With NIL becoming a formidable staple of college athletics, ASU athletic director Graham Rossini, who has been on the job a mere three months, wants the Sun Devil student-athletes to receive the recognition they deserve, as well as be able to maximize their financial opportunities using their, name, image and likeness. The school’s move to the Big 12 conference creates numerous opportunities for athletes who are now part of a league that literally stretches across the country.
“I’m very proud of our evolution at NIL over the last eight to nine months,” Rossini said. “We’ve got several passionate Sun Devils leading the charge at the Sun Angel Collective, and they’ve been front and center in the efforts of just bringing people together to understand how NIL can be an incredible tool for our athletes.
“I’ve mentioned a lot this summer that when we level the playing field, and we’re able to compete in all the ways that student-athletes are looking for at this moment in time, we’re having success. There are lots of kids that want to be Sun Devils for all the right reasons. We're focused on their experience from all aspects of being a student-athlete, and you’ve got a community of support that's stepping up on their behalf.”
Rossini also praised the people who have already begun providing substantial support, one of whom is Tim Hovik, the owner of Gilbert’s San Tan Ford, who has sponsored ASU for several years now.
(Note: San Tan Ford is also a sponsor of Devils Digest)
“(Hovik) announced Friday at our kickoff luncheon that he’s got ten vehicles that he’s making available to the Sun Angel collective to utilize our NIL efforts,” Rossini announced. “That’s incredible. That’s an individual putting his money where his mouth is in terms of believing in the upside of what ASU can create, and he’s investing on behalf of himself and his company to prove that out.
“And so I'm very excited about where we’re going in NIL, the individuals that have stepped up, the companies that see incredible value in using ASU athletes to promote their product or service.”
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The City of Tempe has announced that for ASU’s game against Mississippi State on September 7, the tickets for Tempe residents will be 33% off. On top of that, Rossini also said that the parking garage prices this season will be cut in half and reduced from $40 to $20. Rossini explained that he wants people to enjoy the gameday experience and not have their decision whether to attend an ASU football game come down to pricing. Arizona State’s athletic director wants every resident in the city of Tempe to be invested in the program that is located in that city, and making the team itself more accessible allows them to do so.
“We’re so lucky to have a partner like the city of Tempe that’s vested in that effort,” Rossini commented. “We said this on Friday at the luncheon, and often that as Tempe grows, we grow and vice versa. And this is a critical partnership to have city leadership, Mayor (Corey) Woods, his staff, and his leadership team that’s focused on how they add value on a game day, but at the same time, how do we be mindful of the Tempe residents who love ASU and want to come and find ways to support it, and we’re doing a lot of that right now.
“We’re looking at, how do we make the game day much more enjoyable to navigate. We want the team to win and compete at the highest level.”
With NIL still a relatively novel concept that seemingly evolves every day, ASU and its athletes are continuing to find ways to utilize that vehicle and represent themselves. Many of the school’s long-time backers have increased the amount of money and various methods in which they support the Sun Devils. They have also amplified their patronage of women’s sports and reached a new segment of potential customers.
“A number of our main corporate sponsors have looked into how they can plug into NIL,” Rossini stated. “Desert Financial (Credit Union) and Sprouts (Farmer’s Market) are probably two that I would mention that are very eager to look at, how do we do activation around female athletes? How do we use the platform to promote female student-athletes at a time when women’s sports continue to explode in popularity?
“It’s not a moment; it’s a movement. We’re very mindful that female sports are on this incredible growth trajectory, and we have partners that want to invest in that. There's incredible value to ASU when you have 26 sports.”
This summer, ASU was represented well at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, having two dozen athletes from all across the world participate in those games. Four ASU athletes medaled in Paris, and men’s swimmer Leon Marchand had an outstanding performance in his home country. The Frenchman won a gold medal in the 200M and 400M individual medley, 200m butterfly, and 200m breaststroke and earned a bronze medal in the 4x100 team relay. With the 2028 Olympics taking place in Los Angeles, ASU has an amazing opportunity to maintain its Olympic presence.
“I don’t think we can measure it,” Rossini expressed. “We had 24 Olympians across the entire platform, and that’s what it’s all about. While we’re talking about the changes in college sports, I hope we don't lose sight of the value of all of our sports and what that means for the Olympic movement. When you look at Los Angeles hosting in 2028, and the fact that ASU is front and center with an incredible presence in L.A., maintaining our Olympic presence is very important.
“But with what Leon did, we talked a lot all spring about the face of the Olympics on our campus. Now, the secret’s out that we've got an elite swim and dive program. We want to use the attention that Leon and the other Sun Devils student-athletes had at the Olympics to just bring more attention, goodwill, and connection into what’s happening here on campus.”
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As the Sun Devils move into the Big 12 conference, they will immediately be tested with a tough football schedule. ASU will play five conference foes ranked in the AP top 25 preseason poll, with three of those games on the road. Rossini not only welcomes the competition but is confident in the team and its head coach, Kenny Dillingham.
“It’s a challenging schedule, but that’s how we prefer it,” Rossini remarked. “Coach Dillingham has been very deliberate about the people that he brought into the football organization, and we’re surrounding these young people with the right leaders. We welcome the opportunity to showcase ASU in the schedule. We want to be battle-tested. We’re not here to ease our way into whatever comes next, and we want to understand where we’re at. I believe that there’s no replacement for the lessons learned when you’re challenging yourself.”
With nearly a million ASU alumni worldwide, Rossini yearns for the outreach process to be immediate and impactful. He believes that the crowd is eager to stay connected with Sun Devil sports and is eager to celebrate every person who calls Arizona State their alma to continue and be engaged well after they have graduated.
“Alumni will continue to be a big part of our strategy,” Rossini professed. “No other university in America has that type of reach, and so we’re trying to communicate with our alumni out the gate. This is the growth trajectory that an issue is on in all aspects, including athletics, but in particular with our athletic alums.
“There are success stories all across the landscape, and we want to celebrate that good news with the Sun Devils who are representing us so well. Looking back at our all-time rosters, we need to identify what a letter winner means at Sun Devil Athletics. From there, we need to make sure we’ve got contact info so when we are sharing good news that good news is getting to the intended audience.”
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