JBL's NIL Program to Takeover Lawrence Ahead of Kansas UNC Showdown

JBL Campus features two star players in the matchup and will have three days of activations to engage the local community for basketball season.

Kansas basketball fans reacted to the Jayhawks NCAA Championship win against UNC on April 4, 2022 in Lawrence, Kansas. Kansas Fans React In Lawrence / Nate Chute / USA TODAY NETWORK

In January, audio equipment industry titan JBL launched their JBL Campus initiative to highlight college athletes and other college lifestyle influencers through endorsement partnerships. With twenty-five high-profile athletes on their roster, JBL Campus has already made quite a splash in the NIL world. Next week in Lawrence, the company looks to firmly establish themselves as one of the most innovative in the NIL space with a multi-day all-out activation leading up to the highly anticipated game between the number one-ranked Kansas Jayhawks and the ninth-ranked UNC Tarheels. 

Throughout the week, JBL will host events and leverage their athlete influencer partners in NIL engagements in Lawrence to bolster gameday spirit and help fans prepare for the matchup. The company has outlined a simple mission guiding the three-day initiative: Music. Community. Sports. A simple yet foolproof concept. 

Two of JBL Campus’ biggest NIL ambassadors will face off against each other in the contest, Kansas’ KJ Adams Jr. and UNC’s RJ Davis. The game, slated for Friday, November 8, will be only the second matchup between ranked teams in the 2024-25 college basketball season that begins this Monday. The matchup is anticipated to draw massive viewership as both teams prepare to show the country why they are title contenders. 

While fans across the nation are delighted to tune into a ranked battle amidst a sea of lopsided early-season matchups, the excitement is on a whole other level for those in Lawrence. College basketball gamedays at KU have always been raucous, and now, thanks to JBL’s NIL-focused initiative, fans will be provided with even more opportunities to enjoy their gameday traditions. 

Starting on Wednesday, the JBL truck will be stationed at the Nebraska Furniture Mart –– attendees can enjoy mini-golf, roaming games, win JBL swag, grab some giveaways, and eat food. JBL Campus ambassadors will be in attendance helping provide fans throughout the Lawrence area unparalleled access to their team.

Following Wednesday’s festivities, the JBL truck will make its way to the KU Campus Bookstore on Thursday afternoon to engage the campus community with sports, music, and athlete ambassadors. The truck will offer the same giveaways and activities as the night before and students can stop by between and after classes to join in on the fun.

The last stop for the JBL truck will be Allen Fieldhouse where it will be a presence all day. The truck will serve as a central hub for fans to enjoy music and claim giveaways prior to the opening tip. The JBL truck activations serve to provide unique opportunities to both the KU community and the greater Lawrence area, grow the brands of their influencers, and provide meaningful NIL activations for athletes to earn money.

Once fans are inside, JBL will continue to keep the party going as they are sponsoring a pregame show to set the stage for the anticipated battle between blue-blood programs. Friday, more than any other day, will truly highlight the beauty of the JBL Campus mission. From sun-up to sun-down Jayhawk fans will experience community-centric activations, a ranked matchup, and live music.

Through ninety-five posts across Instagram and TikTok in roughly two months, JBL Campus has generated over 28,200,000 impressions and 36,800 engagements. The posts have a 14.18% engagement rate —far exceeding the industry average— helping prove that college athletes hold immense influence on campus and within their alumni communities. JBL has noticed high rates of traffic to their website from these posts and, like many companies, is seeing tangible benefits from NIL marketing activations.

In professional sports, fans are more inclined to root for individual athletes as opposed to the jersey that they play in. Stars of professional sports have built giant personal brands and influence. For companies, leveraging college athletics used to mean leveraging the jersey, not the player. In the NIL era, this dynamic is rapidly changing. With the ability to market players, athletes’ brands are being amplified by those they choose to enter NIL partnerships with.

Just as KJ Adams Jr. and RJ Davis deliver quantifiable returns to JBL through their basketball stardom, JBL can push their athlete partners’ personalities to their own large music-centric audience. A classic win-win. This dynamic of the NIL industry has been known, what is refreshing to see, is that the fan also wins.

Collegiate activations used to be limited in scope, beyond small activations and in-stadium sponsorships, brands were limited in college sports marketing. With athletes becoming bigger stars and having the ability to bring on-campus events to life, much more can be done to leverage the hysteria of college sports for marketing and exposure.

Fans in Lawrence will receive exclusive access to their team, increased community engagement, and live music. JBL has shown that NIL partnerships can be more than win-win, they can be win-win-win.