I did not include this in the larger NIL thread because the purpose of this post is to suggest modest ways in which a "normal fan" might be able to boost NIL benefits for Duke athletes. There also are a few thoughts on how DBR itself might be able to help in NIL efforts.

The purpose of this post is neither to debate the merits of NIL nor to predict what changes will occur to college sports. Rather, this is an attempt to offer options for those who want to support Duke without breaking the bank. I welcome other thoughts on how best to support Duke in the era of NIL.

First and foremost, follow/subscribe to the InstaGram/TikTok/Twitter/Youtube account of every Duke athlete you can. For a quick example, when the next recruit commits to play for Duke MBB, the DBR article on the announcement could contain links to the player's social media accounts. Subsequent articles about a player could also include those links. In downtime, say during timeouts of Duke game, actually click on some of those accounts so that you are deemed a "real subscriber".

A prediction I will make is that in recruiting going forward schools will brag about the total followers of their players and the increase after committing to the school. "Joe Doe increased his IG followers by 30K/300% in the month after he announced he was coming to play for us." "Last year our team had a combined 1.2M Tiktok followers, more than any other team you are considering." In addition, recruits may announce commitments on their own social media accounts instead of going on EspnU.

While Hoops is the focus of DBR, both the site and many of its followers support most Duke teams, at least as a general manner. We could create and update a sticky post with social media accounts for each Duke sport. This would have to be a sticky imho to keep out the trolls and haters. Known posters could be given the ability to update the list for non/limited revenue sports they follow or support. Given that many non revenue sports do not have enough scholarships to go around, NIL money could be a help.

Those of us who by demographics or choice are not big on social media might ask younger relations and friends to subscribe to certain Duke accounts. "All I want for Festivus this year is to get Paolo to X followers on IG, can you help me?"

While most of us will not be in a position to select Duke players for advertising campaigns (looking at you Tim Cook), we can support in smaller financial ways. You already can get your favorite Duke (or UNC) fan a Cameo birthday or Holiday message from Mark Williams. Patreon accounts could support blogs/podcasts etc. with small donations per month. Undoubtedly there will be opportunities for autographs, selfies, attending appearance events etc.

I do not purport to be an expert, but have read multiple articles and listened to numerous podcasts from those who do. Hopefully this post will allow you to use your time more productively while still supporting Duke.