Sports

NCAA Athletes Are Already Making BIG Money On Day 1 Of Name, Image And Likeness With All Kinds Of Wild Deals

#NCAA
by Last Updated

Cavinder Fresno State NIL

  • The NCAA finally allowed athletes to own their Names, Images and Likenesses.
  • NIL went into effect on July 1 and college athletes are CASHING IN.
  • Click HERE for more NCAA news!

A long overdue dream is finally a reality. July 1 marked the first day for college athletes to sell the rights to their names, images and likenesses. Amid mounting pressure from its student athletes and legislators nationwide, the NCAA finally did the right thing. Not necessarily because it wanted to do the right thing, but because it had to do the right thing.

“Student-athlete” is an outdated, purposely equivocal term that was created in the 1950s that is used to tie college athletes to a broken system of amateurism. It implies a grey area in which the college athletes are students are not playing sport, nor a sportsman at work. As athletes, they must reach the academic standards of their peers. As students, they must not be compensated beyond cost of studies and livelihood.

That notion changes to some degree today. College athletes are allowed to profit from being themselves.

The only pushback on such a ruling came from those who hold a holier-than-thou person in the media but partake in (alleged, for legal reasons) shady behavior and recruiting behind-the-scenes. Take Dabo Swinney for example.

Other than those who were against the “professionalization of sports” (*eye roll*), the ruling is celebrated by those in the media, all the way up to the Supreme Court. Former athletes have formed firms to help athletes realize their worth and the ball is already rolling for lucrative deals.

Less than 24 hours into the “Wild West” of N.I.L., the money is being made.

Here are some of the top deals so far:

  • Miami QB D’Eriq King —
    • King is partnering with College Hunks Hauling Junk and Murphy Auto Group. The deal will net King $20,000.

    • King also signed on as a co-founder of Dreamfield, an NIL-based platform focused primarily on booking live events for student-athletes, including autograph signings, meet-and-greets and speaking engagements.
    • King will sign with ‘The Wharf,’ a swanky open-air event venue on the Miami river, at 4:00 p.m. before making a paid appearance at a club in Miami later in the night.
    • King also unveiled a website where you can purchase signed memorabilia.
  • UCF QB McKenzie Milton —
    • Milton also signed as a co-founder with Dreamfield.
    • He will be the first athlete to release an NFT on the market.
  • Fresno State WBB stars Haley and Hannah Cavinder —
    • The twins are already incredibly famous personalities on social media, particularly TikTok.
    • They flew to New York and announced a partnership with Boost Mobile.

    • Haley and Hanna Will also work with Six Star Pro Nutrition.

  • Illinois MBB G Edgar Padilla Jr. —
    • Padilla also signed with Six Star.
  • Michigan State P Matthew Coghlin —
    • Coghlin was paid to tweet for the Locked On Spartans podcast. It is one of the funniest NIL results yet.

  • Auburn QB Bo Nix —
    • Nix is partnering with Milo’s Sweet Tea.

  • Kentucky MBB G Dontaie Allen — 
  • Iowa MBB G Jordan Bohannan —
    • Bohannan was one of the leading voices in advocating for N.I.L.
    • He will promote a local fireworks store, which is one of the more unique deals so far.

  • Marshall OL Will Ulmer —
    • Ulmer is an aspiring country musician and will be able to play paid events under the new NIL rules.
      • This is an interesting aspect of NIL, which is not just about endorsement deals.
      • NIL allows athletes to pursue passions and careers beyond sports while being compensated for their work.

  • Jackson State DE Antwan Owen — 
    • Owen, a Georgia Tech grad transfer, announced his partnership with Three Kings Grooming, a black-owned hair product shop.
  • Nebraska Volleyball Superstart Lexi Sun —
  • Louisville QB Malik Cunningham —
    • Cunningham set a $250 per hour speaking fee.
  • Nebraskas MBB Brothers Trey and Bryce McGowen —
    • This is one of the more interesting ones, as the McGowens will start a sponsored podcast.

  • LSU CB Derek Stingley Jr. —
    • Stingley Jr. will partner with Walk-Ons.
  • LSU QB Myles Brennan —
    • Brennan signed with Smoothie King and Smalls Sliders.
  • Multiple Athletes at Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, LSU, Maryland and many others —
    • Yoke Gaming is about to see a huge boom over the next few months.
    • The video game app allows gamers to play with athletes.
    • College athletes were not previously allowed to partake, but are allowed under N.I.L.
    • Single games can charge anywhere from dollars to hundreds of dollars.

Other NIL notes: