Family of Kansas State basketball fans support walk-on Nate Awbrey with fun NIL deal

How much money would you spend to meet your favorite Kansas State basketball player?

For one Topeka family of K-State supporters the answer was in the neighborhood of $1,000.

Their favorite player might surprise you. Instead of paying four figures to meet one of the Wildcats’ star contributors like Keyontae Johnson or Markquis Nowell, they chose a walk-on guard who has only scored three points while playing in six games this season: Nate Awbrey.

Even Awbrey was surprised when he heard about the potential arrangement from Wildcat NIL, the primary collective that helps arrange NIL deals for K-State student-athletes.

“When I got the message that someone wanted to do a NIL deal with me I was like, uh, that’s interesting,” Awbrey said. “I haven’t got hit up for a NIL deal yet this year.”

That changed when Terry Knowles read a feature story about Awbrey on Kansas State’s athletics website. After learning about Awbrey’s journey to K-State and how hard he works for the Wildcats behind the scenes, Knowles offered to send some money Awbrey’s way in exchange for a meet-and-greet at Bramlage Coliseum.

Awbrey wasn’t about to say no to that.

So he spent some time with Terry Knowles, Marcia Knowles and Julie Knowles. They talked and took a few pictures together. Turns out, Terry was a former college athlete who only received a partial athletic scholarship and had to pay for much of his tuition costs. They bonded over those shared experiences.

“I really appreciated it,” Awbrey said. “I had to take out loans and do other things to pay for my school right now. So anything that anybody could do to help me out is truly a blessing. I am very thankful for that.”

By the end of their time together, Awbrey had extra money in his pocket and everyone had a nice memory.

“After meeting him and his wife and his family, they just have such big hearts,” Awbrey said. “You just tell that they not only cared about us as a program but they cared about each individual on the team. It was really cool to see the support they had for what I get to do every day. It’s very special.”

Awbrey has quietly become a cult hero within the K-State basketball team. Fans began chanting his name at the end of blowout victories inside Bramlage Coliseum this season and erupted every time head coach Jerome Tang sent him onto the floor.

He made a free throw during a 64-50 victory over Florida and also scored two points on senior day against Oklahoma.

Tang is glad that Awbrey ended up on his roster. During the offseason, Tang said he badly wanted to add a veteran transfer to the team who wouldn’t mind coming in as a walk-on. He thought the Wildcats needed to get a little older and add a reliable player to their scout team.

One night, he decided to pray for such a player to show up on his recruiting radar. Not long after, Awbrey sent him a direct message on social media and expressed interest in playing for the Wildcats as a walk-on. Much to his surprise, Tang responded. The rest is history.

“He competes every day day at practice and he has earned the guys’ respect,” Tang said. “Then he speaks the truth in the locker room. Sometimes it’s hard to tell people the truth about certain things that they don’t want to hear and still keep a good relationship with them. Nate has the ability to tell people tough things with a smile on his face. That’s a talent. They respect him as a man and as a player. He has just helped our locker room so much and helped our staff so much.”

Awbrey grew up in Manhattan and always dreamed of playing for K-State. But he ended up spending four seasons at Manhattan Christian College instead.

While there, he scored 1,032 career points and helped his team win 76 games. He was a solid player, but he yearned to prove himself at a higher level. Ideally, he wanted to transfer and play for the Wildcats, even if it was only as a walk-on who rarely played.

Things improbably worked out for him. So much so that one family of fans took notice and signed him to the type of NIL deal you would expect for a more notable player.

“I’m just very thankful that this family reached out to me,” Awbrey said. “Paying for college isn’t easy. It’s been something that going into this I knew that I would have to take out some loans and different things to pay for it. This just kind of proves this is what I was supposed to be doing.”