Clip emerges of Jalen Hurts’ agent Nicole Lynn explaining motivation behind career - “They go to riches then go back to rags”
Sports agent Nicole Lynn has been all over the news lately after negotiating Jalen Hurts’ massive contract extension with the Philadelphia Eagles.
But her motivation to help her clients is not just about getting the big bucks. Instead, she wants to improve their lives for good.
The Klutch Sports’ President of the Football Division said in a 2018 interview with journalist Harold R. Kuntz:
"I watched a lot of athletes come from the same background that I do: rags. Then they go to riches, and then they end up back in rags. An agent is the life coach."
Lynn shared that thought around when she became the commencement speaker for her alma mater, Booker T. Washington High School.
#ThrowbackThursday to when I had the opportunity to interview an, at the time, new NFLPA licensed agent Nicole Lynn. Her story has only grown, leading up to this week with the contract of Jalen Hurts. https://t.co/1Vg8q7W0HN
Hurts agreed to a five-year, $255 million extension with the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s the largest contract in the NFL in terms of annual average value, overtaking Aaron Rodgers’ three-year, $150.8 million deal with the Green Bay Packers.
Lynn negotiated the deal after Hurts led the Eagles to Super Bowl LVII and earned Second Team All-Pro honors.
It was also imperative to get the deal done as Hurts was entering the final year of his rookie contract. The former Oklahoma standout doesn’t have a fifth-year option because he was taken in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft.
Nicole Lynn has an unrelenting drive to excel
Like Jalen Hurts, Lynn also studied in Oklahoma. She finished her bachelor’s degree in business management and juris doctor with honors in the same school. Aside from being a sports agent, she was also a FINRA-certified financial analyst on Wall Street.
There were questions about Hurts’ success in the NFL as he wrapped up his collegiate football career with the Sooners. But Nicole Lynn threw her Hail Mary by sending Hurts a private message on Instagram.
She asked if the 2019 Heisman Trophy finalist already had an agent. Eventually, Hurts signed and the rest is history.
Now that she’s at the peak of her profession, Lynn will never forget the hardships that toughened her. In the same interview with Kuntz, she said:
"Really, the motivation factor was to survive. We didn't have our electric or gas on. We always struggled to figure out where we're gonna eat. We didn't have school clothes."
While she has a lofty position and an established clientele, Nicole Lynn continues to fight to survive, especially in a male-dominated industry.
"Your credibility is questioned every single day. And then it's also just kinda an aspect of having to navigate a male-dominated industry that really doesn't want women in."
Though she delivered the commencement speech five years ago, her last line still rings true, especially after sealing the deal on Hurts’ mega-contract.
"It always seems impossible 'til it's done. Here's to proving the possible.”
Nicole Lynn’s sports agent journey
Aside from Hurts, Lynn also represents Quinnen Williams, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Chase Young, and DeVonta Smith.
Klutch Sports also oversees contract negotiations for Evan Neal, Breece Hall, Jeff Okudah, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Jermaine Johnson II, among others.
She started her NFL player agent journey in 2015 when she joined PlayersRep. Lil Wayne’s Young Money APAA Sports Agency bought the company two years later.
In 2019, she made history as the first black woman to represent a top-three pick when Williams went to the New York Jets.
Lynn joined Klutch Sports in 2021 as president of football operations. Two years later, she heads the entire football division of the company started by LeBron James’ close friend, Rich Paul.
After Hurts, Nicole Lynn’s journey as a sports agent continues as top 2023 NFL Draft prospects Bijan Robinson and Will Anderson Jr. signed with Klutch Sports.