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The Texas Tech Lady Raiders made history this week, signing a record NIL deal with marketing agency Level 13.
The program agreed to a pact on Thursday that will allot $25,000 to each player on the women’s basketball team. According to Front Office Sports, the NIL deal is the largest of its kind for any women’s basketball program.
“We are proud to announce that Level 13 Agency has committed $25,000.00 per Lady Raider in the Women’s Basketball Locker Room! We see you, we hear you, and we support you, ladies!” Level 13 said in a statement released Thursday afternoon.
A video shared on social media by KAMC’s Mason Horodyski captured the moment the Lady Raiders players received word of the deals during practice at the Dustin R. Womble Basketball Center. Players can be seen smiling and embracing in the short clip as assistant coach and former WNBA player Plenette Pierson made the rounds to hug and congratulate the entire squad.
As NIL deals continue to emerge around the NCAA, Texas Tech’s landmark agreement could usher in more significant developments for women’s college athletics in the months ahead. It could also jumpstart a return to prominence for the Lady Raiders after the team finished seventh in the Big 12 in each of the past two seasons under coach Krista Gerlich.
The Lady Raiders will now join the football team as Texas Tech’s second athletic program to ink NIL deals for their entire roster. The Red Raiders agreed to a contract with The Matador Club, a non-profit organization comprised of private donors, earlier this month that will grant all 85 scholarship players and 15 of the top walk-ons with a renewable one-year deal also worth $25,000.
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For more on Texas Tech, head to Red Raider Review.