Former Fresno State football player and current radio station owner Chris Pacheco has launched Bulldog Bread, to support Fresno State student athletes with NIL deals. Photo by Ben Hensley

The Bulldog Bread Collective has launched, ushering in a new avenue for athletes at Fresno State to be compensated for their name, image and likeness (NIL).

Spearheaded by ESPN 1430 radio Managing Partner and former NFL and Fresno State football player Chris Pacheco, Bulldog Bread aims to create a pool of funds, through donations and sponsorships, for Fresno State athletes hoping to profit off of their NIL.

In the year following the Supreme Court’s decision allowing college athletes to profit off of their NIL, many of the nation’s most well known college athletic programs have explored a variety of ways to assist their athletes in the pursuit of NIL financial opportunities, including collective organizations.

Despite the name recognition, player recognition and brand recognition of Fresno State, many athletes struggle to make ends meet, with Pacheco adding that one player recently came to him personally, thanking him for helping push for financial support through NIL deals.

Prior to inking that deal, the player had $83 to get him through to the end of the month, Pacheco said.

“We look at starving in college as just ‘part of how it was’ – Why?” Pacheco said, reflecting on his personal experiences as a football player at Fresno State under Jim Sweeney in 1984 and 1985. “A lot of these kids don’t have any parental support; I had a mother. She didn’t have money, but she could bring me food.”

Pacheco added that some of the players on this year’s team, and teams in the past, have struggled with the daily cost of living, despite having little to no resources to fall back on.

He hopes that Bulldog Bread can help to eliminate part of that challenge from the players’ lives.

“It allows for the student athlete to have some cash flow,” said former Bulldog quarterback Kevin Sweeney. “The NCAA and universities make a lot of money off of these athletes, and it’s an opportunity to get some cash in their pockets and get paid for service.”

The collective is a community-driven organization allowing both individuals and businesses to pledge to donate to an investment pool, enabling the organization to provide compensation to student athletes who sign NIL deals.

“It’s basically an opportunity for small businesses, fans, the general public to support these players in their endeavor through their time at Fresno State,” Pacheco said. “For as little as $100 a year, $100 a month — this portal will allow for everybody at every level to support the NIL initiatives that Fresno State needs to be able to compete in the future.”

According to Pacheco, Bulldog Bread is the only collective organization for Fresno State student athletes pursuing NIL deals.

Student athletes will still be able to independently sign NIL contracts with businesses. The collective, however, aims to “even the playing field” between top-earning athletes and athletes with less name recognition.

Students who choose to sign NIL deals, whether independently or through the collective, will still be required to process all details through an NCAA compliance officer at Fresno State. Pacheco, however, believes that the collective would help students understand the “red tape” behind a lot of these deals, with many student athletes signing NIL deals for the very first time.

The collective will also work to educate student athletes about financial literacy, explaining individual marketability and tax implications that are attached to NIL deals.

Sweeny and Pacheco both outlined the social importance of NIL opportunities as well, highlighting their ability to connect the fanbase and community with the student athletes.

The collective also hopes to keep Fresno State competitive with schools in larger conferences, not only on the field, but financially.

Pacheco hopes that a collective organization gives student athletes the best opportunity to maximize their profit from NIL deals.

“At the end of the day, NIL in some of these big schools are just for the star players — they’re the only ones getting any attention because they’re the ones with the name recognition,” he said. “But this is about trying to help every student athlete.”