After knocking off 5-seed Clemson on Thursday, 12-seed McNeese State is trying to make an extended run in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The Cowboys will be doing so without any household names, save one: student manager Amir “Aura” Khan.
In February, the senior from Lake Charles, Louisiana, posted a video rapping “In & Out” by Lud Foe as he led the team onto the court against Southland Conference rival Texas A&M–Corpus Christi. Ever since, Reed Vial’s phone has been ringing off the hook. As Special Assistant to McNeese State Head Coach Will Wade, he helps the team handle NIL (name, image, likeness) deals.
“I could tell it was going to go viral, but you don’t know when it’s going to be, like, super viral, you know?” Vial told Front Office Sports. Super viral, as in when ESPN and Barstool Sports plaster you across social media. Super viral, as in when major companies start calling you for sponsorship deals, reportedly making Khan the first manager to have standalone NIL deals.
“There’s [a] couple people trying to say, ‘Oh, Kentucky has it.’ Whatever. Kentucky’s managers just get that when they come. These people want this kid.”
According to Vial, it started with restaurant chain Buffalo Wild Wings, which wanted him for the start of the tournament. In the meantime, other deals started coming through. Now, heading into McNeese State’s Saturday matchup with fourth-seeded Purdue, Khan’s NIL deals are in the double-digits:
- Buffalo Wild Wings, which on Thursday posted a video of Khan rapping as he led the team through the tunnel carrying a boombox emblazoned with the company logo
- TickPick, which continued the meme with its own logo on the boombox
- Topps, which released a trading card of Khan
- Insomnia Cookies
- PSD, an underwear company
- Formula Bot, an AI startup
- TurboTax
- Fortnite
- Rock ’Em Socks
- GLD, a chain company
Things have gotten busy enough that Khan has had to turn deals down, according to Vial. Wendy’s reached out, for example, but it conflicted with the Buffalo Wild Wings deals. “We’re not just taking anything and everything,” he said.
Still, things can get even busier for Khan.
According to Vial, he received 135 phone calls on Friday—so many that he didn’t have time to call everyone back because he’s focused on only big deals. DoorDash has reached out about a partnership, as has the producer of the hit series Yellowstone, and Khan is tentatively scheduled to fly out to Chicago to meet with Barstool Sports next week.
“If we win today, I’ve got five more brands I’ve got to call as soon as we get done,” Vial said. “Tylenol, Reese’s. I mean, it’s insane.”
