A massive $17 million JPMorganChase partnership transforms the Ohio State Buckeyes’ iconic threads into premium advertising space, sparking a fierce debate over athletic funding versus the sanctity of tradition.
The Ohio State Buckeyes have one of the most iconic home and away uniforms in college football.
They will be undergoing a slight transformation as the sport becomes more corporatized.
Per ESPN's Pete Thamel, OSU has a new partnership with JPMorganChase that will pay $17 million per season for jersey patches on all of its 36 teams.
"NEWS: Ohio State is entering a new corporate partnership with JPMorganChase that includes jersey patches for all 36 OSU teams," Thamel posted on X. "Per industry sources, this is expected to yield OSU nearly $17 million per year, an eye-popping number that’s expected to be an industry leader.
"The value is higher than some NBA jersey patch deals. OSU’s deal also includes NIL opportunities for athletes. It’s believed to be one of the biggest non-apparel corporate deals in college sports."
The deal is significantly better than what Big 12 teams are getting after the conference agreed to a deal with Monster Energy for $20 million.
The influx of money will help Ohio State fund competitive athletic programs, but it will come at the cost of the integrity of its uniforms.
In a few years, college football players have gone from unpaid students to colliding billboards.
Expect more college football programs to sign similar deals, though it should benefit the haves in college football more than the have-nots.
Fans on social media reacted to Ohio State's new deal, with many unhappy the historic blue chip sold out.
"$17 million a year exceeds what any NHL team could command in naming rights," wrote a fan. "Aside from just four NBA teams, it also surpasses what the vast majority of NBA franchises could secure. And it’s far superior to the Value City Arena branding deal."
"Disgusting they’re doing this but at least they got a bag. I still can’t believe the entire Big12 got like 1M per school for doing this monstrosity," argued a fan.
"This just sucks. Sucks for OSU, sucks for the sport, sucks for my team and yours when it happens to us," posted another.
"Great job by Ohio State, that’s a lot of money and opportunities for their athletes and gets their donors a break from NIL," wrote a fan, glad that the Buckeyes will get help.
"How many fans of other schools will now not decide to bank at JPMorganChase? There's 240 Chase branches in Michigan for instance," pointed out a fan.
