MSU Men’s Tennis Star Shares the Impact of an NIL Contract with CGA
Michigan State University men’s tennis player Ozan Baris was recently invited to join Jayson Strayhorn on the This is Sparta MSU Show to talk about the impact of his Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) contract with Charitable Gift America, and how the support from the organization has helped him continue to elevate his goals on the court.
Baris, a sophomore at MSU, was the first Spartan to be named Big Ten Player of the Year and win over 20 matches in a season. He made a deep run in the NCAA tournament as well, reaching the semifinal round of the NCAA Singles Championship, which he lost in a close 7-5, 7-5 matchup. The 20 year old started competing professionally at 18, and he has put the world on notice with dominant performances in both singles and doubles.
An individual who carries himself with experience beyond his years, Baris was very grateful for the support of This is Sparta! and Charitable Gift America as he pursues a professional tennis career. On the podcast, he highlights the continuous support of CGA Board President Thomas Dieters, citing his support of not only tennis, but the whole university, as a reason for the cross-campus success Spartan athletics has seen this year.
“I text back and forth with him quite a bit,” Baris said of Dieters. “The amount of passion that he brings, sometimes I’m like man, this guy might want it just as much as me —I’m not gonna say more because I don’t know if that’s possible—but he might might want it just as much as me.”
Dieters’ support of the This is Sparta! NIL fund and Spartan athletics across the board was rewarded with major successes in the 2023-24 athletic year — Big Ten Championships in Men’s Hockey and Women’s Gymnastics, NCAA tournament history for Men’s Tennis, and an NCAA tournament berth for MSU Women’s Golf were just a few of the accomplishments from programs supported by CGA.
As Baris alluded to in the interview, the support keeps these athletes motivated, and knowing that they have people who believe in them pushes them to even greater heights. “It’s huge to have someone like that who’s rooting you on, and giving you literally everything that they can for you to succeed, and for MSU as a whole to succeed.”
