Old Well Management aims to create NIL opportunities for UNC athletes

Drake Powell has his own pasta.

The Town Hall Grill, a neighborhood-focused restaurant in Chapel Hill, serves “Drake Powell's Cajun Pasta” — a featured menu item crafted by and named after the first-year guard.

Partnerships like these display the possibilities that the new college landscape provides, with the assistance of organizations such as Old Well Management. 

In August 2024, Carolina Athletics launched Carolina NIL, the comprehensive collective support system of name, image and likeness for UNC's athletes, which includes Old Well Management. It consolidated and rebranded the Secondary Break Club and Heels4Life — former representatives of basketball and football NIL, respectively — under one umbrella. The organization now represents all 28 varsity sports. 

“We're there to communicate with local, regional and national brands about the power and influence of associating with UNC athletes,” Kevin Rice, executive director of Old Well Management, said.

Debuting this academic year, Old Well Management connects UNC athletes with local and national businesses to facilitate NIL deals. The branch offers reciprocal success for companies and players by emphasizing the shared appreciation of the Tar Heel community.

Old Well Management works alongside the Rams Club and the North Carolina Hall of Fame, two additional Carolina NIL divisions that market collegiate athletes.

So far, the organization has brokered deals for UNC junior guard Seth Trimble with Powerade and sophomore guard Elliot Cadeau with Marriott Hotels. It also arranges autograph sessions, meet and greets and apparel sales.

“The better your school is at creating and providing those third-party opportunities to student-athletes, the better your competitive advantage will be in recruiting,” Rice said.

Rice said he believes Old Well Management has the ability to be flexible and adaptable to the ever-changing landscape in college athletics.

Rice understands how vital his branch is in upholding UNC’s athletic standard since the NCAA's NIL policy went into effect on July 1, 2021.

That said, Old Well Management's efforts range far beyond landing marquee NIL deals. The organization is invested in its ability to connect athletes and businesses, which are often local. 

“Whether they're ultra-local on Franklin Street, in the Triangle or more regional/national focus, [we ask] what may they be looking for from student-athletes and how can we best provide that,” Rice said, later adding, “We've got 28 sports, and there's a way to be involved in NIL at basically every budgetary range from a business perspective.”

UNC teaching assistant professor in sports administration Wayne McDonnell said he believes UNC athletes are in good hands, even with the NIL landscape often taking away the personal touch as athletes earn profit for name, image and likeness. 

McDonnell said there is a common misconception that people think NIL solely consists of mega deals with major national or international brands.

“Those are wonderful,” McDonnell said. “But there's something special here in Chapel Hill that you can tap into.”

That special something McDonnell referred to is the consistent originality of UNC's athletes, on and off the court. He said he believes that NIL deals are about an athletes backstory, dreams and personality. 

“Old Well Management is uniquely positioned because they have their finger on the pulse of the culture of North Carolina," McDonell said. 

On the surface, Old Well Management lands players NIL deals at UNC. But behind the scenes, the organization pushes to integrate personality, community and marketability in agreements between all sports and wide-ranging businesses.

For Powell, that's crafting his own pasta and forging a relationship with the Chapel Hill community. It's deals like these that Old Well Management is able to construct. 

“It's been what we love to do. We love Carolina. We love [the] Tar Heels,” David Sadeghi, owner of Town Hall Grill, said. He later said, “We just get to know them and develop a relationship.”

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