South Carolina's Nike Era Begins, With Joyce Edwards and Chloe Kitts in the Spotlight
By faNILy Team ·
July 1 wasn't just the start of year two of revenue sharing. In Columbia, it was also day one of South Carolina's new life as a Nike school.
The Gamecocks' 10-year partnership with Nike officially launched on July 1, according to the school. Nike is now the official supplier of uniforms, footwear, apparel, and equipment for every South Carolina athletics program.
The NIL piece: Blue Ribbon Elite
The part fans will notice most isn't the swoosh on the jerseys. It's the athletes. Five Gamecocks joined Nike's Blue Ribbon Elite program, which South Carolina describes as a group of roughly 80 elite NIL athletes nationwide who get personal brand-building opportunities through social media, appearances, and marketing:
- Joyce Edwards, women's basketball
- Chloe Kitts, women's basketball
- LaNorris Sellers, football
- Nyck Harbor, football
- Dylan Stewart, football
Two of the five come from Dawn Staley's women's basketball program, which says plenty about where the market is heading. Women's college basketball players aren't an afterthought in a deal like this. They're headliners.
Staley's A'ja Wilson connection
Staley, who said she's been a Nike athlete most of her life, tied the move to one of the program's most famous alumni, former Gamecock A'ja Wilson.
"For our Women's Basketball team, only good things have happened when we've partnered with A'ja Wilson." - Dawn Staley
Football coach Shane Beamer said the move has energized players, coaches, recruits, and fans, while athletic director Jeremiah Donati framed it as "more than a change in apparel."
School deal vs. athlete deal: what's the difference?
It's worth separating two things that often get blurred together:
- The school's apparel contract. This is between Nike and the university. It covers what teams wear and use, and it's why every program on campus switches gear.
- Individual NIL relationships. Programs like Blue Ribbon Elite are about specific athletes and their personal brands: their content, their appearances, their name and likeness.
The two can work together, as they do here, but they're not the same thing. An athlete's NIL value belongs to the athlete, and it travels with them.
Why fans should care
For fans, this is another sign that the most visible athletes on campus are being treated like brands in their own right, not just names on a roster. Big companies are betting that people want to follow individual players, not only teams. That's especially true in women's sports, where players like Edwards and Kitts have built loyal followings that extend well beyond game day.
It's also a reminder that school pride and athlete-first opportunities don't have to compete. Fans can wear the school's colors and still follow, engage with, and buy from the individual athletes who make the program worth watching. That combination, fans connecting directly with athletes while the school stays visible, is exactly the space faNILy is being built for.
Expect plenty more of these announcements as apparel brands roll out their NIL rosters ahead of the fall.