Boo Corrigan held his annual preseason press conference today to discuss the NC State sports season ahead and answer some questions, though most of those questions had little to do with the actual sports on the field. He was among other things asked about his department’s budget deficit, about the process for stadium naming rights, and how the upcoming development around the Lenovo Center will affect football parking.
Pack Power posted a transcript from the presser, but you’re going to have to do
the parsing on your own.
Here’s part of what he had to say about stadium and jersey sponsorship:
I think we want someone that’s willing to invest back in the university, right? And it’s great to put your name on a stadium, but what you really want is a partner, right? And what does that mean? Does that mean internships for students? Does that mean greater partnership with the university? All of those things.
I think putting a logo on a uniform without anything else is only so appealing. I would imagine it’s only so appealing to the company as well, right? And figure out how deep of a relationship we can have with that company. And it’d be great if it was North Carolina-based, but I don’t think that’s something that we’re wed to in this, but you know, as we look at it, we need to find someone that really wants to partner with us and find a way to make it a bigger and broader relationship.
That doesn’t sound like someone who is close to a deal with a corporate sponsor, which is a relief to me. As far as I’m concerned, it’s never going to be worth it to put a corporate logo on NC State’s jerseys, but as this is a thing that everyone in college sports has decided is necessary, I’m sure it will inevitably happen.
Ohio State and Notre Dame have inked huge all-sport deals that are worth at least $17 million per year, but those are the two most valuable brands in college sports and represent the peak value of these agreements.
Michigan State’s all-sport patch deal with a credit union is worth $4 million annually; Illinois has one with a bank that’s worth $6 million per year. I can’t imagine NC State doing any better on this front than those two. So is it worth it for like $2-$3 million per year to have to endure this humiliation? Wisconsin has a deal with Culver’s which means that a school with red and white colors will feature a light-blue logo.
So far there’s been only one ACC school to agree to a jersey patch deal, and that’s Cal, which is going to be sponsored by some AI company that probably profits off of spying on people sitting on the toilet or something. Sports Business Journal has put together a tracker for these deals, which is how I learned that Sacred Heart’s women’s soccer team is sponsored by Shaggy Coo’s Farm. Maybe these things aren’t all bad.
