Hooters Signs University Of South Florida Linemen To NIL Deals

TAMPA BAY, FL — Hooters, the original wing joint, has inked University of South Florida offensive linemen to NIL deals, partnering with and celebrating the often-unheralded leaders of the gridiron and redefining what it means to be the big man on campus.

Showcasing bigger is better, Hooters has finalized deals with Bulls offensive linemen Demetris Harris, Mike Lofton, Brad Cecil and Cole Best.

"We want to celebrate and give the spotlight to these elite student-athletes who play an important role on the team. We love our long-standing traditions with USF and now look forward to also partnering with these linemen on NIL deals,” said Chief Marketing Officer Denise Williams.

The O-line ambassadors will visit local Hooters restaurants and have starring roles across social media, encouraging fans to make Hooters their game day destination or to pick up wings and other Hooters favorites for tailgate and viewing parties. The lineman visited their neighborhood North Tampa Hooters location on Aug. 30 and took photos with several Hooters Girls.

“I am extremely excited about partnering with Hooters because I have been coming here since I was a little kid with my friends and my teammates. I love the food and the drinks and everything about it. So when I got the opportunity I had to jump on it and I am extremely excited to work with Hooters,” said Best.

“I am excited to partner with Hooters because of the high-quality food and you also have a great time too,” said Lofton.

“I am so excited to partner with Hooters because of the great service. I love the wings, I have been loving them since I was a kid,” said Harris.

“I am extremely excited that Hooters reached out and wanted to move forward with a partnership. It’s extremely exciting because I grew up coming to Hooters. Its somewhere that I loved to go for game days as a kid and now I come to Hooters with my college buddies for games. It’s a place that I have always loved. They have great food, a great environment and the people that are there are even better,” said Cecil.

Hooters has been a longstanding supporter of USF Athletics. The partnership began with a contribution of $200,000 to help form the football program and officially started a sponsorship the first year of the program in 1997. In 2018 they pledged another $250,000 over 5 years to help fund the indoor practice facility.

The Tampa Bay area Hooters locations are offering the following promotions during the 2023 USF football season:

• The “Bulls Bundle” for to-go orders (guests can order online at order.hooters.com or by calling in). The bundle will include 20 wings, 20 boneless wings, two orders of curly fries or tater tots, four ranch or blue cheese for $59.99. The “Bulls Bundle” will include a koozie with each order while supplies last.
• Hooters will continue the tradition since 1997 of one of the most recognizable activations that USF Football puts on, “Hit Hootie," an on-field promotion for every USF Football home game.
• There will be USF Away Game Watch parties at North Tampa Hooters, 13606 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., on Sept. 17, 24 and Oct. 29 with giveaways, the USF Spirit Squad and a chance to win tickets to home games.
• Hooters will give away a “Homegate” for the Nov. 18 away game vs. Tulsa to one lucky USF fan. People can register online at originalhooters.com/bulls. The prize includes Hooters food, USF Spirit Squad and/or Rocky, and USF and Hooters goodies.

HMC Hospitality Group owns and operates 22 Hooters Restaurants and five Hoots locations in Tampa Bay and Chicagoland. For more information about HMC Hospitality Group, visit www.originalhooters.com or follow Twitter @originalhooters, Instagram @originalhooters and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/originalhooters.