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Just last month, a report revealed that former Colorado football staffer Trevor Reilly that he sought NIL money Saudi Arabia‘s seemingly unending Public Investment Fund.
“I even went to Saudi Arabia and got a meeting with the Saudis, who were interested in pursuing business,” Reilly said in his eventual resignation email. “I have email receipts to prove it, and you guys let it fall flat on its face.”
That raised some eyebrows. While the world of NIL in college football is the wild, wild west, surely Deion Sanders had other options.
But now we know that Reilly was not lying thanks to Matt Brown and his Extra Points newsletter.
“Hello, my name is Trevor Reilly. I am a football coach for an American football team from University of Colorado. I represent the interest of Coach Prime and the University of Colorado,” the email read. “We are looking for a partnership deal to promote your country in exchange for some marketing money. Please reach out with any questions. My phone number is (redacted). The figures in this pitch deck are for private business. If we sit down we can negotiate and talk about what we can do for each other. I think we can do great things for your country and promote visiting Saudi Arabia.”
Reilly claims to have sent that email from Amman, Jordan while visiting with Jordanian officials to seek out NIL avenues as well.
But both Colorado and its top NIL arm, the 5430 Alliance, claim Reilly acted on his own.
“We want to clarify that Trevor Reilly has never been authorized or directed to speak or advocate on behalf of 5430 Alliance in Saudi Arabia,” they said in a statement. “Since our launch in March 2024, all funding and initiatives have been managed solely within domestic channels and are entirely unrelated to Mr. Reilly or his work. Any claims suggesting otherwise are unfounded and patently false.”
We may never know who, if anybody, asked Reilly to reach out to the foreign entities. But now we know that he wasn’t lying. And it’s just the latest twist in the absolutely wild world of NIL.