Charleston Edge Collective launched as College of Charleston's Official NIL program

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The College of Charleston Athletic Department announced the official launch of its new Name, Image, and Likeness initiative on Monday.

It’s called, “The Charleston Edge Collective.”

The company’s CEO Tyler Jones says the goal is to empower College of Charleston student-athletes to maximize their personal brands and capitalize on their talents.

“This Collective is set to provide vital support in the ever-evolving landscape of collegiate athletics, ensuring that Cougar athletes have the tools and opportunities needed for success both on and off the field,” Jones said in a release.

Local attorney and longtime College of Charleston supporter Mark Peper is the founder of the Charleston Edge Collective. He says his passion for the College of Charleston athletics and the city of Charleston is what fueled him to launch this initiative.

“Recruiting student-athletes is not about recruiting guys and girls that can help you win solely on the field,” he said. “It’s about recruiting those that are going to make a difference in our community. That requires money these days.”

He says that is the reality of the changing landscape of college sports and the Charleston Edge Collective is ready for the task.

“These athletes deserve to be paid,” Peper said. “They’re allowed to be paid. Why not step up to the plate and help The College?”

As Peper and The Edge team are looking for business and community partners, he says their job is to educate the community on NIL.

“We really need the community involvement,” Peper said. “If you believe that your business relates well to a certain student-athlete, we are here to serve you. We’ll pair you up, we’ll match you. If you just want to be a part of something special, come on board as a business sponsor.”

His team, along with Charleston Athletics Director Matt Roberts and their school, believe with the help of the collective, they have the opportunity to elevate all 18 sports to becoming national title contenders.

Multiple CofC coaches and athletes were in attendance at Monday’s press conference.

Charleston women’s basketball head coach Robin Harmony says the NIL initiative is a difference maker for her program.

In five seasons with the Cougars, she’s taken the CofC women’s team from last place in the league to finishing third last season.

“We have the preseason player of the year as a sophomore, kids like that,” Harmony said. “We need to do something to keep them at our school.”

Charleston first-year men’s basketball head coach Chris Mack agrees that NIL can play a key role in retaining players.

“For guys that you really feel like are the backbone of your team year, you know, not losing them year after year, so you’re not replacing 8-9 kids, incredibly important,” Mack said.

For other sports like college baseball where very few players are on full scholarship, head coach Chad Holbrook says they want to be one of the trendsetters in their conference for NIL and for college baseball as a whole.

“We’re going to be able to compensate some of our players that are on small scholarships and get them toward the total cost of what they pay to go to school or maybe even surpass that amount of money,” Holbrook said.

For more information on the Charleston Edge Collective, head to their official website.

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