Notre Dame football players earn money making Inside The Garage podcast

Inside The Garage is a podcast hosted by four Notre Dame football players. Safety Kyle Hamilton, cornerback Cam Hart, safety KJ Wallace, and wide receiver Conor Ratigan. The four are roommates and have a name, image, and likeness sponsorship. 

 

While the four earn money making podcasts, Hamilton says the main focus should remain on being a student-athlete. 

 

“I feel like at the end of the day, guys need to realize we’re here to play football,” Kyle Hamilton said. “And I feel like that (NIL) could really take away from that if dudes are worried about what they’re doing off the field. At the end of the day, playing well, that’s what’s going to make you your life changing bread.“

 

Although the podcast is fun for the guys to make, there’s plenty of financial responsibility along with it. And the guys feel this needs to be addressed across the country.

 

“We have so many good people surrounding us like, even just going here we have good connections and people we can talk to as far as money and how to manage it,” KJ Wallace said.” But what I worry about is like people who don’t have that. Talking about taxes and all that stuff, the IRS, that’s real grown stuff”

 

“They need to offer some sort of financial literacy class if they’re going to allow us to make money.  And ND has done that somewhat. I feel like throughout the country, if you’re going to let us make 10s of thousands of dollars, there’s obviously taxable income. I’m not trying to stereotype a bunch of kids but at the same time I bet there’s kids out there that don’t understand IRS and w-9s and forms you have to fill out for taxes. They can really get messed over if they don’t save money for taxes and then they’re already behind. They’re 19 years old with debt,” Hamilton said.

 

Topics on the show range from their taste music to the reason they chose Notre Dame.

 

You come into our locker room everyone is together,” Cam Hart said.” “Everyone is cool no matter where these people come from, I can come from Baltimore, they can come from Sweden, and we can get along. I really like that, I really appreciate that.”

 

While Hamilton, Hart, and Wallace are on scholarship, junior wide receiver Conor Ratigan is in a different situation… he’s a walk-on so the NIL helps Ratigan more financially and his decision to come to Notre Dame is based on his future career outside of football. 

 

“The end goal for me is obviously not the NFL,” Ratigan said. “The immediate goal would be med school. And so for me this is almost like a four-year job I took on to help me develop as a person. Having this four-year job, and it’s definitely more fun than a job. It’s difficult but at the end of the day you play football. 

 

Inside The Garage just eclipsed 10 episodes and all four of them hope to continue making the podcast long after their time at Notre Dame