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Utah football players were surprised with some major NIL news on Wednesday as every Ute player landed keys to a new Dodge Ram. Yes, all 85 scholarship players will receive a lease thanks to the Utah Crimson Collective.
The deal is said to be the richest in NIL history, reportedly worth around $6 million in value.
The premise of the agreement is pretty simple. Each player will land a six-month lease on a 2024 Ram Big Horn 1500 truck retailing at just over $60,000.
Leases will only be voided if a player’s eligibility expires, or they decide to transfer.
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Now, we’ve seen car deals in the past, but nothing quite like this.
Typically, you’ll see a star player or group of contributors land some dealership perks, but never an entire team. Spencer Rattler (Mercedes-Benz), Bijan Robinson (Lamborghini), and Shilo Sanders (also Mercedes-Benz) come to mind as past college prospects to land luxury car deals.
But 85 trucks for 85 players?? That’s unheard of.
Until now.
The deal in and of itself is mind blowing, introducing us into this new, exciting world of college football. The Utah players’ reaction to landing the Dodge Rams was even better.
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After being informed of the new NIL deal in the Rice-Eccles Stadium facility, the tunnel doors swung open to invite players onto the field.
Like kids in a candy shop, Utes stormed in to check out their sweet new rides.
Here’s a POV clip of the reaction.
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Former players were even jealous of the whips, with first round NFL pick Dalton Kincaid asking, “Am I still on scholarship?”
The hope is that the NIL deal will help with recruiting while also rewarding players for their hard work and performance on the field. A perennial PAC 12 power, Utah has won the conference in each of the last two seasons.
Sustained success has already been established, and now, some insane NIL value is flowing through the program. We’ll see if the Utes are able to capitalize.