Boise State is breaking boundaries with trading cards.
Last year, the Boise State football team trading card set made its debut in local Jacksons Food Stores (Jacksons).
A year later, Jacksons and Bronco Sports Properties reached a new multi-year sponsorship agreement.
This new partnership is a one-of-a-kind program that will create limited edition trading cards featuring every Boise State Athletics team and create an opportunity for every Boise State student-athlete to be depicted on a card.
This new partnership makes Boise State the first school in the nation to have every sport represented in a trading card series since the advent of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) in college athletics.
“We were thrilled with Bronco Nation’s overwhelming response to secure the football team trading card sets and support our student-athletes,” President of Jacksons Food Stores Cory Jackson said. “We are proud to expand on this partnership with Boise State Athletics to provide more opportunity for athletes and fans.”
Jacksons released its first set on Feb. 27, while the remainder of the 2023-24 academic year will see a full series of three sets released.
Photo courtesy of Boise State Athletics
The three-set series for the 2023-24 academic year will include every Boise State sport program and will be divided seasonally, with releases in the fall, winter and spring.
The upcoming set includes two unique cards of each men’s and women’s basketball student-athletes and one each from gymnastics and spirit squad, plus sequentially numbered autograph cards of six select student-athletes.
There is also an opportunity for fans to get an autographed card by one of their favorite athletes.
The first set will feature autographed trading cards from Tyson Degenhart, Marcus Shaver Jr. and Naje Smith from men’s basketball; Abby Muse and Mary Kay Naro from women’s basketball; and Adriana Popp from gymnastics.
“I’m super excited to be a part of this opportunity,” Degenhart said. “I’ve always collected trading cards, and to have one as part of a set with all my teammates is something I’m extremely grateful for.”
In 2022, Boise State was nationally recognized among six major NIL programs in the nation. This new and growing program strives to provide value to every eligible student-athlete.
“We could not be more excited to build on this partnership to include both men’s and women’s sport programs,” Boise State Director of Athletics Jeramiah Dickey said. “Our student-athletes work hard and we are proud to be able to recognize all of them with a community partner like Jacksons. Name, image and likeness continues to be a priority for our department, and we are grateful to Bronco Nation for stepping up and supporting these endeavors.”
Regardless of the student-athletes’ individual approaches to NIL opportunities, there seems to be an opportunity for everyone.
Photo courtesy of Boise State Athletics
