(serene music) (upbeat orchestral music) (upbeat orchestral music) (upbeat orchestral music) Don't.

Mess.

With.

The "What If" hoopsters.

A US soccer fan club with thousands of members worldwide, thanks to a couple Nebraska guys.

Entrepreneurs helping college athletes market name, image, and likeness in different ways.

How art replaced alcohol in this tiny town of Whiteclay.

What if, what if, what if, what if?

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (ball bouncing) Hey there, it's the "What If" sports show.

Most of the stories in this episode of our series on innovation and creativity in Nebraska showcase sports entrepreneurs.

So this seemed like a great place to host the show.

The unique and historic Bee States Ballroom, sometimes called the B Dome.

It's part gym, part reception hall.

So let's get started and switch sports.

(upbeat music) To see how I became an outlaw to learn about a Lincoln group that's a big deal in the soccer world.

Meet Korey and Justin, old friends, US Soccer super fans.

We've both been to over 100 US National Team games.

(upbeat music) [Mike] In 2006 they went to Germany for a men's World Cup match and were disappointed there wasn't much of a supportive group.

So they started one.

[Korey] I did not expect it to take off, I never thought we'd get our first chapter, quite honestly.

(upbeat music) -American Outlaws USA!

-Amen!

Let's go, woo!

[Together] USA, USA!

[Mike] The thing they created, the American Outlaws, well, it took off.

It's the unofficial fan organization for men's and women's US National Team soccer.

Pregame tailgates, rowdy fan sections at matches, watch parties at bars, are all part of the Outlaws experience.

(everyone cheers) It's a nonprofit with more than 200 chapters, in the US and abroad, and more than 20,000 members.

(crowd cheers) American Outlaws, woo, yeah, baby!

[Together] Go USA!

How many people do you have roughly?

We're gonna look at close to 1,500 in the stadium, so we usually get close to that here at our tailgates.

So probably around 1,000.

[Mike] How many different states, do you have any guess?

Yeah, probably 30 to 40?

I need to learn some cheers, all right, give me one basic one.

All right, this is pretty basic.

Okay.

♪ Everywhere we go ♪ ♪ Everywhere we go ♪ ♪ People wanna know ♪ ♪ People wanna know ♪ ♪ Who we are ♪ ♪ Who we are ♪ ♪ So we tell them ♪ ♪ So we tell them ♪ ♪ We are the US ♪ ♪ We are the US ♪ ♪ The mighty mighty US ♪ ♪ The mighty mighty US ♪ (clapping together) [Together] USA!

-All right.

-(everyone cheers) These guys have held other full-time jobs for most of the American Outlaws history.

Donahoo is a highway design engineer, Brunken has a marketing background.

So this was a side-hustle passion project that just kind of grew, which has been really cool and exciting to see, so it's been- And exhausting.

It's been very exhausting.

Okay, well, tell me about yourselves.

(soft music) -How's that for- -(Justin laughs) Can we, can I tell you about him?

[Mike] Sure.

Oh, interesting, that's how we're doing it?

-No, I've- -Okay, let's do it that way.

-All right.

-Tell me about each other.

This is Justin Brunken.

Well, this is Korey Donahoo.

I've known him since we were born.

So our parents were friends.

So we say we've known each other since the womb.

Soccer, band, organizations, everything we've done together.

We were in a band together for five years.

(heavy rock music) He was the one that could do spreadsheets, keep the operations going.

Innovative, competitive, smart, forward-thinking guy.

[Justin] And so really, I don't think American Outlaws would be around and successful if it wasn't for, like, the combination of us two.

[Mike] From the start, they knew a model with chapters in different cities was vital, especially considering US National Soccer is a traveling road show with no regular home stadiums.

Part of the $30-yearly Outlaws membership fee goes back to the members' chapter to help local leadership create their own activities.

At first it was just Lincoln and a couple other places.

Interest in the 2010 Men's World Cup doubled membership in three weeks.

The 2014 Men's World Cup more than doubled membership in two weeks.

That was the the real, "Oh my gosh," moment, "We gotta change big time how we're doing this."

[Justin] Yeah.

We gotta get this out of my basement, basically.

(quirky music and background chatter) (quirky music and background chatter) Am I right?

Perfect job for us retirees.

-You can't get fired.

-It is.

[Mike] They got a space and hired some part-time help, a group that includes family and family friends.

Today we have 410 orders to fill.

-Wow.

-So they get a shirt, and then a swag packet, and then we ship 'em out twice a week.

[Mike] With success comes wanted and unwanted attention.

Donahoo and Brunken never expected their like coaching changes, and pay discrepancies between male and female players, would matter.

Never expected to deal with negative posts and articles about problems at events, like racist or sexist comments attributed to members.

[Justin] Stuff like that happens, and we obviously, somewhat naive that, "Oh no, we can build all this and that's not gonna happen," right?

But then we realized, you know, it was a scale that's not necessarily true, and so we took some of that.

We have to look inward, too, of like, what can we do to make sure we mitigate any of that stuff in the future?

How do we solve that right in the moment?

[Mike] That led to a code of conduct, tools for people to report issues, and consequences for those responsible.

They also created a philanthropy, create opportunities for more youth to play soccer, and a focus on bigger-picture issues like racism.

I think part of being a fan anymore, especially in the soccer world, is bettering your community.

It goes beyond just, like, what's in the stadium and the section.

[Everyone Chanting] Because we support the US, -the US, the US.

-(drumbeat) and that's the way we like it, we like it- [Mike] Marches to the stadium, especially for really big matches, provided the guys who created this with some wow moments.

[Korey] You know, take over the whole street, and people are coming out of their balconies, and they're, all the cars are honking, and everybody's behind you.

Those are the moments that keep you going in a lot of ways, but also remind you that it's a cool thing, for the most part (laughs) that we do.

[Crowd] GO!

USA!

(crowd cheers) ♪ When the saints go marching in ♪ [Justin] We want to bring an experience that's memorable, so that they want to come back, 'cause that could be the only game they get to in two years.

[Gregg] You know, you come out here, and you see the AO sign, and they're just everywhere, and it's a great feeling.

You know, they're invested in what we're doing, they're invested in US soccer.

They support the men's team, the women's team, and it's great to have them out in full force tonight.

Yeah, they're extremely important to us.

And we've appreciated everything that they've done for us and given us.

And the energy they give us is second to none.

(crowd chatter) And nothing brings the energy like the World Cup.

(crowd chatter) [Crowd] I believe that we will win, I believe that we will win, I believe that we will win, I believe that we will win, I believe that we will win!

(screams) (crowd cheers) [Justin] I think that's what we pride ourselves on, and what we strive to do is bring an energy to every game.

(crowd cheers) [Mike] American Outlaws is a name and an attitude.

(crowd cheers) The outlaws of the sports world, who, especially 20 years ago, were the exception, compared to huge fan bases for sports like football and baseball, especially in Nebraska.

Soccer's popularity has grown in the US, and the American Outlaws helped make that happen.

(crowd cheers) Is all this work worth it?

If you look at the bar right now, this is just 1 of 200 bars around the country that are doing something like that, where fans can get together and have moments that they'll remember forever.

(crowd cheers) (dong) My game clearly needs some work, especially if I'm gonna take advantage of new NCAA rules, and market my Name, Image, and Likeness, like college athletes are able to do now.

Some with the help of two different Nebraska companies, one created by a couple of guys who met... because of this.

(cheerful music) This is gonna take a little imagination, but what if an aging hoopster wanted to play college ball and make some money, thanks to new name, image, likeness rules?

I might start by setting up an Opendorse account.

For a student athlete, that's a stretch.

Okay, we'll go with that, all right.

You might have some eligibility left.

-[Mike] Okay.

-So let's go ahead and click profile details.

So this is where you can start to fill in that information about yourself.

Opendorse is a technology company that helps athletes make money.

[Mike] Maybe not me, more for athletes like, fortunately-named football player, the Decoldest Crawford.

(country music) Take it from Decoldest, we'll keep you cool this summer.

♪ SOS ♪ [Mike] Opendorse created a platform and services to help make this happen for Crawford and many others.

Because individuals and businesses can now hire college athletes for lots of things big and small: ads, appearances, autographs, birthday greetings, social media posts.

Athlete pulls out their phone, it says, "This entity would like to pay you this amount to do this thing."

There's a green button and there's a gray button, if you hit the green button, you make money.

And that's as simple as we could ever make it.

[Mike] There's management and tracking of the deal from start to finish, plus tax help and financial education, important for some athletes who've never even had a bank account before.

And that's important to be simple, because athletes have a lot of other things going on in their lives.

[Male Speaker] Now let's learn a little bit about you.

[Mike] About me.

So this is where you can get creative, most times this takes a little while, you want to put a lot of thought into it.

I obviously like food, I like entertainment.

Okay, there's a few things to start with, so...

I can count to 100 Japanese, but I don't think that's a type of thing, so... Next you can fill out some of your athletic information, so if you're a point guard, shooting guard.

I was kind of a small forward, we'll just leave it at that, wasn't on the court long enough to really have a position.

Opendorse started long before NIL.

Husker defensive back, Prince Amukamara, was a first-round NFL draft pick with lots of marketing value, and lots of questions about getting and managing endorsements.

He turned to a couple football friends, who had just started a social media marketing company called Hurrdat.

He says, "Just come out here and be my agent."

I said, "Prince, I'm not gonna be your agent.

I'm not gonna build an agency, but we will build an app," right?

That they can answer these questions you have, "How much am I worth?

How do I make money?

Like, what I have to do?"

And that app became Opendorse.

[Mike] The site project became a new business.

Lawrence and Kunalic sold Hurrdat and grew Opendorse.

They added employees and athletes, developed relationships with pro-sports player associations.

No one else was doing what they were doing, which put Opendorse in a good place, when the NCAA wanted to change rules for college athletes.

(soothing piano) So we were brought into the group that helped, you know, lay the path that would turn into the Name, Image, and Likeness monetization rights, going to every student athlete in the NCAA.

It was a special moment, because here's the thing, they were asking for guidance on something that we had been doing for, at that time, for six, seven years already.

[Mike] Now 90% of their revenue comes from helping college athletes.

If you go to payments, this is where you can attach your bank information, again, similar to Venmo.

And then you can also fill out a W-9.

This is where athletes can go in, see their rate cards, see their estimates for different pricing on everything.

[Mike] I think the best bet for me is going be, "Pitch me anything," 'cause I will do whatever.

(laughs) And my starting price is probably gonna be... Is that too low?

$10 Is our minimum.

(laughs) Okay, I'll do whatever.

-Perfect.

-$10, so... Tax forms in that- [Mike] Here's the Opendorse business model.

They don't make any money from the people who make money using it.

Schools pay subscriptions for Opendorse products to help their athletes and track NIL activity.

Those buying services from an athlete pay a small transaction fee.

None of is taken out of whatever the athlete earns.

(audience cheers) With $40 million of venture capital investments so far, Opendorse is often called one, if not the major player, in this fast growing industry.

(audience cheers) [Lawrence] If we are successful, that means that athletes are successful 10 times over.

And that's ultimately why we started the company.

-(audience cheers) -[Announcer] Touchdown!

[Mike] NIL changed the college sports landscape.

Critics wonder if it's too much too fast.

Kunalic and Lawrence say typical deals are small, helping big stars, but also small sports, small school athletes take advantage of that brief time when their Name, Image, and Likeness has value.

[Lawrence] The athlete needs to be empowered to realize that this moment in time, of this influence, is fleeting.

And we know that all too well.

All we're doing, really, is accelerating how quickly somebody has to understand how to treat themselves as a business, which they would have to do once they graduate anyways.

So when you guys met, did you, was there any thought that was like, "Yeah, someday we're gonna start businesses together."

If you would be a fly on the wall in our dorm room back in Nebraska, you'd say, "These guys are gonna create something together."

(upbeat music) Am I ready?

I think you're ready, let's go ahead and see what your profile looks like.

-That's stunning.

-There we go.

You got all your pictures up at the top.

You got all of your activities that you're willing to do, all of your information about yourself.

I mean, there's gotta be a company out there that really wants someone who's never missed a shot, right?

So who would it be?

That's for you to find out.

(both laugh) Another entrepreneur got started after seeing that not everyone benefited equally in the NIL world.

And today we are joined with Breanna, who will be chatting with us about life as a college athlete.

[Mike] This is one way Teresa Friesen and her startup, SheMate, connect female college athletes to young girls and others who want to learn from them.

An Ask Me Anything Instagram live-chat, featuring University of Miami rower, Breanna Roney, talking to and answering questions from a couple dozen people.

[Breanna] College can be for specialization, but take high school, take your young years, to not burn out and to, like, gain a range.

-So how'd that go?

-Great.

I just, these conversations with athletes are just wonderful, they're wonderful.

[Mike] NIL created an opportunity for Friesen to take her education and background in social work, a focus on inequity, and go a different direction.

So over the years I kept finding myself going, "Okay, how do we take what we're doing, in these kind of individual interactions, in supporting wellness, how do we take a step back and think about how to apply that to people on a broad scale?

Hi Kristen.

[Mike] Start with thoughts of entrepreneurship, and acceptance into an accelerator program.

[Teresa] We have a growing community of athletes who are interested in partnering with us.

[Mike] Learn how women weren't benefiting as much as men in early stages of the NIL world, the SheMate idea was born.

Long jump, we have sprint, we have hurdle.

[Mike] A platform where young girls, parents, coaches, and teams pay to become members, and get connections with college athletes who aren't paid to participate.

Tell me about the business.

Yeah, so this is our platform, and this just gives you an insight into what our business does.

A lot of which includes conversations with athletes.

And let's say you are a track team, you could come into track, you can see all of our track athletes who are here.

And you could say, "Hey, like Kaija, for example, has done an Ask Me Anything with us."

Maybe they saw her work in that space, and they decided they wanted her to be a team mentor for them.

They could make that transaction happen here.

Some athletes make a lot of NIL money.

Big stars, like Alabama quarterback, Bryce Young, have huge endorsement deals.

So far, offers and dollars for female athletes are generally fewer and smaller.

I started talking with athletes across the entire United States.

Not only did I find that women in sports wanted more participation in this space, but they also wanted meaningful work in this space.

So being able to talk with young athletes, who maybe are good, but maybe not, like, "good enough," or you know, quote unquote, in their sport, but just have a passion for hard work.

Being able to maybe tell them my story, and see, you know, try out rowing, and see if that's the [Mike] New Name, Image, and Likeness rules are a work in progress; so is SheMate.

I haven't even played sports since I was in, like, fifth grade.

(both laugh) I just love this for the opportunity of connecting women with these positive female role models, and people that you would otherwise never see.

Where does SheMate go, what's the future?

What do you see looking out a few years?

Yeah, so our broad vision is greater equity.

We are starting with the sports arena, because there's so much excitement, and eagerness, and readiness to support women in sports, and to cheer on the women in sports today.

(audience cheers) While also creating pathways to make the space even better as we move into the future.

(audience cheers) Our last story has nothing to do with sports.

It's about a different tiny village, with a different building, that was once well-known for very different reasons.

And about the people, now using it to create art, jobs, and hope.

(indigenous music) We need to start with history and geography.

For years, Whiteclay has been best known as a tiny village with four liquor stores, selling millions of cans of beer yearly, mostly to the Oglala Lakota, living just north on the Pine Ridge Reservation.

Where alcohol is banned, but widespread alcoholism drives extreme levels of poverty, unemployment, violence, and death.

On Whiteclay streets you'd see people drinking, passed out, sometimes fighting.

There were accounts of rape and murder.

Change came when Nebraska officials forced the beer stores to close in 2017.

(machine whirring) (machine whirring) [Nadine] I'm self-taught in beadwork making moccasins, and the star quilts.

Thread broke.

[Mike] In one of the former beer stores, Nadine Morrison makes and sells her work, alongside other Oglala Lakota creators, who live on the reservation.

These crosses are made with porcupine quails.

Is it okay if I pick some of these up?

-Yeah.

-Okay.

These are sage smudge sticks.

The necklaces, dream catchers, warrior shields, medicine wheels, drums.

[Mike] The Whiteclay maker-space was born from a couple things, including a study that found half the households on the reservation depend on home-based businesses.

Most involved arts or crafts, and getting supplies meant a long drive to the nearest city.

(garage opening) Lawyer entrepreneur, Jon Ruybalid, helped Room we're in right now, what did this used to be?

Well, this was a beer cooler for the Arrowhead Beer Store.

[Mike] Now this room is a supply store, where makers buy things they need.

Everything in the building is about creating jobs.

(soothing indigenous music) What we're trying to do is help Lakota artists and crafters who have natural abilities, or they've been taught by their grandma or whoever, you know, how to make things with, you know, beadwork or leatherwork.

And they really have these skills, but you know, they need resources, they need basic tools, or dremels, or a quilting machine, or sewing machine.

So what we're basically trying to do is provide jobs, opportunities for the Oglala Lakota to help themselves.

[Female Speaker] These are real turquoise.

Oh really?

[Mike] About 10 artist-workers sell here each week.

They pay small fees for space and sales.

[Customer] Thank you.

[Mike] The nonprofit operation is mostly supported by donations.

They hope to grow the number of makers, offer more classes, build an outdoor area.

We're in for the long haul, we don't expect to set the world on fire this year, or next, or whenever, but one artisan-crafter at a time, one household at a time.

They start school and then we have our state fair.

[Mike] Morrison helps Ruybalid run the maker space.

(machine whirring loudly) She's here a lot, because she also makes a lot of star quilts.

Almost completed quilt.

I do two to four star quilts a week, and I actually have, I think about six of them, that need to be done by Friday, quilted.

Do you sketch out the design ahead of time then, and then translate it to this?

Yeah, we have a pattern that we just trace for all the lines and then we just follow it with the needle.

And we're gonna race, and so if I win, what do I get?

(Mike laughs) What do you think the stakes should be?

What do you get if you win?

Probably a camera, about the size that he's on, the one he has.

(dramatic music) Okay, what do I get then?

Some Cheetos.

Some Cheetos.

I don't think that's fair, but I'm pretty confident I'm gonna win, so we'll see.

[Mike] Fire away.

(machine whirs) (synthesized music) (synthesized music) [Justin] How do you feel like you did on that run?

It was kinda slow.

-[Justin] Just to give Mike a shot?

-Yeah.

[Mike] Okay, my turn.

Just don't press any buttons.

Don't press any buttons.

You gotta stay in the lines that are stitched.

Full disclosure, I'm just going over the lines she already made, 'cause I don't wanna ruin her quilt.

3, 2, 1, go!

(synthesized music) And... (synthesized music) I don't feel like this is going well.

(synthesized music) (synthesized music) Well?

I won.

(Mike laughs) So you can just leave the camera and go.

(laughs) (synthesized music) (soothing music) [Mike] There's a more serious side to what happens here, especially the star quilts.

These are important sacred symbols in created and given to celebrate birth, graduations, and weddings, and honor those who've died.

Many, many more, since creations have been because of deaths in her community.

(soothing music) [Nadine] For me it was therapeutic, and I feel like it kinda helped people in our community, because I would listen to their stories.

Some of them were tragic, and I would go home, and I'd cry and pray for them.

(soothing indigenous music) [Mike] Closing liquor stores and creating a maker-space hasn't ended alcoholism on the reservation, but it has provided opportunity and hope.

It helps me to feel much better about myself, knowing I can come somewhere where we're safe, no alcohol, and we could do our jewelry, beadwork, and make some money on the side for our families.

The people are struggling, and I wish more of 'em would learn more of the art-side of things because it helps.

[Mike] Morrison also wants to inspire a younger generation of Oglala Lakota, to create with their hands like their ancestors.

So what are you working on?

The background of my painting.

[Mike] What's it gonna be?

A cherry blossom tree with a sunset in the background.

[Mike] So tell me about art, and what you think that can do for your generation of Lakota.

I feel like it's a good way to express ourselves in what we want to do.

It could be a distraction for if anything's going on, and you just need to get away.

(soothing wood flute music) [Mike] Art over alcohol is a social media hashtag here, and a philosophy.

So what sort of a statement does it make, that in this place that used to sell so much beer, that you're now making the things you make?

[Nadine] I think it's just really amazing that we could turn a bar into a place where we can create.

How's that make you feel?

Makes me feel happy.

Is there an Oglala Lakota word for that?

I'm sure there's other words, but (foreign language), very good.

[Mike] How do you feel like I did on that run?

(soothing indigenous music) (upbeat rock music) Here's a fun fact, the guy who designed and built this place in the 1930s was a self-taught architect, Bee resident, Vladimir Slobotka.

You'll learn a little bit about him and more about the Bee States Ballroom on our website.

There, you can also watch all of our stories, our episodes, and our innovator insights educational segments.

Plus learn about the Nebraska composers, whose original music you've been hearing in all of our stories.

And check us out on social media, at #whatifnebraska.

Thanks for watching this episode of "What If."

(upbeat rock music) That'll work.

(upbeat music) How's it going, Emily?

Good, getting my steps.

(wind gusts) It's cold.

Help -Light!

-(ball bounces loudly) This is gonna be one where my pants ripped.

Thanks for watching this episode of "What If."

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