Beyond the Deals: Student-Athlete Identity, Development, and NIL With 42U’s Stephen Bienko

In this episode of Highway to NIL, Troutman Pepper Locke attorneys Cal Stein and Chris Brolley are joined by 42U CEO and former Division I student-athlete Stephen Bienko to discuss how NIL is reshaping college sports from the inside out. Stephen explains how 42U helps athletes understand their identity, decision-making, and long-term goals rather than chasing one-off NIL deals. The conversation explores how Power Four and mid-major programs are building NIL infrastructures, why women’s and Olympic sports may offer the greatest growth opportunity, how student-athlete expectations have evolved since the early days of NIL, and how regulatory and compliance uncertainty is affecting administrators and athletes alike.

Key Topics Include:

• Stephen’s athletic background, as well as the founding story and core mission of 42U (1:39)
• How 42U uses psychological assessments to focus on identity, decision-making, and long-term development, not just NIL transactions (5:40)
• Trends in internal NIL infrastructures (7:15)
• Differences in NIL approach between Power Four programs and mid-major/smaller schools (10:23)
• Conference- and sport-specific dynamics in NIL, and the rising commercial and NIL value of women’s and Olympic sports such as volleyball and gymnastics (14:06)
• The evolution of student-athlete expectations from quick NIL deals to intentional brand-building, financial literacy, and career leverage (17:23)
• Differences in NIL engagement across gender, sport, and division level, and specifically women’s volleyball as NIL growth opportunity (23:39)
• How shifting NCAA rules, state laws, litigation, and tools like NIL Go are impacting schools and athletes (35:17).