Pima Community College to become first Arizona junior college to offer NIL partnerships

TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – The Pima Community College athletics program announced a monumental move to put the school ahead of the curve when it comes to endorsements at the junior college level.

The school became the first community college in Arizona to offer name, image, and likeness, or NIL, opportunities for student-athletes.

“It sounds awesome, like it’s something new, it’s different. It’ll be an experiment, for sure, but really intriguing to me,” Pima Aztecs women’s basketball player Reece Neimann said.

Niemann was a part of the Aztecs NJCAA Division two runner-up team this past season. She says being part of a successful team requires a lot of work.

“We’re in the gym for four to five hours a day, some days on our long days,” Niemann said.

At the junior college level, many of these athletes are paying for college themselves since PCC can only offer partial scholarships. This forces athletes to make tough decisions for athletes like Niemann to continue their hoop dreams.

“Four of my teammates had long jobs in the morning, and then they take all online classes, since they couldn’t make it to campus for classes, then they’d go to practice for those four hours between film lifting and then practice, and then after, they’d go home and grind out their homework.”

That’s where NIL comes into play. It allows players to create endorsements or partnerships to make money from their personal brand.

Something which hasn’t been seen on the junior college level in Arizona, until now.

“I think the biggest thing is to stay ahead of the curve and for us to be able to tell recruits, ‘Hey, we’re the first ones in Arizona to do it.’ That just gives us another little thing to brag about and to sell,” Assistant Athletic Director and Head Women’s Basketball Coach for PCC, Todd Holthaus said.

The athletic department is partnering with Opendorse to create a platform for students to connect with local businesses and brands to make money.

Something Holthaus says wouldn’t have even crossed his mind in his playing days.

“I can’t even imagine what it would have been like, and that’s probably a good thing and a bad thing at the same time. So, I’m super excited, because these young people know how to do these things.”

But it’s part of the reason he helped to make this deal, not only to help these athletes while they put on the Aztec uniforms, but also for when they take them off for the last time.

“For them to get a head start on this and get to be able to market themselves, and you know, the big thing is building your own brand. Now, being a part of that is going to be fun,” Holthaus said.

While it’ll take a little bit to get the ball rolling, officials say that the portal is now open for athletes to make a profile to connect with local businesses and start making NIL endorsements or partnerships.

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