Welcome to the first edition of Spotlight Insights, my new weekly blog series here at Spotlight Creative Solutions. Each day on LinkedIn, I’m sharing ideas, sparking conversations, and exploring trends around creative strategy in the college athletics space, but those insights can quickly disappear into the daily feed. So, to keep all that good stuff in one place (and make sure it’s easy to reference later), Think of this as your weekly dose of creative inspiration, strategic thinking, and maybe even some ideas worth stealing for your own athletic department.
Why am I doing this? Because great conversations and valuable insights shouldn’t disappear in a social media feed. I want Spotlight Insights to become a resource you can return to anytime, whether you’re refining your creative approach, trying to level-up your career, or looking for fresh ideas to win in college athletics.
Why College Athletics Social Media Should Prioritize Recruits Over Fans
Most college athletic departments make the same mistake — they prioritize content for fans instead of recruits.
The best social media teams build content first for recruits because if it resonates with them, it will also engage fans.
Clemson, Ohio State, and Texas (among others) have proven that storytelling focused on recruits creates stronger brand identity and drives fan engagement. Social isn’t just entertainment—it’s a recruiting tool.
How NIL is Changing the Role of College Athletics Creatives
The role of an athletic department is bigger than wins and losses.
Athletics is now a platform that elevates student-athletes and the university at the same time. That’s why NIL isn’t just about deals—it’s about helping athletes build their brands in a way that also strengthens the school’s identity.
The best programs are treating NIL as a storytelling and brand-building opportunity, not just a compliance process.
Athletic departments that figure out how to support their athletes’ personal brands while reinforcing their own identity will win in this space.
Why Behind-the-Scenes Content Outperforms Polished Posts
The strongest brands aren’t just reacting to the moment, they’re building a connection that lasts. That connection comes from access.
Brands should be asking:
Are we showing the real, inside experience?
Are we creating content that makes fans and customers feel like they’re part of something bigger?
Are we reinforcing the values and culture that make our brand unique?
The best brands don’t just create content for their community — they create it with them.
How I’d Structure a College Athletics Creative Team to Win in 2025
An athletic department’s external strategy shouldn’t be built just to keep up, it should be built to lead.
Too many schools’ expectations don’t match the investment in to their external teams. There is championship level expectations out of their content, but they understaff and underfund the creative operation.
The best-run departments structure external teams like an in-house agency—built for efficiency, adaptability, and long-term brand building.
Brand-first content strategy → Not just social, but full storytelling.
Recruiting & NIL integration → Social media isn’t separate from recruiting; it’s part of it.
Community engagement & donor relations → Athletics is bigger than what happens on the field.
It’s SXSW week in Austin, Texas. The city is alive. So cool to see the business, music, movie and tech world descend on Austin. I stopped over to Bakery Agency’s Sports & Global Culture Conference on Saturday morning where pro-sports execs and players, trend-defining brand marketers and cultural experts will discuss 2026, the World Cup, the progression of women’s sports, and much more.
Notes I wrote down…
- Fans don’t just watch games, they talk about them as they’re happening
- Nike has shifted back to more impact on marketing instead of what was easily measurable
- One engagement on a brand deal can lead to a multi-year partnership?
- Who are you trying to reach? Who do they follow? The team or the player? Brands want to work with the correct answer to that question
- It’s expensive to do media deals, but it puts brands right in front of who they want attention from
- Still Austin hosted an influencer party at their distillery and also invited them to Texas Football games instead of paying them for brand exposure on a budget
Follow me on LinkedIn to get more daily. Do you have thoughts or topics you’d love to see covered? Drop a comment below or reach out directly—let’s keep the conversation going!
Clay Bollinger 
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