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Nebraska Volleyball Star Continues to Make NIL History

All-American Lexi Rodriguez is proud that "a little girl from a little town can do big things" in NIL

Michael Ehrlich

Nebraska Volleyball Star Continues to Make NIL History
Nebraska Volleyball Star Continues to Make NIL History /

Making history has been a regular occurrence as of late for Nebraska volleyball star Lexi Rodriguez. To start the season - during "Volleyball Day in Nebraska" - Rodriguez and the Cornhuskers set a world record for attendance at a women's sporting event (92,003).

Playing an exhibition in front of a historic crowd at Nebraska's football stadium certainly set the tone for the season ahead and as the Cornhuskers are now the top seed in the NCAA Tournament - sweeping their first two rounds' matchups - heading into this weekend's Regional, the team as a whole has been a college sports success story.

However, it's the individual brand development of Rodriguez - this season especially - that has put the Cornhuskers on the map for NIL, where their football team may struggle.

From a historic partnership with Panini America - becoming the first female college athlete to sign a NIL deal with the trading card brand - to a formal partnership with Nebraska apparel sponsor adidas, the two-time All-American has been making headlines as much for her impact off the court, as on.

But it's not about building her business portfolio as much as growing the sport of volleyball and showing young girls that they can make it too.

"The past two years – any opportunity I get to connect with my fan base or promote the sport of volleyball, I’ve jumped on board right away," Rodriguez shared with Sports Illustrated. "I will do anything I can to encourage the younger generation. I want little kids to have big dreams."

Her most recent partnership - leading a diverse roster of college athletes for UScellular's "Time Out" campaign - the junior from Sterling, Ill. is focusing her promotional efforts or showing her life outside of volleyball.

"After UScellular and I connected and I saw what the whole "Time Out" campaign looked like, I was excited to truly be able to show who I am on and off the court," added Rodriguez. "Not a lot of brands are willing to let you do that. It was the biggest thing to me, to be able to show the different parts of who I am as a person."

In a culture consumed by smart phones and social media usage, UScellular and Rodriguez are empowering others to step away and take time for themselves and what's most important to them. But how does Rodriguez balance that with her advertising and public relations major and a No. 1 volleyball ranking to maintain?

"Being with people and putting my phone aside and trying to actually connect with my family, friends, teammates," she continued. "Trying to be more aware of where my feet are and to be with the people who I love instead of being so consumed with my phone. This partnership has made me more aware of that and made me value my interpersonal connections more than before this partnership."

As Nebraska continues their NCAA Tournament run and Rodriguez balances her on-court dominance with a diverse roster of NIL brand partners, she keeps it all in perspective.

"It’s really incredible and I could have never imagined being in the position I'm in to be able to promote myself on that level," Rodriguez said. "Every opportunity I get, I really want to express that a little girl from a little town can do big things. I just hope that younger female athletes from around world can see that and have hopes for their future and the future of volleyball. That is my ultimate my goal and I’m super blessed for these opportunities."

The Cornhuskers next host No. 12 Georgia Tech on Thursday - in their 12th consecutive NCAA Regional - at 2 PM ET on ESPN2. Should they advance, Nebraksa would face the winner of No. 8 Kentucky versus No. 9 Arkansas in Saturday's regional final at 6 PM ET on ESPNU.

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Michael Ehrlich
MICHAEL EHRLICH

Michael Ehrlich is a seasoned sports marketing executive with experience across the global sports brand, athlete representation, media and education sides of the business. The Founder and CEO of Playbook Marketing, Ehrlich consults with brands on all things NIL and athlete partnerships, advises student-athletes on their personal brand building endeavors and is an adjunct professor at his alma mater, the University of Southern California where he teaches a course on athlete communications and marketing. As a writer, his previous bylines include Boardroom, Business of College Sports, DIME Magazine and UPROXX, among others. You can follow him across social media at @MichaelEhrlich and reach out via michael@playbook-marketing.com

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