Restaurant chain Hooters announced on Monday that it has signed 51 college football offensive linemen to name, image and likeness deals from teams across the country.
The chain said it wanted to sign offensive line groups, rather than individual athletes, and is now working with players from Auburn, LSU, Oklahoma, Miami, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Florida Atlantic and USF.
“For decades, the physical play, blue-collar mentality and on-field leadership of the offensive lineman has shined, but national praise and attention for these crucial players has all-too-often been sidelined,” Hooters chief marketing officer Bruce Skala said in a press release. “We want to change the narrative and celebrate these elite student-athletes who play a pivotal role in making college football so thrilling and give them their fair share of the spotlight.”
Some of the names that have signed include McKade Mettauer, Andrew Raym and Wanya Morris from Oklahoma, EJ Ndoma-Ogar from Missouri, Kardell Thomas, Miles Frazier and Marcus Dumervil from LSU, as well as Pierce Quick and Paul Tchio from Georgia Tech among a long list of others.
Hooters signs groups of offensive linemen across the U.S. to #NIL deals. pic.twitter.com/a6m9q4xZ3r
— Darren Heitner (@DarrenHeitner) August 22, 2022
The 51 linemen hooked up w/ Hooters https://t.co/gyevBK38By pic.twitter.com/lq9YVksApn
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 22, 2022