What Daniels’ NIL deal and Bean’s return means for Kansas football

The Kansas football program’s 2023 prospects just got much brighter following two big announcements this past week.

Quarterback Jalon Daniels announced via his Instagram that he signed a name, image, and likeness (NIL) deal with Adidas as a brand ambassador. Since Kansas is an Adidas school already, Daniels can now represent Adidas both on and off the field in an NIL capacity.

The deal was help facilitated by Mass St. Collective – KU’s official NIL partner which helps student-athletes build their brand and obtain NIL opportunities.

After a stellar year, there were some who thought Daniels might transfer back to the West Coast (where he’s from) or elsewhere for bigger and better opportunities. But this NIL deal all but seals the deal on him returning to Lawrence next year.

The other big piece of news that came last week was that quarterback Jason Bean would also be returning to KU this upcoming season.

Bean was long expected to move on from football after this year or perhaps use his final year of eligibility to play for a team where he could start, but he chose to stay with the Jayhawks.

What it means

On the surface, obviously this news is huge for KU’s chances in 2023. Getting your star quarterback back for another year, along with the backup who filled in admirably in his absence for several games, immediately raises the bar for next season’s expectations.

But what this news ultimately means is that KU is becoming a place where players want to play.

Daniels could have transferred to a number of schools to help increase his national visibility, improve his draft stock, etc. But he chose to return to the Jayhawks to build upon an impressive season and help his team win even more games next year.

Bean’s return also illustrates how KU’s perception has changed.

He could have sought out a starting role at a number of other programs or simply walked off into the sunset to finish his degree and pursue the next chapter of his life.

Instead, he chose to be the ultimate team player and return to KU to help them win however he can.

The recent news also shows that KU has the NIL opportunities to keep some of their best players.

With the transfer rules where they are now, NIL has never been more important in retaining and attracting talent. It’s part of the game now. And Daniels’ Adidas deal shows they can offer those enticing opportunities to get players to stay.

Most of all, the news is another sign that the program is headed in the right direction.

Head coach Lance Leipold has preached about how they want to have sustained success here at Kansas. That success is hard to maintain if you lose your best players to other schools.

This team has a lot of experienced, returning talent and it just got its best player back, along with a backup who is good enough to start at several other schools.

You couldn’t have asked for a much better offseason than the one Kansas has had in terms of talent retention, and it’s a big reason why KU may be a team to reckon with in the year ahead.