University of Kentucky Athletics has renewed and expanded its long-term partnership with Fanatics, extending the agreement through 2038.

Fanatics Licensing Management, which has served as the University’s trademark licensing representative for more than a decade, will continue to oversee the core of the school’s merchandising, including the operation of the UK Team Shop and distribution of licensed apparel through major retailers such as Kroger, Walmart, and Dick’s Sporting Goods.

Fanatics will continue to operate the core of Kentucky’s merchandising business, operating the UK Team Shop and serving as the primary apparel licensee partner, distributing team merchandise across major retailers, including Kroger, Walmart, and Dick’s Sporting Goods, among others.

The more notable shift, however, comes in the NIL space.

As part of the expanded agreement, in a first-of-its-kind agreement, Fanatics is making a “significant” commitment to NIL initiatives for select athletes across all programs and teams, with more high-major schools to follow.

Beginning this spring, Fanatics will roll out a two-pronged marketing strategy for select student-athletes.

UK student-athletes will have the opportunity to launch and curate their own personalized storefronts with team gear they select, fostering a connection with fans who want to support both the individual athlete and the program. In addition, through a more traditional marketing approach, student-athletes will be commissioned to promote product collections across digital e-commerce platforms and brick-and-mortar retail partners.

“NIL in its truest form”, one representative told Kentucky Insider. “Driving retail sales so student-athletes can benefit.”

It goes without saying that this is an opt-in agreement, allowing student-athletes to still pursue NIL deals with third-party merchandisers — such as local brand Kentucky Branded — if they choose. However, a partnership with Fanatics gives athletes the ability to pair their personal brand with official Kentucky branding, which can significantly increase sales potential, and is an option many third-party merchandisers avoid due to the cost of UK marks.

As Kentucky looks to recruit the top athletes, this is also a way to provide above the cap NIL dollars, money exceeding the school’s annual revenue-sharing cap, to build NIL competitive compensation packages. While specific percentage splits are not available, it will be a beneficial figure for the athletes.

“We’re not going to enter into deals that are going to prevent us from being competitive and competing for players on the open market,” a spokesperson said.

On one hand, an athlete’s NIL compensation package can include a projected range of money, incentivized by performance and connection to the fanbase. On the other hand, or in addition to, there can be a set amount of compensation for product promotion.

Given the turbulent landscape of collegiate athletics, it’s important to note that the long-term deal is also designed with flexibility in mind. No numbers are fixed, meaning that figures and percentages will change and incentivize growth.

Furthermore, a lot of this strategy is built post-House settlement, which requires NIL deals to be legitimate business transactions rather than pay-for-play, with the NCAA auditing giant Deloitte hired to vet deals. To be able to lean into an industry leader like Fanatics in that regard is an advantage for the University.

How do we get the best players to want to play for our teams?

That is a question Kentucky Athletics continuously asks itself when evaluating, and that served as a basis for this extended partnership. Extending an already strong relationship, UK has added a sustainable way to deliver legitimate NIL compensation above revenue-sharing limits for years to come, all through one of the largest and most established merchandisers in sports.

After leaving the Wildcats in the offseason via the transfer portal, wide receiver Hardley Gilmore IV has officially returned to Kentucky and practiced with the team on Tuesday, March 3, according to multiple reports.

Gilmore originally committed to the rival Louisville Cardinals, but in true Vince Marrow fashion, he whiffed on the Wildcat transfer, leading the wideout to flip his commitment to the Baylor Bears on Jan. 12.

After officially signing with Baylor, it seemed like that was that. Several of Gilmore’s teammates from the 2024-25 season had transferred out, likely because of the multiple coaching changes. Now, with a true sign of what college sports has come to, the “former” Wildcat is back in Lexington.

Notably, this isn’t the first time that Gilmore changed his mind on where he would continue his football career, transferring to Nebraska in the 2024 offseason and returning back to the Wildcats in the spring of 2025.

He caught 28 balls, raking in 313 yards and a singular touchdown last season and will have two years of eligibility left to his name.

It has officially been an entire week since the college football transfer portal opened on Jan. 2, with teams across the nation scrambling for visits and quick commitments.

Despite his duties as Oregon’s offensive coordinator, which ended in abrupt fashion on Jan. 9 by way of the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers, Will Stein and company have been holding or folding their cards in contention with the nation’s top programs.

According to 247Sports, Kentucky currently holds the No. 14 overall portal class ahead of the 2026 season, consisting of 13 total commitments. Of those, two players are four-star recruits and eleven of them are three-star recruits.

Showing the attention to detail and the connections built so quickly, the Wildcats reached out to Arkansas linebacker Tavion Wallace on Jan. 3, the younger brother of former Kentucky linebacker Trevin Wallace. At one time, the younger Wallace brother was a consensus four-star recruit and was ranked as a top 25 linebacker in the country.

As former Wildcats, led by quarterback Cutter Boley, began to spread their wings and transfer elsewhere, Kentucky remained consistent in its recruiting trail.

During this same time period, the Wildcats hosted the consensus No. 1 overall quarterback in this year’s portal class, Sam Leavitt. Rumors of a hefty NIL package and a modern-era player swap circulated with Boley’s commitment to Arizona State, with reports of Leavitt and Stein watching film until midnight the day he visited Lexington.

Jan. 4 and 5 would remain as marquee days in the Wildcats’ efforts, landing five different players. At the start of the batch was Gardner Webb EDGE Antonio O’Berry, who chose Kentucky over schools such as Ohio State, Georgia and more. The 6-foot-6 threat tallied 10.5 TFLs and seven sacks in the 2025 season.

Commitments started to flood every social media notification inbox, with the Wildcats adding three new guys just several hours apart: Baylor’s interior offensive lineman Coleton Price, LSU’s defensive tackle Ahmad Breaux and Western Carolina cornerback Hasaan Sykes.

Price spent four seasons at Baylor, playing three as a starter and earning a 68.0 overall offensive grade in 2025. Breaux had 19 total tackles last season with half of a sack credited to his name as well. Sykes impresses the most out of this batch, deflecting five passes, recording three interceptions, two sacks and forcing a fumble in last year’s outings.

On the night of the fifth, Stein went and got his quarterback, ending all speculation surrounding Leavitt’s decision. Kenny Minchey, Notre Dame’s backup play caller, flipped his commitment just one day after transferring to Nebraska and decided to become a Wildcat.

Minchey, with an athletic and melodic skill set, spent last year on the Fighting Irish’s bench behind CJ Carr.

Minchey was a four-star recruit out of Hendersonville, Tennessee and has every tool needed to be an elite guy in the SEC.

The fun didn’t stop there, as in the next afternoon, Kentucky would land Oklahoma running back Jovantae Barnes, brining in fire power at a much needed position. Barnes totaled 1,281 yards and 12 touchdowns during his time with the Sooners.

Just an hour before, Kentucky would receive two commitments from SEC foes, acquiring cornerback Aaron Gates from Florida and interior offensive lineman Max Anderson from Tennessee.

With anticipation and optimism shifted to Kentucky’s basketball game against Missouri on Jan. 7, the Wildcats would again bring in more top talent behind the scenes, earning commitments from Purdue’s defensive tackle and Frederick Douglas graduate Jamarrion Harkless, Alabama offensive tackle Olaus Alinen, UAB wide receiver Xavier Daisy and last but certainly not least, Florida’s three-year starting safety Jordan Castell.

To round off the week, Pitt defensive back Jesse Anderson decided he wanted a little bit more blue in his life for his two remaining years of his college journey, committing to Kentucky on Jan. 9.

Stein and his team aren’t done just yet – mind you this is just week one. With Oregon’s 56-22 loss to Indiana in the Peach Bowl, the new coach in the bluegrass state will say his final goodbyes and turn his complete and total attention to the Wildcats.

Kentucky football’s newest chapter is off to a hot start and it’s all gas, no brakes moving forward.