A Mission Statement for the Newsletter

Welcome to the NILnomics Newsletter!

A different kind of issue this week. It’s Wednesday, June 4th, and I’m on a flight to Orlando for NACDA’s 2025 conference—the annual mega-event for college athletics administrators.

I wasn’t sure I was going to attend. But after hearing from a few readers and administrators interested in consulting work, I decided to book the trip. Knowing I wouldn't have time for a full-blown data deep dive, but still wanting to keep my weekly publishing streak alive, I thought I'd reflect on the who, what, where, and why of this newsletter.

While on the airplane.

Typing on my phone.

Let’s see how this goes.

A Bit of the Who and a Lot of the Why

I realize I haven’t said much about myself in this newsletter. So here’s a bit of my background, especially as it relates to my interest in college athletics.

I earned my undergraduate degree from Northeastern University in Boston, MA. Like many college students, I juggled a bunch of work-study jobs: setting up events at the student center, working as a nightclub promoter, manning the front desk, even serving as a resident assistant. But one job stood out above the rest.

I was the mascot. Husky. Yeah, this guy:

Northeastern isn’t known for its athletic dominance—it’s more famous for its co-op program and urban campus. But hockey has always been a big deal there, and I loved the sport long before college. Becoming the mascot pulled me even deeper into the athletics world. A few highlights:

• Standing on the sideline when Northeastern (RIP football program) played against Joe Flacco’s Delaware team (which he lost, btw).

• Having a friend get paid to follow me around and stop kids from pulling my tail, keep me hydrated, and snap photos with sorority girls and alumni.

• Traveling, all expenses paid, to the CAA basketball tournament.

That role sparked my interest in college athletics.

Later, I went to Bowling Green State University for my master’s. That’s where I got hooked on #MACtion. I spent weekends at football and hockey games—did you know BGSU won the national hockey title in 1984? Again, I found myself pulled into the rhythms and energy of college sports.

Then came real life. A career in higher education. I worked in financial aid, moved up the ranks, and eventually decided to pursue a PhD. As I explored topics for my dissertation, I stumbled upon a paper linking financial aid and college athletics. It was like a lifeline connecting my career at the time (financial aid) to where I wanted to go (athletics). The final section included suggestions for future research. One idea stood out. I took it.

And five years later (and counting), here I am—knee-deep in college sports finance data.

Eventually, I transitioned out of higher ed. Ten years into a dissertation. Still immersed in a field with no obvious connection to my day job. So why keep at it? Why write a college sports finance newsletter?

Reason one: I want to continue my academic interest in this topic. I’ve invested too much time reading, writing, analyzing, and exploring to just walk away. I'm literally a credentialed expert in this niche—it would be a waste not to use that.

Reason two: I want a public platform to showcase my data analytics skills. During my PhD, I pivoted into a data analyst role in higher education, and now I work as a data analyst in early education. One thing that’s constantly emphasized in the analytics world is the importance of a portfolio—something you can point to and say: "Here's what I can do."

Sure, publishing a dissertation might count. But building an online platform? That felt like the better move. Even if some graphs aren’t perfect. Even if the code is a bit messy. Even if I miss the mark here and there. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take, and I think sharing my work publicly is worth the squeeze.

Reason three: I want to create business opportunities. I’ve devoted 10–20 hours a week to each issue of this newsletter. That’s a real time investment. And while I believe in transparency—you’ll see my code and data posted for free—I also believe this work can create value. That’s part of why I’m attending NACDA: to explore ways this can grow into something sustainable.

The What of It All

Scrolling through past issues of NILnomics on my phone, I’m thinking: what exactly have I done so far?

Here are a few highlights:

• Scraped every Ivy League athletics roster by team

• Assembled data on every Division I ice hockey arena

• Disaggregated Men’s/Women’s College World Series revenue distributions

• Filed public records requests for athletic financials, scraped them, and shared the cleaned data

• Analyzed NCAA EADA data to estimate the impact of roster limits

Each of those analyses used data in novel ways to uncover something new. I still can’t believe no one else tried to estimate the financial impact of the House settlement roster limits—it was all over the news.

So what is this newsletter?

Honestly? It’s more of that.

I listen to podcasts, watch YouTube series, read niche blogs, and scroll endlessly for anything related to college sports finance. If I thought someone else was doing this kind of work from a data-first perspective, I might hesitate to keep going. But I don’t see anyone else in this space doing what I’m doing. And that gives me the confidence to keep pressing forward.

I’m proud of what I’ve built so far. And the best part? There’s so much more to come—some of it more like what you’ve seen, and some of it unpredictable.

Final Thoughts

That’s probably 10 times more personal reflection than you expected from this newsletter. Don’t worry—I’ll be back next week with fresh data, new analysis, and yes, probably some college hockey.

Thanks for reading. If you’re enjoying NILnomics, or have ideas for how I can grow or collaborate, just hit reply—I read every message.

And if you haven’t yet... time to finish that drink. 😃

Greg Chick, PhD

Data Analyst

Bonus picture as proof:

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