The Georgetown Hoyas have announced a new partnership with Altius Sports Partners (Altius) to strengthen the Hoyas name, image, and likeness (NIL) program. The welcome announcement allows the “Altius team [to] provide Hoya coaches and staff with educational workshops and resources targeting areas such as group licensing, engaging external stakeholders and recruiting” and “Altius will also assist in identifying and advising on strategies to support the school’s student-athletes across all varsity sports.”

Altius also works with Marquette (announced last week) and Villanova (announced March 7th), as well as Arizona, Clemson, Duke, Georgia, Georgetown, Indiana, LSU, Miami, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Northwestern, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Penn State, Purdue, South Carolina, USC, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

Altius appears to be a consulting group focused on education and developing systems and procedures. Said another way, there is no evidence of Altius directly participating in NIL deals. One key area that Altius appears to help grow is social media and branding, which Georgetown can certainly improve. Still, Altius might be able to help cultivate and educate potential sponsors as part of the stakeholder education strategy.

Overall, this seems like a solid investment for Georgetown to move into NIL—even with rumors of NCAA starting investigations into NIL and expectations of BIG EAST Commissioner Val Ackerman joining the task force.

Sports Business Journal reported in April that Altius has “grown [its] roster to nearly 25 schools, almost all of which are in Power Five conferences, that pay $100,000 to $120,000 annually.” Such a price could potentially pay serious dividends for student athletes.

Moreover, this new partnership appears to facilitate “expanding and further developing the department’s existing NIL platform, The Blueprint, aimed at preparing Hoya student-athletes to leverage their respective NIL.” Of course, there is still plenty of work ahead for Georgetown and NIL.

Here is the press release from GUHoyas:

Georgetown Athletics Partners with Altius Sports to Bolster NIL Program

WASHINGTON – The Georgetown University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has announced a partnership with NIL advisory and education firm, Altius Sports Partners (Altius) to strengthen its NIL program. The best-in-class Altius NIL launch platform provides strategic guidance, consultation and educational support to enhance NIL policy and initiatives benefitting all Hoya stakeholders.

“Georgetown is committed to providing the most progressive framework possible in this evolving NIL landscape. We believe this alliance with Altius Sports Partners will present our student-athletes with comprehensive tools and resources to develop their name, image and likeness in an impactful way,” said Lee Reed, Francis X. Rienzo Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at Georgetown University. “Altius is on the forefront of the industry and will utilize its expertise to educate our entire athletics department on emerging opportunities in order to thrive in this new era of intercollegiate athletics.”

The partnership allows Georgetown to lead in the rapidly changing environment. The Altius team will provide Hoya coaches and staff with educational workshops and resources targeting areas such as group licensing, engaging external stakeholders and recruiting. Altius will also assist in identifying and advising on strategies to support the school’s student-athletes across all varsity sports.

A program known for both academic and athletic distinction, Georgetown has produced 918 All-Americans across men’s and women’s sports and has compiled 115 BIG EAST Regular Season and Tournament Championships including, most recently, the 2022 Men’s Lacrosse BIG EAST Championship.

Altius – an official partner of leading collegiate athletics departments and sports properties – specializes in developing and managing programs around NIL. Through its expertise, services and intellectual resources, the firm’s comprehensive approach fuels strategic vision, planning and collaboration to ensure that all participants can navigate change and succeed in the exciting new collegiate landscape.

“Georgetown, which has a history of iconic athletes and programs, is committed to building on that legacy through the continual development of education, strategy, and resources around NIL. We are excited about partnering with the Hoyas in the creation of sustainable programs that will ensure success and establish leadership as collegiate athletics continues to evolve,” said Altius Sports Vice President, Collegiate Partnerships Andrew Donovan.

Altius will play a role in expanding and further developing the department’s existing NIL platform, The Blueprint, aimed at preparing Hoya student-athletes to leverage their respective NIL.

Backed by operational leadership and a best-in-class client services team, the cross-disciplinary network of partners and advisory team members at Altius includes:

• Oliver Luck (Chairman, Altius Sports), sports business leader and former Commissioner of the XFL, EVP for Regulatory Affairs and Strategic Partnerships for the NCAA, and Athletic Director at West Virginia.
• John Entz, 14-time Emmy winner and former President of Production at Fox Sports, SVP at MLB Network and producer at ESPN.
• Gabe Feldman, Director of the Tulane Sports Law Program, Associate Provost for NCAA Compliance and Co-Director of Tulane Center for Sport.
• Renie Anderson, CRO and EVP, Partnerships at the NFL.
• David Carter, Executive Director of the USC Sports Business Institute, and a professor of sports business at USC’s Marshall School of Business.
• Jené Elzie, former Pac-12 athlete and current Chief Growth Officer for Athletes First Partners, sister company of Athletes First, the nation’s largest NFL talent agency.
• Michael O’Hara Lynch, former global head of sponsorship marketing at Visa, Inc. and global head of consulting at Nielson Sports, currently partner in 3 Emerald Marketing.
• Jessica Mendoza, former Pac-12 athlete and Olympic gold medalist is a broadcaster for ESPN.
• Kenneth Shropshire, CEO of the Global Sport Institute, and professor at Arizona State.
• Malcolm Turner, sports business executive and former Vice Chancellor and Athletics Director at Vanderbilt and President of the NBA G League.

About Altius Sports Partners

Altius is a leading firm that delivers consulting, strategic planning, compliance support and education to its clients. An official partner of leading collegiate athletic departments and sports properties, Altius provides strategic solutions on topics ranging from NIL to the shifting landscape of employment and media rights within college athletics. The firm currently represents athletics departments at Arizona, Clemson, Duke, Georgia, Georgetown, Indiana, LSU, Marquette, Miami, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Northwestern, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Penn State, Purdue, South Carolina, USC, Tennessee, Texas, Villanova, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. The firm has also partnered with Women Leaders in College Sports. Providing all stakeholders – athletics departments, coaches, and college athletes – with resources they need to thrive in the new age of college athletics, Altius leverages its deep reservoir of sports business sophistication to help those impacted to prepare and excel. We have built a team of cross-disciplinary leaders to reach higher levels of education, higher access to opportunities and higher standards of excellence.