals with payments after June 30 are subject to the new Deloitte NIL clearinghouse that determines fair market value. Other schools are exploring new revenue sources and advocating for changes to the revenue-sharing rules. 

The Big East's Strategic Advantage

The Big East, focusing primarily on basketball, is positioned to capitalize on the new revenue-sharing rules. With lower overall budgets but a singular focus, they can offer highly competitive financial packages to basketball recruits. This strategic advantage could significantly impact the balance of power in college basketball.

Men's College Basketball Transfer Portal Historically High Numbers

The NCAA transfer portal opened for men’s basketball players on Monday, and with it followed an unprecedented number of names officially entering. Right now (Wednesday afternoon) more than 1250 college basketball players have entered the portal which is around 25% of all the scholarships players.

For context, on Monday, the day the portal opened more than 700 players entered the portal. Last year on the first day of the college basketball portal 291 players entered the portal. Two years ago on the first day of the portal 175 players entered the portal. This HUGE increase is because the NIL deals are significantly more lucrative currently, with one factor being due to schools being allowed to legally directly pay the student athletes due to the House settlement.

NIL Market $

Maryland Head Coach Kevin Willard said some players are asking for $2-3 million. The top teams in the Power Four are expected to spend over $10 million in NIL for there whole rosters combined. The NIL will be paid from collectives and the schools directly paying the student-athletes.

Sweet 16 Teams NIL/Transfer Portal

According to Blake Lawrence the Co-Founder of Opendorse, if you look at the top 8 players in minutes per game for the Sweet 16 teams, out of these 128 players, 72 of them (56%) are transfers. Out of those 72 transfers, 37 came from Power 4 schools, 14 from Group of 5, 21 from non-FBS. 

Big Names In The Portal Right Now?

Currently the top 5 ranked players in the portal are:

1. Donovan Dent from New Mexico. He has not committed yet and will be heavily pursued.
2. Bennett Stirtz from Drake has transferred to Iowa. In this move he is staying with his head coach Ben McCollum. 
3. Josh Dix from Iowa. He has not committed yet.
4. Bryce Hopkins from Providence. He has not committed yet.
5. Tucker DeVries from West Virginia. He is committed to Indiana and will be playing for his father, Darian DeVries, who is the new head coach for Indiana.

Other notable names:

Owen Freeman from Iowa is expected to transfer to Creighton

Obi Agbim from Wyoming is expected to transfer to Baylor.

Joson Sanon from Arizona State has transferred to St. Johns.