Big moments mean big paydays for student-athletes.
And many brands are helping them capitalize on those clutch plays and big games.
Cheez-It is helping student-athletes “feel the cheeziest” while performing at the highest level. The brand signed NIL deals with four student-athletes competing in the Cheez-It and Cheez-It Citrus Bowls and five college basketball players during March Madness.
The Cheez-It suite
Leading up to Florida State and Oklahoma State squaring off in the Cheez-It Bowl in Orlando, then Florida State wide receiver Mycah Pittman and Oklahoma punter Michael Turk showed off how they would be lounging in style at the team hotel.
@hangtimeyt I woke up #feelinthecheeziest, Coach! Thanks @cheezit ♬ original sound – Michael Turk
With an objective to drive awareness to the Cheez-It brand, the two players gave fans a peek at the Cheez-It suite through cheesy social posts – showcasing a hotel room covered floor to ceiling with Cheez-It themed décor.
@mycahpittman4 #ad Check out my personal highlight reel of the @Cheez-It #FeelintheCheeziest ♬ original sound – Mycah Pittman
With Purdue and LSU meeting in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl a few days later, it was Boilermaker wide receiver Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Tigers quarterback Garrett Nussmeier’s turn to spend time in the Cheez-It room.
@tyronetracy #ad Here’s how I make sure I wake up #feelinthecheeziest ♬ original sound – Tyrone Tracy
The campaign captured over 5 million total views in the first week posts were live. After three weeks of content being live, this content earned over 47 million views.
The authentic and humorous posts from the athletes resonated well with fans, leading to well-above industry average performance metrics.
Turk’s first piece of content, posted on TikTok and Instagram reels, garnered a total of 1.78 million views in the first week, exceeding his total follower count by almost 3X. Pittman’s first TikTok leveraged three million views in the first week, exceeding his follower count by 16X.
A slam dunk snack
Playing with food never looked so fun. Cheez-It partnered with five college basketball players to encourage fans to stock up on the snack for the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments.
The athletes gave fans a glimpse at their party-snack trick shots.
Through an agreement with multimedia rights holder LEARFIELD, the partnership allows brands to increase reach through the combination of student-athlete influence and the use of school intellectual property (IP) within their campaigns.
@armando #ad @cheezit is a slam dunk at any watch party! Make sure you stock up this March so you can be #FeelinTheCheeziest ♬ original sound – Armando Bacot
Athletes
Armando Bacot – North Carolina Men’s Basketball
Rickea Jackson – Tennessee Women’s Basketball
Jonas Aidoo – Tennessee Men’s Basketball
Dillon Wilhite – Kansas Men’s Basketball
Justice Sueing – Ohio State Men’s Basketball
