It’s a bold new era for college athletes, with the ability to profit off their name, image and likeness for the first time in NCAA history.
With Florida sitting in a tie with Illinois and Ohio for the seventh-most Division I universities within the state’s limits (13), there’s no shortage of contenders to take home the No. 1 spot when it comes to NIL dollars.
Out of those 13 schools, “Power Five” stalwarts like Florida, Miami and Florida State have the most muscle to do whatever it takes in the NIL space.
With Student Athlete Day arriving on April 6, FloridaBet.com, your home for coverage of Florida sports betting issues, decided to look at the current colleges who have utilized the NIL legislation to recruit their athletes and help them maximize their revenue potential while at the school.
Using On3.com, we were able to comb through the athletes who currently have the highest valuation in each sport, as well as the NIL collectives from each school who are bringing in the most revenue for student athletes. Using an average ranking from those statistics, we were able to finalize the top 10 schools utilizing NIL.
This research, however, is not exact due to lack of revenue details.
Schools That Have Best Utilized NIL
If sports wagering becomes legal in the state, FloridaBet.com will provide thorough reviews of Florida betting apps.
Miami No. 2 In NIL Potential
Two Florida programs found their way into our top-10, in the Hurricanes and Seminoles, thanks in large part to that financial largess that we referenced earlier.
Miami and the school’s super booster John Ruiz have been aggressive in the NIL space, signing football and men’s and women’s basketball players to endorsement deals through the collective he oversees.
The Miami men’s basketball team advanced to the Final Four, while the women went to the Elite Eight.
Ruiz’s dealings have already elevated Miami’s standing nationally when it comes to NIL potential for prospective athletes, resulting in the program ranking in a tie for fifth nationally in athlete valuation, alongside the Seminoles.
Speaking of the Seminoles, FSU was the other program that cracked the top 10 in NIL potential, coming in at ninth, alongside LSU.
The Tallahassee-based university and their “Rising Spear” collective have been as big of a player on the NIL scene as any, signing a host of FSU athletes to deals since merging with fellow FSU collective, “Warpath” last year.
The two Florida universities combine to give the state the second best collective ranking when it comes to NCAA athlete earning potential, coming in behind Tennessee and ranking ahead of states like Oregon (4th nationally), Ohio (7th) and Texas (9th).
