Life has come full circle for Division II offensive lineman Dieunerst Collin. In 2013, Collin, who was just nine years old at the time, became known as the "Popeyes meme kid" after he gave a side-eyed look to the camera when he was standing inside of a Popeyes restaurant. The clip and Collin's sideeye went viral.
A decade later, Popeyes has signed Collin to a name, image, and likeness deal, according to Front Office Sports. Collin is currently an offensive lineman at Lake Erie College -- a Division II school -- in Painesville, Ohio.
Leading up to the NIL deal coming to fruition, Collin expressed quite a bit of interest in joining forces with the southern-based chicken fast food establishment. Collin responded to an initial tweet earlier in January that stated that Popeyes needed to sign him to an NIL deal or they were doing themselves a huge disservice.
SAID IT BEST @Popeyes https://t.co/gsJE9leK4i
— Dieunerst Collin (@CollinDieunerst) January 8, 2023
However, the Division II offensive lineman didn't stop there. Collin also posted a side-by-side photo on Instagram to further his desire to link up with Popeyes. One side featured the classic meme and the other showed Collin giving that same wide-eyed look while holding a state championship trophy.
"I NEED EVERYONE TO REPOST THIS AND TAG @popeyes. I JUST WANNA TALK BUSINESS," Collin wrote.
His efforts became a reality when Popeyes came to terms with Collin on an NIL deal. Collin has come a long way since being the kid with a glaring look at a Popeyes.
