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Hello again, everybody, and welcome back
to the accelerator with Michael Conniff.

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That's me today.

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We are very excited to be joined from
joined by rather Sean Clifford and Pat

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Waters from team group holdings.

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Um, Sean, I'm going to introduce him as a
businessman first, a player second.

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He's the president of limitless, which is
focused on NIL business, uh, for team

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group, um, Pat is, um, a long time sports
marketing guru, uh,

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And leader, his company is strategic
sports marketing and also sports vault.

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All three of those are divisions of team
group holdings.

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And Sean, of course, has this other like a
day job, a day job with the Green Bank

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Packers playing quarterback, was a star at
Penn State and had the idea of jumping

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onto the limitless, not just the
limitless, the NIL.

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movement, which started, you were still at
Penn State, I believe.

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And I actually just listened to your
podcast with your buddy Brennanman called

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Brennanman shows up very good podcast.

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So I know a little bit of the background,
but you are you played six years at Penn

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State.

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So you're kind of a, you know, in a way,
historically, like a transition figure,

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because you were there when it started as
an athlete, and you started making money.

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So

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What was it like not to make money and
then suddenly to make money and then how

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did that drive you into Limitless?

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Yeah, I appreciate you having me on
Michael.

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It's been a crazy ride.

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The Wild West is a lot of people call it.

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It's a little bit more structured now, so
it can definitely, you know, give kudos

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where it's due.

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We've made a lot of good changes, both
with our company and numerous companies

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that we've worked alongside with NIL.

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But before, you know, 2021, July 1st,
2021, when legislation passed.

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It was a typical day in the life of a
student athlete.

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You're living on a stipend, trying to make
ends meet every once in a while.

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But really living out of the facility,
free food, wherever you would get anything

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free, you're going to try to make that
happen.

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So before NIL, it was a lot of less
business and a lot more ball.

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And now it's a nice blend between finding
your why outside.

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of football or whatever sport you might be
playing and being able to blend that with

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the sport you love.

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And I wanna ask before I jump over to Pat,
I wanted to ask just what was it like for

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your teammates and you in the locker room?

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You go from being, I mean, it's really
well documented.

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I think one of the best examples of
college athletes struggling to buy a pizza

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is the Fab Four, the Michigan basketball
team that were huge stars and had no money

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and were pretty resentful about it with
good reason, I think.

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But what was...

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Did it change the dynamics or has it
changed the dynamics of the locker room?

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It has, it has in good ways and bad ways.

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You know, specifically in the Penn State
locker room, it's been mostly all good.

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We've had the right characters in there to
be able to move the needle in a positive

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direction.

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But, you know, I like to focus on the good
and the good has really been to bring

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business minds into light with a lot of
these athletes because before that you

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were just an athlete.

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That, you know, you.

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student first, athlete second, and that
was it.

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But now, being able to explore other
avenues and other opportunities outside of

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your sport, it allows a much more holistic
view of what you see as your brand and

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what you see as really an entrepreneur,
because that's what every athlete is now,

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is their own business and their own path
towards success.

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So it's been good, I would say, overall.

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And that is new compared to the old days
where, you know, Andy Robustelli on the

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Giants had a shoe store in Connecticut
where people sold insurance or all sorts

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of things.

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Now, Pat, you've been in sports a very
long time.

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You've kind of seen it all.

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What was it about what Sean was doing that
kind of brought you together with

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Limitless?

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Yeah.

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that crazy Supreme Court ruling came
through in July 21st of 2021.

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I saw it, you know, I was.

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we should point out.

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Yeah, not everybody knows what NIL means.

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Name, image, and likeness.

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Athletes can profit on themselves while
still in school.

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And when that came was pushed through by
the Supreme Court, like I said, back in

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2021, we saw opportunity to go out and do
what we'd had done successfully, which is

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partner athletes with brands at the
professional level.

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Now we were going to be very selective
about doing it at the collegiate level, a

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mutual business acquaintance.

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As we got started, we signed up a couple
of kids, went through the learning curve.

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And somebody said, hey,

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you should take a ride up and talk to Sean
Clifford.

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There might be some synergies with what
he's doing.

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So I took that three hour trek up to State
College.

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I sat down across from Sean, really didn't
know what to expect.

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We kind of booked about a half an hour
together.

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And I think probably about five and a half
hours later, I just said, hey, he's

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already got what I wanna build.

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And we just clicked.

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I mean, immediately from that moment, Sean
and his brother, Liam,

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We sat across from each other, which was
kind of an impromptu meeting.

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And I said, why build it when we have it
right here?

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And Sean asked me, I think at the point,
he said, would you be our first board

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member?

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And I said, Sean, give me about a week.

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I got a better idea.

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Let's, uh, you know, let's, let's get back
together.

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And that's where we sat back down.

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I said, let's put these two companies
together.

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You have the same moral compass.

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The guys have.

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what we want already in place.

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I mean, what they had built out, the
infrastructure in NIL, I hadn't seen

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anything like it.

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We certainly didn't have what they had,
and we had the same common goals, and the

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rest is history.

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We put it together last year.

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That's great.

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And I want to remind everyone you're
listening to the Accelerator podcast.

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We're on all the major audio platforms,
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Also our Substack newsletter, which
delivers the podcast and other goodies to

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you is the acce And we have a companion
podcast called The Angel as well.

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So Sean, I want to follow up on what Pat
said.

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He said you had the infrastructure.

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What did he mean?

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What does he mean by that?

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What did you have in place at that?

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Well, initially it was just a fantastic
team that has been built out even farther

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than when we made that sale.

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But it's a funny story.

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My brother and I, when we were working out
of, quite literally just my apartment, I

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lived at a complex that had a very nice
kind of group offering where it was an

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office space, just a clubhouse with pool
and whatnot.

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And if you know anything about Penn State,

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When it's the summer, there's no one
there.

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It's just the athletes and international
students.

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So it's just the two groups.

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So there's not many people to take up that
space.

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So I went ahead and I actually asked the
manager at our complex and said, hey, I

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have this business.

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We're operating it currently just out of
my living room.

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I would love to be able to bring my
employees in, some clients and different

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people, people like Pat who eventually
came through.

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to the complex and it ended up being
fantastic.

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We operated out of my apartment, space,
whatever you wanna call it really.

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And it just continued to build.

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And the beauty of it, we switched our
mailing address to that area.

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The people knew when certain people walked
through that door, when an athlete walked

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through that door, they just pointed
directly at our office space, right

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behind.

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Do we have some interruptions every once
in a while?

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Yeah, but that's what a startup is all
about, just finding a way.

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So it really was as startup grimy as ever.

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Now we have a nice, beautiful two story in
Downingtown, Pennsylvania.

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So can't complain whatsoever, but came a
long way.

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But definitely initially it was a grime.

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That's great.

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Now we should also point out you're coming
to us from Green Bay where the food is

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still free at the facility.

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So Sean is not is no fool about that sort
of thing.

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Yes, Pat, go ahead.

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No, I was going to say, I was just to add
to that.

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Sean mentioned they used the clubhouse
facility.

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Michael, I'm here to tell you, they took
it over.

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I went in there and they had a whole
business operating, Uber dropping off

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athletes.

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They had little individual meeting rooms
within there.

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It was like Grand Central Station.

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It was so cool.

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It just like I told you, it really did.

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It got my entrepreneurial juices flowing
when I walked out of there.

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I went to the hotel.

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that night to meet my son and my wife and
I couldn't sleep.

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I was just my wheels were turning that
whole night.

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So it was awesome.

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And Sean, you know, when I think about
this idea of the athlete as entrepreneur,

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I give a lot of credit to Magic Johnson as
I think kind of showing what could be done

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with his Magic Johnson.

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I think it's Magic Johnson Enterprises.

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But then, correct me if I'm wrong, but I
think the money started to go big, get so

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big at the top of the pyramid.

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The athletes just had so much money.

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They had to do something with it.

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other than you like sticking in a savings
account.

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But now with NIL, do you think that
philosophy of an athlete sort of has to be

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an entrepreneur, has to be an influencer,
has to have like a public facing business

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sense?

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Is that kind of pervasive, becoming
pervasive both in college and pro sports?

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I think it's moving the needle forward and
growing the industry as a whole.

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I think it's honestly an extremely
fantastic opportunity to be able to not

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only build your brand and monetize your
name image and likeness, but a true

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opportunity to find a why outside of your
sport.

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Because when I found business and when I
found this opportunity in this industry,

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the sports industry that I really did

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I was just a football player.

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I was a football player just trying to
find my way and the only out was making it

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to the NFL.

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But the beauty of what NIL and this
industry and everything that's progressed

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alongside of it is now giving athletes an
opportunity to really and truly find a why

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beyond sport.

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So that way when they exit sport, whenever
that might be, whether it be collegiately,

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high school, professionally.

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They have something to lean on because
they have developed their mindset outside

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of what they do on a day-to-day basis.

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So I think it's fantastic.

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I'm super pro in IL, always have and
always will.

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Yeah, that's not surprising, Sean.

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Put some money in your pocket.

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Pat, what do team stands for?

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I believe technology.

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Tell me if I'm wrong, entertainment,
athletes.

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What's the M media maybe marketing.

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Okay.

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So what do you do for an athlete?

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So, so here's my real question for you,
Pat, as somebody who's been in this a long

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time.

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Um, when, when

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I look at this landscape of NIL platforms.

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It's getting crowded.

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You know, it's really getting crowded out
there.

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And it's very hard to differentiate one
from the other.

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So I guess what I would ask you and then
I'll ask Sean is how do you, what makes

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you unique and how do you make sure you
take care of the, you know, the AIN team,

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so to speak?

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Yeah, well, the A is the key and
Limitless, their mantra, which really got

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me was for the athletes, by the athletes.

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So we're hitting on the A, as Sean
mentioned, it's not a high level group

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marketing that's trying to drill into this
group.

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These are athletes have been there.

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They know the rigors of sports.

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They know the time it takes on being a
student athlete.

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And we...

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We don't just hand out, we create true
marketing packages where the athlete has

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duties that they need to perform and the
company is going to see a return on

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investment.

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So we marry the two.

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That's always my background was always
monetizing an athlete's brand outside of

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their professional athletes brand outside
of their contract.

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And that's partnering them with companies,
partnering them with like minded brands.

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And it's got to be a win-win for both.

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00:13:34,950 --> 00:13:38,232
So, you know, we're not just handing out
checks to athletes.

233
00:13:38,232 --> 00:13:41,633
You know, we're not going to knock any of
the collectives because they have their

234
00:13:41,633 --> 00:13:47,435
place at all the universities, but we
truly are a niche boutique marketing

235
00:13:47,496 --> 00:13:48,096
company.

236
00:13:48,096 --> 00:13:50,697
And the athletes are learning as they go.

237
00:13:50,697 --> 00:13:55,239
I think one of the key words that Sean
always said is, we empower our athletes,

238
00:13:55,239 --> 00:13:55,519
right?

239
00:13:55,519 --> 00:13:56,339
That's what we do.

240
00:13:56,339 --> 00:14:01,701
We empower them to understand how the deal
works, how a company needs.

241
00:14:01,914 --> 00:14:05,315
It has to be a win one how a company needs
an ROI.

242
00:14:05,315 --> 00:14:10,277
And that's what gets you your second, your
third and recitative deals that come down

243
00:14:10,277 --> 00:14:11,217
the road.

244
00:14:11,658 --> 00:14:13,418
Really, that's what we do.

245
00:14:13,418 --> 00:14:18,761
We're a boutique marketing company and we
empower athletes.

246
00:14:18,761 --> 00:14:22,662
And like I said, not every one of them is
going to be a professional athlete.

247
00:14:22,662 --> 00:14:24,443
Sean, that was his dream.

248
00:14:24,443 --> 00:14:25,763
He fulfilled it.

249
00:14:26,244 --> 00:14:30,925
We like to think we work with high-caliber
athletes and our percentage is going to be

250
00:14:30,934 --> 00:14:35,161
pretty strong, but at the end of the day,
we're preparing these young men and women

251
00:14:35,161 --> 00:14:40,529
for life and the real world if they don't
choose that professional sports path.

252
00:14:40,726 --> 00:14:42,588
The real world is kind of morphing for
this.

253
00:14:42,588 --> 00:14:46,974
So Sean, what is your pitch to athletes as
an athlete?

254
00:14:46,974 --> 00:14:53,903
What do you say both about the situation
they're in and also about what your

255
00:14:53,903 --> 00:14:56,405
company can bring to their situation?

256
00:14:56,785 --> 00:15:01,388
Yeah, I think that first and foremost, our
offering is very clear cut.

257
00:15:02,129 --> 00:15:06,613
No red lines, no behind the curtain
conversations.

258
00:15:06,613 --> 00:15:08,215
We're bringing everything to the
forefront.

259
00:15:08,215 --> 00:15:13,019
We're going to describe everything that is
happening from a deal to deal basis, from

260
00:15:13,019 --> 00:15:17,002
a day to day basis, from a marketing
perspective, from building your brand and

261
00:15:17,002 --> 00:15:22,768
everything in between because that is what
I wanted in an agency.

262
00:15:22,768 --> 00:15:23,973
So I built...

263
00:15:23,973 --> 00:15:28,414
I had the opportunity alongside a
fantastic team and my awesome brother to

264
00:15:28,414 --> 00:15:32,676
be, and now with the help of somebody
who's been in the professional industry

265
00:15:32,676 --> 00:15:37,778
for 25 years doing this at a very high
level, we've had the opportunity to build

266
00:15:37,778 --> 00:15:44,241
something that's not only a marketing
company that can work alongside of fortune

267
00:15:44,241 --> 00:15:46,962
500 businesses across the country.

268
00:15:47,022 --> 00:15:52,709
We also now have a vehicle that empowers,
like Pat said, empowers the athlete.

269
00:15:52,709 --> 00:15:58,253
and takes away all the red tape, all the
red lining and being able to say, Hey, if

270
00:15:58,253 --> 00:16:02,717
you want to educate yourself, if you want
to learn, if you want to grow, not only as

271
00:16:02,717 --> 00:16:09,062
a player, but also as a brand, this is the
perfect place to do it because I, it's

272
00:16:09,062 --> 00:16:09,703
proven.

273
00:16:09,703 --> 00:16:10,763
I've done it myself.

274
00:16:10,763 --> 00:16:14,627
My brother's doing it currently at Penn
State and every athlete that we've come in

275
00:16:14,627 --> 00:16:17,369
contact with has had a positive
experience.

276
00:16:17,369 --> 00:16:21,252
So it's all about gaining that collective
group.

277
00:16:22,077 --> 00:16:25,897
bringing that collective group alongside
to make sure that everyone is moving in

278
00:16:25,897 --> 00:16:27,000
the right direction.

279
00:16:27,150 --> 00:16:32,427
And your brother, we should point out, is
still a wide receiver at Penn State or has

280
00:16:32,427 --> 00:16:33,729
been a wide receiver?

281
00:16:34,261 --> 00:16:38,127
Still a wider seer at Penn State, just had
his first year starting this past year, so

282
00:16:38,127 --> 00:16:41,512
he's looking to hopefully join me at the G
pretty soon.

283
00:16:43,163 --> 00:16:44,225
in the big league.

284
00:16:44,225 --> 00:16:52,495
So a key metric here, Pat, would be how
many athletes have you signed up and what

285
00:16:52,495 --> 00:16:53,296
are you doing with them?

286
00:16:53,296 --> 00:16:54,537
You know, what's happening?

287
00:17:02,742 --> 00:17:04,703
We've scaled up to around 100.

288
00:17:04,923 --> 00:17:06,465
We've scaled back a little bit.

289
00:17:06,465 --> 00:17:10,548
Right now, I think we're settled in
probably around 50 or 60, Sean, right now

290
00:17:10,548 --> 00:17:13,229
that we have keyed in on.

291
00:17:13,993 --> 00:17:14,473
Yep.

292
00:17:14,473 --> 00:17:14,953
Yeah.

293
00:17:14,953 --> 00:17:20,654
And really it's a nice blind Michael of
working with elite, you know, our elite

294
00:17:20,654 --> 00:17:23,295
talent, people that were working on a day
to day basis.

295
00:17:23,295 --> 00:17:26,496
But the beauty is the network can continue
to expand.

296
00:17:26,496 --> 00:17:30,857
And that's really that limitless core
offering, you know, the, the more general

297
00:17:30,857 --> 00:17:35,339
pool group where we have so many
relationships with great agents, great

298
00:17:35,339 --> 00:17:40,680
collectives, great universities, where
they might not be in the limitless direct

299
00:17:40,680 --> 00:17:42,380
elite talent pool.

300
00:17:42,461 --> 00:17:45,768
But we have thousands of athletes in the
network that we're working with on a day

301
00:17:45,768 --> 00:17:48,452
to day basis impacting in a positive
light.

302
00:17:48,814 --> 00:17:54,075
So the collective is a big part of this
and I just learned about it really very

303
00:17:54,075 --> 00:17:58,116
recently despite being a pretty rabid
sports fan.

304
00:17:58,916 --> 00:18:04,658
And I think what clued me to it was I read
a story that said Rick Pitino, the new

305
00:18:04,658 --> 00:18:05,438
coach at St.

306
00:18:05,438 --> 00:18:10,039
John's, the basketball coach, was quote,
spending all of his time raising money for

307
00:18:10,039 --> 00:18:11,319
the collective.

308
00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:14,761
So I'll let either one of you take it.

309
00:18:14,761 --> 00:18:18,526
But what is a collective?

310
00:18:18,526 --> 00:18:19,612
And why should we care?

311
00:18:19,612 --> 00:18:21,117
And why does everyone care?

312
00:18:21,929 --> 00:18:25,470
Yeah, I can fill in the dots there, Pat,
if you don't mind.

313
00:18:25,971 --> 00:18:31,134
Since I was quite literally just there at
the college level dealing alongside of the

314
00:18:31,134 --> 00:18:32,134
collective.

315
00:18:32,155 --> 00:18:37,458
But really the bare bones thought of a
collective is to group all the athletes

316
00:18:37,458 --> 00:18:43,762
into one pool and say, hey, you are
protected under our umbrella.

317
00:18:43,762 --> 00:18:46,523
And there's great collectives out there.

318
00:18:46,523 --> 00:18:48,724
There's ones that are trying to improve.

319
00:18:48,985 --> 00:18:53,507
But all in all, it's about being able to
really put a group licensing agreement

320
00:18:53,507 --> 00:18:59,551
type organization together to be able to
move all the athletes, whether it be men's

321
00:18:59,551 --> 00:19:05,374
sports, women's sports, you name it, to be
able to move them to brands effectively

322
00:19:05,374 --> 00:19:08,516
and easily and also be able to vet
agencies like us.

323
00:19:08,516 --> 00:19:13,179
Obviously, we have nothing to hide and we
are very friendly with a lot of the

324
00:19:13,179 --> 00:19:13,639
collective.

325
00:19:13,639 --> 00:19:16,160
So it's something that we pride ourselves
on.

326
00:19:16,617 --> 00:19:19,959
But really when it comes to working
alongside these collectives, their number

327
00:19:19,959 --> 00:19:25,723
one thing is trying to push the school and
trying to push the motto, the mantra,

328
00:19:25,903 --> 00:19:30,487
specifically if you're talking about Penn
State, it's the success with honor type

329
00:19:30,487 --> 00:19:31,327
group.

330
00:19:31,608 --> 00:19:39,233
The group that is trying to push the whole
deal of what Penn State truly means.

331
00:19:39,434 --> 00:19:43,656
So always trying to help them in any way
that we possibly can.

332
00:19:43,714 --> 00:19:46,656
So just, and maybe you can clarify this a
little bit, Pat.

333
00:19:46,656 --> 00:19:50,139
So the collective raises money
effectively, right?

334
00:19:50,139 --> 00:19:56,805
But raises money for all athletes or just
the upper tier of athletes.

335
00:19:57,206 --> 00:20:01,570
I've read stories about people saying
every lineman is gonna get 60 grand or

336
00:20:01,570 --> 00:20:02,770
something like that.

337
00:20:03,471 --> 00:20:06,353
Is it everyone or is it just the elite?

338
00:20:06,594 --> 00:20:11,896
So each collective has different
philosophies throughout the country.

339
00:20:12,437 --> 00:20:17,480
Not every state is regulated the same way,
not every university collective is run the

340
00:20:17,480 --> 00:20:18,341
same way.

341
00:20:18,341 --> 00:20:26,065
But in essence, yes, the collectives
actually started out as a 501-C3, you

342
00:20:26,065 --> 00:20:28,947
know, it was a not-for-profit.

343
00:20:28,947 --> 00:20:33,709
Yeah, and they started out, guys,
donations were able to be.

344
00:20:33,942 --> 00:20:38,363
tax write-offs, such and such, that
quickly the IRS shut that down after one

345
00:20:38,363 --> 00:20:38,964
year.

346
00:20:38,964 --> 00:20:41,164
We were pretty confident that was going to
happen.

347
00:20:41,665 --> 00:20:45,466
But to answer your questions, they use it
in a lot of different ways.

348
00:20:45,466 --> 00:20:49,868
And it's from what we've seen, it's
proportionate to the sports that bring in

349
00:20:49,868 --> 00:20:52,429
the same, you know, the most income,
right?

350
00:20:52,429 --> 00:20:53,930
The most revenue for the schools.

351
00:20:53,930 --> 00:21:00,113
There's a direct ratio of how much they
turn back around into each program.

352
00:21:00,113 --> 00:21:02,326
But the goal for a collective.

353
00:21:02,326 --> 00:21:05,878
doing it the right way is to sprinkle
something through all of the collegiate

354
00:21:05,878 --> 00:21:08,305
sports, both men and women's.

355
00:21:09,318 --> 00:21:15,839
Yeah, and so, you know, what's interesting
is an athlete like Caitlin Clark, biggest

356
00:21:15,839 --> 00:21:21,681
female college basketball star, maybe the
biggest basketball star right now.

357
00:21:22,901 --> 00:21:29,183
Right, so she's, I think, has a choice and
a similar, you know, not unlike yours,

358
00:21:29,263 --> 00:21:34,244
Sean, you decided to spend the sixth year,
post pandemic year at Penn State.

359
00:21:34,525 --> 00:21:38,505
And I think you got an advanced degree
that way in broadcasting, is that right?

360
00:21:38,885 --> 00:21:39,955
I did, yes.

361
00:21:40,087 --> 00:21:41,908
So, so getting ready for the future.

362
00:21:42,369 --> 00:21:49,297
But, but Caitlin Clark, I, it seems like
she might be able to make more money if

363
00:21:49,297 --> 00:21:51,759
she stays than if she goes.

364
00:21:51,779 --> 00:21:54,261
Is that, is that how you guys read it?

365
00:21:54,681 --> 00:22:00,626
Yeah, so it's a pretty interesting case
study to look at alongside with a lot of

366
00:22:00,626 --> 00:22:04,230
these athletes that are in college right
now because we talk about it always in the

367
00:22:04,230 --> 00:22:04,951
locker room.

368
00:22:04,951 --> 00:22:09,735
You know, my, you can look up my salary
online, you know, the Green Bay Packers

369
00:22:09,735 --> 00:22:13,118
and everybody posted.

370
00:22:13,118 --> 00:22:13,619
Perfect.

371
00:22:13,619 --> 00:22:15,250
I'm glad that you did.

372
00:22:15,250 --> 00:22:18,033
You have a four-year contract, right?

373
00:22:18,395 --> 00:22:22,641
And you're in your second year, but the
NFL being the NFL, you can be cut at any

374
00:22:22,641 --> 00:22:23,421
moment.

375
00:22:23,953 --> 00:22:28,958
Could be traded, could be cut, it could go
a million different ways.

376
00:22:28,958 --> 00:22:29,758
Yes.

377
00:22:31,200 --> 00:22:32,881
Yes, absolutely.

378
00:22:32,881 --> 00:22:34,963
It's a contract until you don't have one.

379
00:22:35,504 --> 00:22:40,008
But in light of Caitlin Clark and
everything that's going on with her, it's

380
00:22:40,008 --> 00:22:42,610
really we talk about all the time in the
locker room.

381
00:22:43,011 --> 00:22:48,736
Guys and girls are taking pay cuts now to
go professional, which is the conversation

382
00:22:48,736 --> 00:22:49,696
itself now.

383
00:22:49,885 --> 00:22:51,025
I can't say the same.

384
00:22:51,025 --> 00:22:54,048
I wasn't taking a pay cut to go back to
Penn State.

385
00:22:54,048 --> 00:22:57,951
I was going back to Penn State to continue
to pursue my dream of playing in the NFL

386
00:22:57,951 --> 00:23:03,816
because at that point, the draft wars and
everybody was saying I was not a contender

387
00:23:03,816 --> 00:23:04,396
to be there.

388
00:23:04,396 --> 00:23:06,658
Now, the Rose Bowl definitely helps.

389
00:23:06,658 --> 00:23:08,480
A good season at Penn State definitely
helped.

390
00:23:08,480 --> 00:23:13,804
So I got to project myself out and be able
to build my portfolio and my resume of why

391
00:23:13,804 --> 00:23:15,305
I should be in the NFL.

392
00:23:15,365 --> 00:23:16,867
So that is one way of looking at it.

393
00:23:16,867 --> 00:23:19,637
But for a girl like Caitlin Clark,

394
00:23:19,637 --> 00:23:22,982
she a hundred percent going to the
professional league would be taking the

395
00:23:22,982 --> 00:23:23,422
pay cuts.

396
00:23:23,422 --> 00:23:27,308
So it is definitely something to watch,
something that everybody as the sports

397
00:23:27,308 --> 00:23:28,790
fans should be looking at.

398
00:23:29,071 --> 00:23:33,017
How are players like that going to handle
that type of pressure?

399
00:23:33,017 --> 00:23:35,800
And it's going to be interesting how it
all plays out.

400
00:23:35,958 --> 00:23:40,845
So Pat, I want to ask you, while we still
have a couple minutes, what kind of deals

401
00:23:40,845 --> 00:23:41,406
have you done?

402
00:23:41,406 --> 00:23:45,252
What are some of the, who are some of the
athletes you're working with on the

403
00:23:45,252 --> 00:23:46,433
marketing side?

404
00:23:47,186 --> 00:23:52,848
Yeah, so you're talking specifically in
NIL or college, you know, we're kind of

405
00:23:52,848 --> 00:23:54,569
F-crap.

406
00:23:54,569 --> 00:23:59,731
No, so we work, we do a lot of stuff with
teams in the Northeast.

407
00:24:00,011 --> 00:24:03,873
We had, we have some players lined up.

408
00:24:03,873 --> 00:24:05,313
They're not signed deals yet.

409
00:24:05,313 --> 00:24:05,973
So

410
00:24:06,186 --> 00:24:09,207
with the Kansas City Chiefs.

411
00:24:09,207 --> 00:24:13,790
We had some contingencies with a couple of
the San Francisco 49ers.

412
00:24:13,790 --> 00:24:16,611
We're big in jumping into hot market
stuff.

413
00:24:16,952 --> 00:24:19,613
That's really a key to success.

414
00:24:19,613 --> 00:24:27,537
A consumer with emotion is a spending
consumer, and we've been very good

415
00:24:27,537 --> 00:24:28,578
monetizing that.

416
00:24:28,578 --> 00:24:33,380
So that's part of really been our bread
and butter on the professional side.

417
00:24:33,741 --> 00:24:35,202
One of the things I did want to...

418
00:24:35,202 --> 00:24:39,123
just circle back to on athletes and people
we're working with.

419
00:24:39,624 --> 00:24:44,267
Some of our top, one of the things I've
been so proud about with Limitless, it's

420
00:24:44,267 --> 00:24:50,110
not so much our quantity right now, it's
the quality of student athletes we're

421
00:24:50,110 --> 00:24:52,731
working with and influencers.

422
00:24:53,071 --> 00:24:59,975
Some of our top revenue generators, one of
them is a lacrosse player in the

423
00:24:59,975 --> 00:25:03,777
Northeast, and one of them is a female
basketball player.

424
00:25:03,777 --> 00:25:04,477
So...

425
00:25:04,510 --> 00:25:06,571
uh, you know, collegiate basketball
player.

426
00:25:06,571 --> 00:25:10,714
So I really like the fact that we've, you
know, we're spread across.

427
00:25:10,714 --> 00:25:13,716
People think NIL all about football,
right?

428
00:25:13,716 --> 00:25:19,079
But the earners and you know, what we've
seen are ones that will, you know, take

429
00:25:19,079 --> 00:25:24,823
the advice and follow the influencer, the
athlete influencer model that Limitless

430
00:25:24,823 --> 00:25:25,864
has really created.

431
00:25:25,864 --> 00:25:29,125
So, you know, that's, that's where I tip
my hat to those guys.

432
00:25:29,766 --> 00:25:35,671
And Sean, I wanted, Pat in a previous
conversation mentioned something called

433
00:25:35,671 --> 00:25:36,753
the quarterback club.

434
00:25:36,753 --> 00:25:41,858
So I'm gonna commit a mortal sin, which is
asking a question I don't know the answer

435
00:25:41,858 --> 00:25:42,558
to.

436
00:25:42,658 --> 00:25:46,261
So is there such a thing and what is it?

437
00:25:47,165 --> 00:25:49,426
Yeah, so the quarterback club was actually
developed.

438
00:25:49,426 --> 00:25:53,569
It was myself, Will Levis, who's the
starter for the Tennessee Titans.

439
00:25:53,810 --> 00:25:57,032
And then a few other guys who were
involved with the group.

440
00:25:57,052 --> 00:26:00,435
But the quarterback club was quite
literally just to bring in great minds,

441
00:26:00,435 --> 00:26:04,237
great speakers to be able to educate some
of the top quarterbacks in the country.

442
00:26:04,578 --> 00:26:11,763
It has now transpired into a venture group
that puts deals together for athletes.

443
00:26:11,823 --> 00:26:13,749
And then we also, alongside...

444
00:26:13,749 --> 00:26:17,911
partner with Limitless NIL to do marketing
alongside these raises.

445
00:26:18,031 --> 00:26:22,775
So it has been something that is going to
be, honestly, in the works as we go, going

446
00:26:22,775 --> 00:26:27,378
to be very, very influential for companies
that we partner with, but also for the

447
00:26:27,378 --> 00:26:29,279
athletes and Limitless as a whole.

448
00:26:29,279 --> 00:26:34,563
So it's a win-win-win across the board, a
great opportunity to educate, bring in

449
00:26:34,563 --> 00:26:39,326
some great networking opportunities to
quarterbacks and also just NFL players in

450
00:26:39,326 --> 00:26:43,568
general, and get them a seat at the table,
because that's one of the things

451
00:26:43,757 --> 00:26:47,020
I would say a hot button topic right now
that is changing.

452
00:26:47,020 --> 00:26:51,525
Before it was a lot more just ownership
and founders just sitting at the table

453
00:26:51,525 --> 00:26:53,026
talking about athletes.

454
00:26:53,026 --> 00:26:57,851
And now there are actual athletes and
influencers moving to the table and being

455
00:26:57,851 --> 00:27:00,013
able to speak on their own behalf.

456
00:27:00,013 --> 00:27:02,655
So that is a, it's a big development.

457
00:27:02,676 --> 00:27:06,099
I would say in the sports industry as a
whole, and it'll only get bigger and

458
00:27:06,099 --> 00:27:07,800
better as we continue.

459
00:27:08,090 --> 00:27:13,300
Isn't that because in at least in part,
maybe large part, because athletes have so

460
00:27:13,300 --> 00:27:16,967
much money now, professional athletes.

461
00:27:17,529 --> 00:27:17,709
I mean.

462
00:27:17,709 --> 00:27:20,930
I would say, yeah, I would say 100%.

463
00:27:20,930 --> 00:27:25,191
There's, you know, the more capital, the
more access to the capital that you have,

464
00:27:25,191 --> 00:27:28,072
the more opportunities that you're going
to find yourself in.

465
00:27:28,072 --> 00:27:32,853
And that is really between college,
professionally and beyond legacy players.

466
00:27:32,893 --> 00:27:40,876
Everybody's looking for that new Tesla,
that new big company, that big private

467
00:27:40,876 --> 00:27:43,493
placement that you could find yourself in.

468
00:27:43,493 --> 00:27:47,418
in a niche that you, you know, a consumer
good or whatever it might be that you use

469
00:27:47,418 --> 00:27:48,640
on a daily basis.

470
00:27:48,640 --> 00:27:52,024
If you're going to use it on a daily
basis, then why not be on the cat table?

471
00:27:52,638 --> 00:27:55,439
Yeah, no, it makes great sense.

472
00:27:55,439 --> 00:27:59,321
I want to remind everyone again, this is
the Accelerator podcast.

473
00:27:59,321 --> 00:28:01,282
I'm Michael Conniff, your host.

474
00:28:01,282 --> 00:28:05,504
We're here with Sean Clifford and Pat
Waters.

475
00:28:05,665 --> 00:28:09,907
Pat and Sean are team group holdings.

476
00:28:09,907 --> 00:28:11,408
Sean is in charge of Limitless.

477
00:28:11,408 --> 00:28:15,790
Pat is in charge of Strategic Sports
Marketing and the Sports Vault.

478
00:28:16,070 --> 00:28:19,332
They've come together recently, as you've
just heard.

479
00:28:19,972 --> 00:28:22,026
And I want to, and I, oh.

480
00:28:22,026 --> 00:28:29,111
I almost forgot to mention, Sean does this
other thing in Green Bay as a quarterback

481
00:28:29,111 --> 00:28:32,153
for the Green Bay Packers, which is super
cool.

482
00:28:32,214 --> 00:28:34,996
So I want to thank you both for being with
us.

483
00:28:34,996 --> 00:28:38,479
It's really been a pleasure and I really
appreciate it.

484
00:28:38,479 --> 00:28:39,740
Thank you so much.

485
00:28:42,723 --> 00:28:47,887
And as I like to say at the end of our
podcast, thanks for watching and remember,

486
00:28:47,887 --> 00:28:50,829
we'll be back with another podcast before
you know it.

487
00:28:50,829 --> 00:28:51,609
Thanks.