NIL & College Sports3 min read

Great Clips Turns March Madness NIL Into a Retail and Brand-Scale Play

Great Clips is using March Madness and NIL to do more than chase awareness — it is turning the NCAA Tournament into a direct-response marketing engine. By pairing athlete endorsements with broadcast integration and a consumer discount, the brand is showing how college sports have become a high-value commercial platform.

March 28, 2026

Great Clips is leveraging the commercial reach of March Madness with a new NIL campaign built around three of college basketball’s most recognizable names: UConn forward Alex Karaban, Purdue guard Braden Smith and UCLA forward Gabriela Jaquez.

The activation reflects a broader shift in college sports marketing. The NCAA Tournament is no longer just a premium live sports property; it has become a fast-moving brand platform where companies can tap into national attention through athlete-led storytelling and tournament momentum.

Great Clips is amplifying the campaign with commercials that also feature CBS lead play-by-play announcer Ian Eagle, a move that adds mainstream credibility and helps the brand reach beyond core college basketball fans.

Just as important, the NIL push is tied to a consumer promotion: a $12.99 coupon running throughout March Madness. That combination of athlete marketing, broadcast adjacency and retail discounting shows a more advanced playbook — one designed to build brand affinity while also driving immediate transaction volume.

The campaign lands in one of the most lucrative windows on the NIL calendar. Recent Opendorse data shows men’s basketball NIL spending rises sharply during the tournament, with spending up 92% during March Madness. That spike explains why brands continue to treat the event as a short-term but high-impact investment opportunity.

For Karaban, the partnership is another example of how postseason visibility now translates directly into commercial value. March Madness has created a new lane for athletes to monetize their personal brands while competing on one of the sport’s biggest stages.

Smith, whose On3 NIL Valuation is listed at $1.7 million, highlighted the balancing act that comes with elite-level exposure: maximizing commercial opportunities without letting the business side interfere with performance. In the NIL era, that tension has become a defining reality for top players, especially during the postseason when media attention and sponsorship demand peak at the same time.

Both Karaban and Smith also tied the campaign to the long-held idea that presentation matters in sports, a natural fit for a grooming brand. For Great Clips, the message is strategically aligned: athlete identity, style and performance can be packaged into a lifestyle narrative that extends well beyond the court.

The infrastructure behind the deal is just as significant as the campaign itself. Smith credited his representatives at Priority Sports for helping manage the demands of tournament play alongside NIL responsibilities, underscoring how agencies are becoming essential operators in the college sports economy.

Great Clips’ latest move shows how NIL has matured into a strategic tool for brands seeking relevance, reach and conversion during major sports moments. In the March Madness economy, athlete partnerships are no longer experimental — they are increasingly central to how companies build campaigns, activate promotions and compete for consumer attention.

Why It Matters

Originally reported byOn3 NIL

Content Package

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March Madness is getting a NIL glow-up. Great Clips just launched a campaign featuring UConn’s Alex Karaban, Purdue’s Braden Smith, and UCLA’s Gabriela Jaquez—plus CBS announcer Ian Eagle for extra credibility. And it’s not just ads: fans can grab a $12.99 coupon all March long. This is what modern NIL looks like—athletes building brands while brands build sales during the biggest media window of the year. Would you use the coupon? Comment “CLIPS.”