Back in 2021, actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney purchased fifth-tier Wrexham A.F.C. for $2.5 million. Since the purchase, the world has witnessed the compelling Welcome to Wrexham documentary, three straight promotions from the National League all the way up to the English Football Championship (one step below the Premier League), and millions of dollars in investment into the local community.
Given the success of Wrexham and the amount of fanfare around the club, I couldn’t help but wonder if the playbook used by Reynolds and McElhenney might be applied elsewhere in the sports universe. Of course, being a lifelong college football fan, my mind immediately turned to the sport. While the NFL features massive barriers to ownership entry and salary caps that limit the impact of a fresh infusion of money, the modern era of college football with NIL and the transfer portal is rife with opportunity.
Bore da, you back-to-back-to-back promotion-winning Reds 👋
— Wrexham AFC (@Wrexham_AFC) April 28, 2025
🔴⚪️ #WxmAFC pic.twitter.com/F1yiNJqapZ
Why College Football?
When it comes to hyper-passionate local fan bases at varying levels of the sport, there is probably no closer comparison to college football than the English Football pyramid. Promotion and relegation may not play a direct factor in the sport, but the passion fans have for their teams in local communities is undeniable.
However, like in English Football, where a team like Wrexham might be overshadowed by the bigger clubs (at least prior to the new ownership), a smaller program in a state of power programs might be similarly cast aside or lose out on interest to the massive schools at the top levels. For example, on the Get Back Coach podcast, Jake and I often talk to the Group of Five Guys who lament the sheer number of folks in Tennessee gear walking around campus at Middle Tennessee State.
The level of interest in the program pales in comparison to the Volunteers, other than a few extremely loyal folks around the program. Imagine how much more buzz could be generated in Murfreesboro with a celebrity investment in NIL and a documentary focused on the program.
Eastern Michigan will begin removing the track & turf at Rynearson Stadium next week
— College Football Campus Tour (@cfbcampustour) March 30, 2024
EMU alum Maxx Crosby donated $1m for the project & the new playing surface is to be named in his honor (Pic 2)
Rynearson had grass from 1969-90, green turf from 1991-2013 & gray turf since 2014 pic.twitter.com/mBz2G7LfaO
Current NFL players giving back to their schools already generates buzz. Add in a bit of celebrity flair, and you’ve got a recipe for some serious traction.
How Would the Wrexham Strategy Look in College Football?
Money has long been an ever-present piece of the college football landscape. Scholarships and bagmen, facilities and under-the-table gifts. Only recently, with the addition of NIL, has the money been openly and freely exchanged for athletic purposes. While many hypothesized about the potential impacts of NIL, in reality, the landscape of the top of college football hasn’t changed all that much. The massive powers in the SEC and Big Ten continue to reign supreme with the Alabamas, Georgias, Ohio States, and Michigans of the world bringing in the top talent while others jockey for position to try and reach the pinnacle of the sport.
The closest example to Wrexham probably comes from what Colorado has done in hiring Deion Sanders. The Coach Prime docuseries definitely generates some additional eyes, and the impact of hiring a massive name as head coach undoubtedly brought some additional investment, but Colorado already has a place in the Power Five.
Additionally, the docuseries here is much more about the coach than the program and the community.
What Programs Would Be Potential Targets for a College Football Version of Welcome To Wrexham?
To really get the full Wrexham effect, you’d need to head down to Group of Five football at the highest level, and really, I think getting in on the ground floor with a program jumping from FCS to FBS would be the give the best version of a comparison.
ICYMI: Last weekend's @SacHornetsFB spring game was a hit! 🙌
— Sacramento State (@sacstate) April 19, 2025
Thank you to the 7,149 Hornet fans who made it the largest spring game attendance ever. 🐝🏈#StingersUp #GoGoSacramento
📸 Sacramento State/Christian Navarro pic.twitter.com/i30zBdPCGD
Sacramento State
Among the programs that immediately jump to mind for me? Sacramento State and Tarleton State. Sacramento State already has plans to make the jump to FBS as an independent. Money is coming in around the program with the announcement, and they’ve landed some big recruits as well. I love new head coach Brennan Marion’s offense and the excitement it provides.
If you wanted to go the full athletics program route instead of exclusively college football, you also have the addition of Mike Bibby as head basketball coach for the Hornets, with Shaquille O’Neal coming on board as General Manager. Sacramento may be a far cry from Hollywood, but with California as a home base, this feels like a natural placement for a Hollywood-led infusion of NIL funds and marketing.
Tarleton State
Tarleton State hasn’t been shy about its ambition to move up to FBS either. The Texans call Stephenville home, a smaller town about an hour southwest of Fort Worth. This would be about as un-Hollywood as it gets for the docuseries, but the rich history of Texas Football and the success we’ve seen from Texas football inspirations on television would undoubtedly help the case.
Spring ball ☑️
— Tarleton State Football (@TarletonFB) April 14, 2025
Grateful to cap it off yesterday in front of Texan Nation!
📸 | https://t.co/LSpBmgtVi7 pic.twitter.com/f5z0QguDD3
Friday Night Lights (show or movie) ring a bell?
The future FBS placement isn’t as locked in as Sacramento State currently is, but the ambition is certainly there. It feels more like a matter of when than if, especially as Texas continues to be a coveted market for college football conferences.
Of course, other FCS programs could serve as options as well – I’d love to see Montana State highlighted after what I was lucky enough to witness last fall. Group of Five programs definitely serve as potential placements as well.
Why It Wouldn’t Work
I am by no means a business genius, but obviously, there is a clear difference between ownership of a club in the case of Wrexham and investment into the NIL fund of a college football program. You have to imagine the returns Reynolds and McElhenney got on their initial investment into the club dwarf what could be gained by using that same investment for an NIL fund.
I also have no doubts that a docuseries around a football program would work. At the NFL level, Hard Knocks remains one of the most talked-about programs in sports every time a new season rolls around. Lower-level college football television has also already worked with Last Chance U developing a cult following. However, I do wonder how a television deal would shake out with conference TV deals and the like (another reason to consider Sac State as they make the jump to FBS as an independent).
In short, the money piece of the equation is much more complicated in college football than it is in English Football, to me.
However, if someone with a lot more pull and a much better business brain than I have can get around those barriers, I think the Wrexham approach presents a real opportunity. This is a chance for athletes to become stars and maximize earnings ahead of the NFL, to galvanize a community, and to generate a massive shake-up in the college football world. This sport comes ready-made with passionate fans, communities to revitalize, and authentic stories to be told.
