Student government committee What Matters to U (WMTU) has finally announced sports agent Nicole Lynn as the fall speaker after teasing its fall event on Instagram. Students can now reserve a free ticket for the event held in the Shalala Grand Ballrooms on Nov. 1 at 6:30 p.m.
WMTU chair Noah Frankel, a junior studying public administration and sociology, shared the inspiration behind choosing Lynn.
“I don’t think we’ve ever talked about the actual business side of things, whether it’s ownerships or an actual agent,” Frankel said. “She’s the first Black woman to ever represent a top three NFL draft pick.”
Lynn’s impressive resume doesn’t end there: the 34-year-old trailblazer earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Oklahoma, worked as a financial analyst on Wall Street, became the first-ever female sports agent at PlayersRep Sports Management and now represents Klutch Sports Group as the President of Football Operations.
“The level that she’s reached at such a young age and the stars she represents — like Jalen Hurts and Myles Garrett — is really cool and can really give a voice for someone in a field traditionally dominated by white men. Her success is just incredible,” Frankel said.
The organization dropped cryptic hints like an eagle carrying a paper with dollar signs and a caption that read “this speaker 198ATE.” Students guessed names like Taylor Swift, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Leonardo DiCaprio, but comments on the announcement post showed widespread support for Lynn.
Though sports stars like Megan Rapinoe and Chris Bosh have spoken at WMTU before, the organization hopes that Lynn’s financial and legal experience will also attract business and law students in addition to sports lovers.
Frankel believes Lynn’s story will resonate with students from all disciplines.
“Getting to see someone who — not to use the ‘glass-ceiling’ metaphor — has really broken through barriers and just ran through them,” he said. “I think it can serve as inspiration for other students to just really chase what they want to do no matter what.”
Planning for WMTU starts in the summer. The organization usually decides their speakers based on a theme for the semester — this fall, they chose “women in business.”
After the chairs brainstorm potential speakers and filter out high-profile names like Beyonce and Taylor Swift, they reach out to speakers’ agents and agencies to negotiate a contract.
Though WMTU is currently focused on executing the Nov. 1 event, students can look forward to another speaker’s visit to UM in the spring semester.
“That’s usually when we try to save up our money and try to wow people, like [with] Pitbull and Chris Bosh,” Frankel said.
Frankel also shared his hopes for the spring speaker, which has not been confirmed yet.
“I would like to see a speaker from the LGBT community. I think that’s important, especially with the situations in Florida with the policies and laws being passed,” he said. “And also…I’d like to bring a proper Youtube influencer. I think a lot of us grew up with YouTube.”
Noting how WMTU allows students to hear new perspectives and find inspiration for their own endeavors, Frankel urged students to come out and hear Lynn speak next Wednesday.
“All these people are coming on their own accord and they’re choosing to spend a night to really give us a great talk,” Frankel said. “It’s the middle of the NFL season and she [Lynn] is making time for us, which we’re super appreciative of.”
Tickets are currently onsale for the WMTU event, which will be held next Wednesday, Nov. 1 @6:30pm in the Shalala Grand Ballrooms. Doors open at 6pm.