It’s Shedeur Sanders’ turn to rise to financial prominence! Back in December 2023, USC basketball star Bronny James topped On3’s list as the highest-valued NCAA athlete. Thanks to his major partnership with Nike in October 2022, he was on the front cover of NIL with a valuation of $5.9M. At that time, the Colorado Buffs QB trailed second with $4M. But fast forward to November 2024 shows how much things can change in a year. 

As per On3 NIL rankings, Shedeur Sanders currently tops NIL 100 with a valuation of $6.2 million. His wealth is followed by gymnast Livvy Dunne and Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter with $4M and $3.4M, respectively. And how did he get a major boost from $4M to over $6M? 

Shedeur Sanders hasn’t been sleeping in the offseason, and neither was Colorado. In March, the Buffs launched the 5430 Alliance that paved the way for the student-athletes to profit from their NIL. Following this major improvement in the NIL sector, the 22-year-old signed a deal with Beats by Dre in August and topped the offseason off with a major deal with Nike the same month, becoming the first college football player to sign an NIL deal with the popular brand. 

But while Bronny James is out of the picture in this season’s NIL scene, his high school valuation is noteworthy. LeBron James’ son already made a legacy for himself as the highest paid high school player in the nation with $7.3M earlier in March 2023. But right now, let Shedeur take the center stage.

Shedeur Sanders’ vision for NIL 

Shedeur Sanders is no stranger to working with big brands like Mercedes-Benz, Gatorade, BRADY, and more. His Nike partnership is no brainer, as Deion Sanders is a brand prodigy who has released his own line of popular Nike Air Diamond Turf sneakers and cleats. The son expressed his goal with Nike saying, “I would want to build on it. I want to build on it. Have like a different version.”

But Nike’s far from the only interest that Shedeur has. Remember the infamous AP Royal Oak watch flex? Yes! It’s luxury Swiss watch brands like Audemars Piguet that the Buffs QB wishes to partner with. Given the notoriety it gave the watch with his antics of loyalty, Shedeur already deserves a collaboration! And that might become a reality given that No. 23 Colorado is en-route to their first bowl appearance since 2020 after improving to 6-2 with their last win against Cincinnati.