Northwestern finally dove into the Name Image and Likeness pool this fall with the formation of the TrueNU collective. Well, maybe dipped its toe into the water is a more apt metaphor.

Northwestern was the last Big Ten athletic program to establish an NIL collective. Executive Director Jacob Schmidt admits that the Wildcats are behind the curve compared to other Power Five programs.

TrueNU has compensated Northwestern student-athletes in three sports thus far. It is not fully operational as of yet and is currently focused on supporting charitable and community organizations, and not private companies. They hope to launch a website in January to enable the public to become more involved.

But the important thing, as Schmidt pointed out, is that Northwestern is now “in the game.”

What is TrueNU? We’ll let Schmidt explain. He’s a former Wildcat running back (2007-11) who left his job as director of football operations earlier this month to lead TrueNU.

“TrueNU is a Northwestern-focused alumni collective with a mission to support local charities by partnering them with NU athletes and allowing their time, talents, and influence to amplify their cause,” he said.

Schmidt explains that TrueNU has partnerships with several non-profit, local charities and community organizations. When athletes perform services for the charity – whether it’s mentoring, tutoring or coaching, for example – the collective will pay the athletes for their time, based on what he called “market value.”

You’ve probably seen on social media that Northwestern athletes have worked with charitable community organizations for many years. Now, if TrueNU brokers that partnership, Northwestern student-athletes will get paid for their time and activities.

TrueNU is 100% privately funded, according to Schmidt. It is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, meaning it is federally tax-exempt and that contributions are tax-deductible. The organization was founded in September and got its 501(c)(3) status in early November, he said.

Schmidt said that TrueNU has been focused mostly on attaining 501(c)(3) status and developing relationships with non-profit partners over the last four months. They have a six-person board of directors and a small staff of interns, and are forming an advisory board. He said that TrueNU plans to launch a website in January, so that fans, alumni and donors can get involved by donating money, or by helping non-profit organizations become partners with TrueNU.

So far, Schmidt said that TrueNU has supported athletes in men’s and women’s basketball, and softball. He declined to provide any information about compensation, but confirmed that athletes have been getting paid. Eventually, Schmidt said that TrueNU aims to support athletes in all 19 sports at Northwestern.

NIL is probably most associated with football, but TrueNU hasn’t been involved with any Wildcat football players as of yet. Schmidt said that they don’t want to be a distraction for players during the season and are focusing the bulk of their activities during a sports’ offseason, when athletes have more time and don’t have to prepare for games.

TrueNU may not be what you expected it to be. Much of the media coverage of NIL so far has been about “pay-for-play” – paying student-athletes to play sports at schools – or using NIL as a recruiting inducement, which is supposed to be a no-no according to NCAA rules.

While TrueNU plans to add a commercial arm in the future to get companies involved, for now it is charity-focused. It’s less about compensation and more about providing opportunities for Northwestern student-athletes to benefit the community while making extra money, said Schmidt.

“It’s more important to use our incredible athletes to support our neighbors and benefit our community,” he said. “Our non-profit partners win, our athletes win and our community wins.”

That isn’t to say that Northwestern athletes can’t be involved right now with companies. They just have to do it through means other than TrueNU.

Today, for example, if the McGrath Auto Group wants to get quarterback Brendan Sullivan to make an appearance and sign autographs at one their dealerships, TrueNU would not be involved in that process. McGrath would have to contact Sullivan directly, or contact Sullivan’s agent, if he has one (remember that players are now allowed to have one for NIL deals). Or, McGrath could go through Altius Partners, NU’s NIL partner who manages the NIL process for Wildcat student-athletes and helps them with branding and marketing themselves to the corporate community.

TrueNU plans to be part of that process eventually, according to Schmidt. It would also be part of the process if a company wants to pay players directly in the future.

For example, if Wintrust, a major Northwestern sports sponsor, wants to one day make a direct donation to pay all football players a certain sum during the season, TrueNU hopes to be able to broker that deal. But right now, its focus is on charitable organizations, and paying student-athletes who perform services for that organization.

TrueNU is in its infancy, but it hopes to operate like many of its Big Ten rival institutions.

Indiana, for example, has two collectives in operation. One, Hoosiers for Good, is organized like TrueNU and partners Hoosier student-athletes with local charities. The other is Hoosiers Connect, which allows businesses to promote their brands through partnerships with student athletes.

Iowa, too, has two collectives. There’s the Swarm Collective, which gives Hawkeye athletes the opportunity to earn stipends by working with local charities, and Swarm, Inc., which provides Hawkeye players with the chance to earn additional NIL revenue by promoting business products and services.

Schmidt said that TrueNU intends to eventually add the commercial division to its offerings but chose to start with charities because it “felt right.”

However, as Northwestern head football coach Fitzgerald made clear last week on national signing day, Northwestern will not use NIL as a recruiting inducement. That is supposed to be against the rules but seems to have become a common practice across the college football landscape as the NCAA’s enforcement arm seems to have very little teeth these days.

You’ve probably seen the stories – though most have been denied or uncorroborated. Five-star 2023 quarterback Nico Iamaleava will reportedly receive $8 million for signing with Tennessee. Texas A&M was rumored to have spent $30 million on securing the No. 1-ranked recruiting class in the 2022 cycle. Quarterback Cade McNamara, who transferred from Michigan to Iowa last week, estimated on a podcast that 40% of players who entered the transfer portal did it for NIL deals.

“We’re not going to be part of that,” said Fitzgerald defiantly. “I understand what’s being said out there. We’re going to follow the rules, we’re going to do the things that fit Northwestern and the expectations we have here as a university and as a community.”

Fitzgerald also urged fans to support TrueNU. He said it was a way for fans to get involved “beyond wearing Cat gear all over the place and being a season-ticket holder and being a donor. You can make a direct impact on student-athletes’ experience here.”

Schmidt, who has been part of the Northwestern football program since arriving at Northwestern as a true freshman in 2007, has the same message for fans. Like any other non-profit organization, TrueNU has an annual fundraising goal, though he didn’t want to disclose it. He wants to get Northwestern’s collective up to speed as quickly as possible to compete with its Big Ten rivals.

“Northwestern is not the most flashy program when it comes to NIL, but we have some great avenues for support,” he said. They also have several high-profile alums on board.

TrueNU’s website will launch in the next couple weeks. But in the meantime, if you would like to make a donation or learn more about the organization, you can email Schmidt at jacob@truenu.org.