Being big fans of pork, four Iowa State Cyclone women’s basketball players have agreed to work with the Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA) to promote pork, according to an association release. The four sophomore players, Audi Crooks, Kelsey Joens, Addy Brown and Alisa Williams, each signed NIL (name, image, likeness) deal with IPPA.
Audi Crooks, a center from Algona, Iowa, became the first freshman All-American in Iowa State women’s basketball history last year. This NIL partnership is not Crooks’ first experience with the Iowa Pork Producers Association. She earned the IPPA Top Producer Award for Class 1A during the 2023 Iowa girls state basketball tournament. Crooks scored 49 points in the state championship game, leading Bishop Garrigan High School to the title.
“It’s so cool to kind of come full circle to win that award from the Iowa Pork Producers in high school, and now be a part a partnership with Iowa Pork on the advertising side of it,” Crooks says.
Audi Crooks’ incredible basketball skills and remarkable personality have garnered her a lot of attention. She’s thrilled to be part of the explosion in popularity of women’s basketball, and excited about the Cyclones’ chances on the court this season.
“I think it’s about time,” Crooks says. “Women’s basketball has always been great, but people are just starting to pay attention. It’s better late than never. We have super high hopes for this sport and this team. There’s really no limit to what we can do.”
Kelsey Joens, a guard from Iowa City, has her own connection to the pork industry. She worked in the family restaurant, Joensy’s, growing up. Joens’ father took over the restaurant from her grandfather in 2005. Pork tenderloins are their specialty, and Kelsey Joens expresses her fondness of pork tenderloins in the tryout video.
“I love pork tenderloins, so I was really excited to be part of this partnership,” Joens says. “I grew up working in the family restaurant. I would clear tables, get drinks for customers, and eventually waited tables and served customers, so with my background, I was thrilled to be able to promote pork.”
The breaded pork tenderloin sandwich is an Iowa staple, and the Iowa Pork Producers Association’s annual Best Breaded Pork Tenderloin Sandwich Contest draws food lovers from across the Midwest to the winning restaurant each year.
Joens’ teammate Alisa Williams is also a big fan of pork. The forward from Denton, Texas was thrilled to secure an NIL deal to promote one of her favorite foods. “I'm so excited to be part of this,” Williams says. “I love bacon. I’m dead serious. I eat bacon every day.”
Cyclone forward Addy Brown enjoyed the ‘Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon’ promotion last year, so was thrilled to be asked to partner with Iowa Pork.
“I’m very excited. I think it’s a cool opportunity,” Brown says, “I remember seeing the commercial last year and I thought it was pretty funny so it’s cool to be a part of it and I’m excited to see how it turns out.”
Recently, the women showed up to the ‘Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon’ tryouts. While they declined to be part of that promotion, they all share a love for pork. You can watch the video here.
While the women’s basketball players opted not to participate in tryouts for the ‘Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon’ promotion, the search continues for student athletes to join in that partnership. In a series of videos to be released every Monday at 10 a.m. through Oct. 7, Myles Purchase, Tyler Moore, Tommy Hamann, and Caleb Bacon will continue to serve as a panel of judges as their fellow student-athletes try to join the pork roster. October is National Pork Month, aka ‘Porktober’.
In conjunction with the NIL partnership, the Iowa Pork Producers Association is donating $1,000 worth of pork to each participant’s food bank or food pantry of choice to help fight food insecurity. These were the ladies' choices:
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