How NFL-bound Luther Burden III ushered in the Missouri Tigers’ new era of NIL
Inside the Mizzou South End Zone Facility, bags of chips sit on a table during recruiting visits. Printed on the front of each is a picture of wide receiver Luther Burden III, arms flexed, jaw set and a football clutched in his gloved hands.
The gold bag contrasts with his white No. 3 jersey, a red honey BBQ flavor tag and the bold lettering of “Red Hot Riplets.”
Burden’s name crowns the top, his signature also printed across his chest. The image, in addition to selling a snack, is a symbol of how Burden, one of college football’s top recruits in 2022, became the face of Missouri’s NIL movement.
That fall, the St. Louis product became one of the first college athletes in the country to launch a branded snack product. The chips, created in partnership with Old Vienna and distributed by Schnucks, debuted just as NIL legislation began reshaping the college sports economy.
Today, Mizzou sets those chips out for top recruits as proof that this is a place they can build a brand from the moment they arrive.
Now, Burden is preparing for his next leap. After three years with the Tigers, the wideout is projected to be a first- or second-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. As he moves on from college football, his impact in his home state and Mizzou’s broader NIL landscape continues to shape how the Tigers can recruit and retain student-athletes.
A local commitment, a statewide shift
In a St. Louis gym in October 2021, Burden stood behind a table lined with three hats: Missouri, Georgia and Alabama. He picked up the Georgia and Alabama caps, studying both of them, then cracked a smile as he tossed them to the floor.
Only the Mizzou hat remained.
“Big recruits in St. Louis, they all go places like the Georgias, the Alabamas,” he said after he fastened the Mizzou cap on his head. “I just want to start a chain here in St. Louis for the younger people with talent under me.”
At the time, Burden was the top-ranked wide receiver in the country and one of the most sought-after recruits in recent Mizzou football history. His decision to stay close to home came at a pivotal moment for both the program and college athletics as a whole.
In July 2021, the NCAA suspended its longstanding rules barring athletes from profiting off their name, image and likeness. The change opened the door for endorsements and business opportunities at a scale never before seen in college sports. With no federal framework in place, states began crafting their own NIL legislation. Those that moved quickly gained an edge in recruiting.
Missouri was among the most aggressive. After passing its first NIL law in 2021, the state has since expanded it twice. A key provision passed in August 2023 allowed high school athletes to begin earning NIL compensation the moment they signed with an in-state program. For lawmakers like state representative and former Mizzou offensive lineman Kurtis Gregory, the goal was clear — keep top-tier talent from leaving the state. Gregory said Missouri’s NIL law was crafted with players like Burden in mind and that the Mizzou receiver’s early success proved how the system could work at scale.
“I just wanted to make sure we could keep that talent inside of the state of Missouri. … Luther Burden was critical to that,” Gregory said.
For Burden, the decision wasn’t solely about football. It was about building a legacy and becoming the face of something new.
“It was a watershed moment,” said Brad Larrondo, CEO of Every True Tiger, Mizzou’s NIL collective. “A premier athlete right there in your home state can be convinced to stay home, take a program to a different level and benefit from the true meaning of NIL.”
That vision took shape quickly, starting with a bag of chips.
Creating a new kind of playbook
In partnership with St. Louis’ Old Vienna and Demetrious Johnson, a former Mizzou and NFL player and Burden’s agent before he passed away, the concept was developed by product strategist Ken Dubinsky. “Luther Burden’s Red Hot Riplets” debuted during Burden’s freshman season.
“We decided to do a new version specifically for Luther,” Dubinsky said. “I remember the day that we gave him the chips to try, the smile on his face … he just really liked them.”
The deal was one of the first of its kind: a freshman college football player launching a retail product that fans could buy off the shelf. Burden had approval over the flavor and the branding. From the beginning, it was structured like a true business partnership, extending past an endorsement to a brand-building play.
“It was a very real marketing evaluation,” Larrondo said. “Luther had to look at the deal with his people and say, ‘Does this make sense for me to do?’”
The chip wasn’t designed to be a one-and-done deal. It was designed to be a blueprint, a launching point.
“He’s not retiring from the chip money,” Larrondo said. “But it helped build his brand as he came into Mizzou and likely led to other NIL deals.”
Burden has since landed deals with Nautica, Kane Footwear, Commerce Bank and Imo’s Pizza, to name a few. His latest partnership is with Under Armour, a deal announced by the brand April 14.
The chip deal that started it all took off regionally, and soon, other brands and businesses wanted in. For Every True Tiger, the chip deal became proof that NIL at Mizzou could be creative and scalable.
After Burden’s product hit the shelves, other opportunities followed. Schnucks saw the response and began working with Every True Tiger to launch additional athlete-branded items, such as ice cream, coffee, pizza and candy.
Soon, those products began to feature athletes from other sports, including gymnastics, volleyball, baseball and wrestling. MU athletes like Tamar Bates, Keegan O’Toole, Noah Surtin and Maya Sands have all been featured in NIL product lines with their name and image appearing on various items sold in the food aisles of local Schnucks stores.
“It allowed us to create another product stream,” Larrondo said. “It opened up an opportunity for us to really say, ‘This is an example of how it can work.’”
The chip bag transitioned from an endorsement to a recruiting tool. Every True Tiger began setting the bags out on display during visits, an unspoken pitch to prospects showing what might be possible if they chose to come to Missouri.
“The prestige of one of their players having his own chip ... I think that’s something that they show in their recruiting,” Dubinsky said. “Like, this is the place you can make that happen.”
As Missouri’s NIL infrastructure became more organized, it also became more targeted. Businesses interested in partnering with student-athletes were matched with brand ambassadors based on personality, values and audience, not just athletic performance.
Athletes now had the tools to learn how to present themselves professionally, both online and in contract negotiations.
The success of Burden’s chip deal laid the groundwork for a system that allowed Mizzou athletes to earn money beyond traditional sponsorships. At Mizzou, NIL compensation began to include structured opportunities that extended through the season.
The deal showed that NIL could be done differently at Mizzou. It could be authentic. It could be strategic. And most importantly, it could work.
From Burden’s blueprint to NIL machine
As Burden’s brand grew, so did the infrastructure around him. Every True Tiger evolved in tandem with the state’s NIL legislation, shifting from a nonprofit focused on charitable partnerships to a fully operational marketing agency.
Some of that shift included developing a tier-based “Q Score” system, which ranks athletes by their market value, social media reach and potential for long-term brand engagement. These internal scores help the agency identify which opportunities best fit each athlete.
Part of the process is associating keywords with players to align them with the values certain brands are looking for in partnerships. For Burden, Larrondo described his descriptors as charismatic and competitive.
”He made a commitment to help take Mizzou to another level,” Larrondo said. “I think when you’ve got that inherent charisma, that you can go and do some of these outside marketing deals ... it’s not natural for a lot of people, and I think he has some natural charisma with it.”
Through this structure, athletes sign contracts and are paid monthly to promote university aligned brands. In return, they post on social media, make public appearances and participate in other commercial work. Each deal includes responsibilities, tax requirements and deliverables, turning NIL into a legitimate business experience as a brand ambassador for Mizzou.
Athletes also receive passive income through a group licensing program that allows Mizzou to sell merchandise, such as jerseys and apparel, featuring their name and number. Each athlete earns a percentage of the sales, with some reportedly receiving a higher cut than professionals in leagues like the NFL and NBA.
“What are we outlining in the contract? You are an independent contractor that has a scope of work. There’s confidentiality in it,” Larrondo said. “Here’s the schedule you’re going to get paid on. If you don’t do the activities … you don’t get paid. It’s like the real world.”
The chip deal helped establish the model. It showed companies what local partnerships could look like and gave athletes a roadmap for building their own brands.
“I really do think when you’ve got somebody like Luther, it allowed us then to create another product (and) a stream of things,” Larrondo said.
Since then, Every True Tiger has helped expand athlete partnerships across sports, connecting players with businesses through storytelling and a brand-first approach. And for many recruits walking into a Mizzou facility for the first time, the first brand they encounter isn’t Nike or Adidas. It’s Burden’s face on a bag of chips.
Missouri’s NIL playbook has grown far beyond snacks. Along with Burden’s NIL packages, other Mizzou football players have accrued sizable deals. Quarterback Brady Cook reportedly earned approximately $1.2 million through NIL as of October 2024. Penn State transfer Beau Pribula arrived at Mizzou with a reported $1.5 million package.
Missouri’s strategy has evolved beyond branding to become a recruiting and retention tool. The state’s NIL strategy could soon take on even greater importance.
A $2.8 billion settlement in the House v. NCAA case, now under final review in federal court, would allow schools to share revenue directly with student-athletes and eliminate scholarship caps. While the agreement has received preliminary approval, a final ruling is still pending.
Mizzou, anticipating the shift, has already raised ticket prices and positioned Every True Tiger to handle future revenue-sharing obligations in addition to brand partnerships. But as college sports prepares for yet another transformation, Missouri already has something others are still building.
As Burden prepares for the next step in the pros, he leaves behind a legacy as the Tiger that helped further Mizzou’s football program trajectory.
And for Missouri, it all started with one player who stayed home — and a bag of Red Hot Riplets.
Copyright 2025 Columbia Missourian
This story was originally published April 22, 2025 at 11:03 AM.