Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

A Game-Changing Course for the Game-Changing Name, Image and Likeness

Wednesday, September 29, 2021, By Matt Michael
Share
David MeluniFalk College of Sport and Human DynamicsMichael VeleyName Image and LikenessSport Management

In a recent article from Sports Illustrated, Ross Dellenger writes this about the new Name, Image and Likeness rule that has turned college athletics on its ear:

“The first thing to understand about NIL is that nobody fully understands NIL.”

Actually, there’s a group of 28 students in the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics who, by the end of this semester, will fully understand NIL. This fall, those students are taking a “Name Image and Likeness” course from the Department of Sport Management that is believed to be the first undergraduate course of its kind in the country.

David Meluni

Sport management assistant teaching professor David Meluni has more than 20 years of experience in collegiate athletics.

The course is being taught by David Meluni, an assistant teaching professor in sport management who has more than 20 years of experience in collegiate athletics, first as a baseball player at Ithaca College and then by working in ticketing, marketing, sponsorship and digital roles at Ithaca, Cornell, Florida State and Syracuse.

Last year, a patchwork of states started passing laws mandating that college athletes were allowed to profit off their images. After asking Congress to pass a uniform set of rules (it didn’t), the NCAA threw up its hands and said that starting July 1, 2021, all athletes could benefit financially from their name, image and likeness.

Falk’s course includes the model of NIL. Students are collaborating with professionals in the industry while learning how to build a brand and ultimately monetize opportunities. The students are involved in proposal writing, infographic design and the development of marketing and social media plans.

“Our department prides itself on creating courses that connect our students to contemporary issues in the sport industry,” says Michael Veley, Rhonda S. Falk Endowed Professor and Department of Sport Management director and chair. “The NIL legislation will change the business model of Division I college athletics going forward. When you match the teaching skills of Professor Meluni with the expertise and collaborative partnership of (the sponsorship sales company) SponsorUnited, this course will be a game-changer.”

In this Q&A, we ask Meluni how the class came together, the impact of NIL and what his students are learning.

Q: The NCAA announced its decision on July 1 and less than two months later you’re teaching a “Name, Image and Likeness” course. Tell us how that came together so quickly.

A: I’m always looking at trends in the sport industry, and as a former student-athlete I have been keeping an eye on NIL for a few years. Once the NCAA tabled a decision in January 2021, we knew something had to happen this past July so I started planning at that point.

Q: As Michael Veley says, NIL–and this course–are game-changers. Can you explain why this is such a groundbreaking rule change?

A: Think multi-media rights holders, licensing and merchandising, just to start. If a brand can associate with an athlete, how does that impact the corporate partner of an athletic department? Brands want engagement, and the athlete can drive that.

Q: You have a varied and extensive background in collegiate athletics. How did that help you develop the curriculum for the course?

A: Spending 10 years selling corporate sponsorships in collegiate athletics at Syracuse, followed by six years in digital media at SIDEARM Sports, I navigated the many challenges that brands experience. An athlete can provide an avenue that brands traditionally struggle with. Brands want engagement, and no one is better to provide that than athletes who essentially have become influencers.

Falk's NIL Class

The students in the NIL course are collaborating with professionals in the industry while learning how to build a brand and ultimately monetize opportunities.

Q: What are your students learning and what are some of the skills they’re acquiring through this course?

A: Students are learning how to prospect for a potential partner by using industry leading sales software provided by SponsorUnited. They are evaluating the social media Instagram accounts of collegiate athletes to predict pricing and trends and using Canva to create graphics for themselves as if they were a student-athlete or consulting for a student-athlete.

Q: Your class is working closely with SponsorUnited, a sponsorship sales company. Explain how that partnership started and what SponsorUnited is providing to your students.

A: We are the only university in the country right now with this kind of relationship. We have been working with SponsorUnited in different capacities for two years and its software is the industry leading prospecting tool for organizations to vet brands. The software updates daily and allows you to track sponsorship prospects and industry trends. SponsorUnited is amazing to work with and we are proud to use their software as a supplement to the textbook.

Q: Your textbook is Malcolm Lemmon’s “Impact Beyond the Game: How Athletes Can Build Influence, Monetize Their Brand, and Create a Legacy.” The title is certainly fitting, but what’s inside the book that makes it so useful for this course?

A: Everything! When I decided to create the course, I wanted to use this book because it’s an amazingly easy read, it touches upon everything from how to deal with media to social media importance, and there is nothing in it that’s not covered within the scope of NIL. Malcolm hit a home run with this book before NIL was even here.

Q: What has been the reaction so far from students in your class and–we have to ask–are there any student-athletes who are taking the class this fall?

A: The class discussions are outstanding. Students in our department are connected to hot topics in the sports industry and this is certainly the hottest one right now. This semester, we have several student-athletes in the class, along with a handful of team managers who are majoring in sport management, sport analytics and broadcasting. It is the perfect mix of students, and next semester will likely be the same.

Meluni says there are discussions to expand opportunities for students and industry professionals who want to learn more about NIL through an online NIL course from the Orange Academy. More details will follow. Visit here to learn more about the Department of Sport Management and its academic programs, and follow Meluni on Twitter and LinkedIn.

  • Author

Matt Michael

  • Recent
  • Syracuse Views Spring 2022
    Sunday, May 15, 2022, By News Staff
  • Black Hole Image Shows Einstein Was Right, Once Again
    Thursday, May 12, 2022, By Daryl Lovell
  • Section of South Crouse Avenue to Close Temporarily for Utility Project
    Thursday, May 12, 2022, By News Staff
  • Investing in the Bedrock of Discovery: New Endowed Professorship in Quantum Science
    Wednesday, May 11, 2022, By News Staff
  • Meditation and Mindfulness Platform Coming to Barnes Center at The Arch
    Wednesday, May 11, 2022, By John Boccacino

More In Campus & Community

Get to Know Chief Craig Stone: 5 Questions With the New Associate Vice President and Chief of Campus Safety and Emergency Management Services

Craig Stone was named associate vice president and chief of Campus Safety and Emergency Management Services just last month. As Chief Stone begins his time with the University, we asked him a few questions to help the campus community get…

Section of South Crouse Avenue to Close Temporarily for Utility Project

A utility project, with sidewalk upgrades, in the area of South Crouse Avenue, University Place and Irving Avenue will begin May 16 and will require the closure of South Crouse Avenue between Waverly Avenue and University Place. The closure is…

4 Years Unlike Anything Else: Reflecting on Life on the Syracuse University Campus

When the members of the Class of 2022 walked onto the Syracuse University campus in the fall of 2018, none of them could predict the unprecedented journey that awaited them over the next four years. An unknown, fast-spreading global health…

Investing in the Bedrock of Discovery: New Endowed Professorship in Quantum Science

Kathy Walters ’73 and her husband, Stan ’72, can look back over 50 years and easily track the impact Syracuse University had on their lives, but their newest gift to their alma mater looks far into the future, for generations…

Meditation and Mindfulness Platform Coming to Barnes Center at The Arch

Working to enhance the health and wellness resources available to students, beginning in the 2022-23 academic year, the Barnes Center at The Arch will start piloting Headspace, a meditation and mindfulness platform accessible by mobile and desktop devices. The pilot…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2022 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.