Baker, LeGrand partner on the Knight Society

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Two of Rutgers University’s most high-profile and beloved former student-athletes, Geo Baker and Eric LeGrand, announce they’ve teamed up to launch the Knight Society to connect the Rutgers community.

The Knight Society is being dubbed as an expansive concept with an infrastructure based on NIL relationships, NFT technology, member benefits and event programming that Baker and LeGrand believe will engage Rutgers fans, athletes, students, alumni, faculty and local businesses.

“The more time I spend at Rutgers, the more I have noticed a disconnect between current Rutgers students and the alumni,” said Baker. “There is a huge sense of Rutgers pride from Scarlet Knights everywhere, but that pride gets lost due to a lack of organization. Our goal at the Knight Society is to facilitate more engagement and interactions within the Rutgers ecosystem while also supporting the current athletes, which will ultimately uplift the community as a whole.”

“Working on this project with my fellow Scarlet Knight, Geo Baker, has been a lot of fun,” said LeGrand. “Since the first time he approached me about the Knight Society and bringing the Rutgers community together, I was all in. I cannot wait to see how we connect R fellow alumni, R student-athletes, and R network as a whole.”

The new venture hopes to provide unique experiences and interactions that will be exclusively available through membership, including private events with Rutgers athletes as well as discounts at local bars and restaurants.

There will also be an NIL aspect with the Knight Society that aims to connect businesses to current Rutgers athletes. Baker has been a pioneer in the emerging NIL space. In March, NJBIZ chronicled his journey using his platform as a Rutgers basketball star to help advocate for student-athletes to control and benefit from their name, image and likeness.

“We want to be different from the normal ‘Collective’ by giving our members the ultimate experience,” said Baker. “This is not a project that will only support athletes. The Knight Society is a way to invest in yourself while also having the ultimate fan experience. Between the networking opportunities, local discounts, genuine interactions and the exclusive access to current Rutgers athletes, the Knight Society is a great opportunity for anyone who bleeds scarlet to become a more engaged member of this community.”

The Knight Society is the latest in a string of ventures for LeGrand, who earlier this month opened his own coffee shop, LeGrand Coffee House, in downtown Woodbridge, which NJBIZ documented in this week’s issue. LeGrand has also announced plans for his own whiskey brand, LeGrand Whiskey.

Prior to this official launch, the Knight Society informally got off the ground through a Discord Channel created for the Rutgers community. That group grew to more than 2,200 active members.

More information about the Knight Society is available on its official website, KnightSociety.io.