Jamie Morris discusses Stadium And Main collective, NIL at Michigan, expectations for football season
Michigan football legend Jamie Morris, a two-time All-Big Ten and many-time program record holder running back from 1984-87, runs the Stadium And Main collective. This weekend, the NIL organization is hosting a slew of Michigan athletes from across several different sports at the Ann Arbor Art Fair in front of the Brown Jug Restaurant. The Wolverines are meeting with fans and raising awareness for organ and bone marrow donation.
TheWolverine.com caught up with Morris Friday to discuss the event, his collective, NIL at Michigan and the upcoming football season. Read our Q&A below.
Q&A with Jamie Morris
The Wolverine: What is the purpose of this event with Michigan student athletes at the Ann Arbor Art Fair?
Morris: We’re an NIL collective — nonprofit NIL — and we’re out here helping all the student athletes in bringing them out here. They’re working to make people aware of the NIL collectives that are around in the Ann Arbor area. We’ve got all the sports — we’ve got football, both women’s and men’s basketball, we’ve got soccer, hockey, wrestling. We’ve got an eclectic of all sports right now, which shows you we’re trying to pierce the market and bring reality to the NIL situation. Most people get put off — ’you’re just trying to pay the athletes.’ No, we’re not. Meet our athletes, get the opportunity to have a conversation with them.
The Wolverine: I just overheard one fan telling one of your Michigan athletes that it’s easier to root for people you know. Is that one of the main goals, to connect them with the fans?
Morris: Exactly. Letting them be out in a public setting like this, it’s an opportunity for them to be face-to-face with fans. The student athletes get to meet the neighbors and the people that come and see them perform each and every game.
The Wolverine: And the Ann Arbor Art Fair was a perfect venue?
Morris: It’s been great. We even get Ohio State fans and Michigan State fans and different people like that, so it’s been great.
The Wolverine: How much do you love the Brown Jug, and why did you choose this as the place to post up?
Morris: I love the Brown Jug. We’re outside the Brown Jug because it’s a place a lot of the student athletes are familiar with. A lot of the student athletes come here and eat at the Brown Jug. It’s familiar. It’s a perfect place to have it in front, and it’s a focal point, right there at the crossroads.
The Wolverine: From our view, it seems as if Stadium And Main is focused on working with Michigan athletes from many sports. Is that accurate?
Morris: Yes, our main focus is to make sure everybody participates in the NIL collective. That’s what it’s made for. It’s not just for two sports. It’s made for all the sports. The one thing that we’re trying to do is bring awareness. That’s why we’re out here today. We’ll be out here Saturday, we were out here yesterday, barring the tropical storm that we had. But it was awesome, and the kids came right back — the football players and basketball players came right back. So it was great in getting everybody a chance to talk to everyone. It was awesome.
The Wolverine: How would you describe where your collective is at right now as you push forward?
Morris: We’re still pushing forward, we’re still creating awareness, making everybody aware and different things like that. I think the best thing for us is that we’re still building.
The Wolverine: What has the support been like from the Michigan athletic department?
Morris: They have endorsed us. They’re very friendly. When we ask questions, they’re always making sure that we’re having enough access to the student athletes and stuff like that. So I can’t complain about what’s going on at the university. I feel like the athletic department is doing their job, as far as they see it. As far as they see it, they’re doing their job.
The Wolverine: I have to ask, what are your expectations for the Michigan football season?
Morris: I agree with most pundits — this is the most talented team Jim Harbaugh has had. I agree with what he said, I agree with what the pundits have said. They should do well, barring injuries and things that happen, acts of God. Look, they should do what they did a year ago, even better.
This article was originally published on TheWolverine.com