C.J. Stroud will be styling and profiling around the Ohio State campus.
The Buckeyes’ quarterback inked a Name, Image and Likeness deal with Sarchione Auto Gallery, a car dealership in Canton, Ohio. While initial reports suggested that Stroud would be driving a $150,000 Bentley Bentayga, the quarterback “changed his mind” and opted for a $200,000 Mercedes G Wagon, according to NBC4 in Ohio.
Stroud, entering his redshirt sophomore year, reserves the right to change his mind again.
According to ABC6, he’s able to swap out vehicles every 45-60 days as part of the sponsorship deal.
“When you talk to people, whether it’s in the community or at the game, our brand awareness is what we’re building,” Ryan Burton, the general manager of Sarchione Auto Gallery, told the Columbus Dispatch. “So when you have the best-of-the-best promoting your brand, it only does good things.”
Burton did not sound like someone who was one-and-done in giving Buckeyes nice cars to drive.
As a part of his Name, Image and Likeness deal with Sarchione Auto Gallery, C.J. Stroud has opted for a $200,000 Mercedes G Wagon The Repository / Scott Heckel /
Ohio State quarterback CJ Stroud will drive a Mercedes SUV worth $200,000 in an NIL deal with a local auto dealer. Getty ImagesNIL has turned top-tier college athletics into a whole new ballgame. Where all but the most naive believed that money and material goods — even luxury cars — changed hands in the previous decades, these payments being out in the open has created a vibrant marketplace resembling free agency for the top talents.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day recently remarked that he believed it would cost about $13 million in NIL deals each year for the Buckeyes to continue fielding a competitive roster.
Stroud is reportedly able to swap out vehicles every 45-60 days as part of the sponsorship deal. The Repository / Scott Heckel /As deep-pocketed donors organize collectives to bid for the best players, it would hardly be surprising if this number kept rising.
