Penn State's James Franklin, Mike Rhoades to Headline Major NIL Event

The Nittany Lions coaches will meet fans and discuss the importance of NIL at an event in northeast Pennsylvania.

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin high-fives the fans prior to the Blue White spring game at Beaver Stadium. / Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

Penn State coaches James Franklin and Mike Rhoades will headline a major NIL event in northeast Pennsylvania on Thursday. The "We Are... NEPA" event is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter. Franklin and Rhoades, entering his second year as Penn State men's basketball coach, will meet with fans, discuss their upcoming seasons and continue pitching the importance of NIL to their respective programs.

Happy Valley United, Penn State's official NIL collective, is sponsoring the event. In addition to the coaches, a host of Penn State football players will appear at the function. The player list included running back Kaytron Allen, tight end Tyler Warren, quarterback Beau Pribula, receiver Julian Fleming, center Nick Dawkins and more.

Tickets are available through the Happy Valley United website. Tickets for the main program, which begins at 7 p.m., are $125 person. Happy Valley United also is hosting a VIP reception beginning at 6 p.m. Tickets for that are $500 per person.

Happy Valley United is hosting a number of NIL-related events this year to educate fans about what it does. The collective also has embarked on a $500,000 campaign to raise money for Penn State football roster retention. The "Retain the Road" campaign has raised more than $200,000 toward its goal.

"Our goal is to compete for championships while doing it the right way. But having an elite NIL program is critical to this mission," Franklin said in a video promoting the campaign. "A strong NIL program is a foundational component of building and maintaining an elite roster of players that will ensure our program is competitive in today's college football."

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich.