12 College Football Players Who Increased Their NIL Value in Week 1
By Kristi Dosh
Last Updated on September 2, 2025
In today’s college sports landscape, a big performance on the field can translate into big money in an athlete’s pocket as they increase their NIL value. For the biggest stars, they need to perform to keep up their momentum, but for lesser-known players, a big week on the field can translate into new deals with brands, merchandise sales, and monetized engagement with fans through video shout outs, autographs and more.
Here’s a look at the players I think most improved their NIL value in Week 1.
Julian Sayin – Quarterback, Ohio State
Why His Value Soared: In his first-ever college start, Sayin delivered a clutch 40-yard touchdown to topple No. 1 Texas. A big win over a top-ranked opponent in Week 1 sets him up for a big season on and off the field.
NIL Deals
- Signed with Panini America in early 2024 after transferring to Ohio State
- Sayin’s Instagram shows a deal with HeyDude
Thomas Castellanos – Quarterback, Florida State
Why His Value Soared: A major upset of Alabama in his first start, combined with his outspoken personality, gave him one of the steepest NIL ramps in Week 1.
NIL Deals
- Partnership with Hotel Indigo Tallahassee Collegetown as the “Official Hotel of Thomas Castellanos”
- Mitchum deodorant
- Merchandise on TommyCastellanos.com, including “Nick Can’t Save Them” t-shirts with a $31.17 pricepoint
Agency: Just Win Management Group (Joe Hernandez)
Garrett Nussmeier – Quarterback, LSU
Why His Value Soared: Engineered a late-game drive to beat Clemson, delivering the signature moment sponsors craved.
Nussmeier’s NIL stock was already solid, with abundant NIL opportunities with brands over the past couple of years. His performance this week will help him add to that value.
NIL Deals
- Legion Protective
- Mercedes Benz Baton Rouge
- EA Sports
- Raising Canes
- Powerade
- Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys
- Signature Rides
- John Deere
Agency: Athletes First (Trace Armstrong)
Caden Durham – Running Back, LSU
Why His Value Soared: His touchdown sealed LSU’s massive upset, the kind of play that draws attention for under-the-radar talent.
NIL Deals
No public NIL deals, and a search of his Instagram doesn’t reveal any either. I’d expect that to change if his season continues on this trajectory.
Durham does have merchandise available through NIL Store.
Agency: Team IFA
Caullin Lacy – Wide Receiver/Special Teams, Louisville
Why His Value Soared: A 93-yard punt return touchdown means social media gold. Those highlight plays are pure NIL currency.
NIL Deals
No public NIL deals, and a search of his Instagram doesn’t reveal any either. He’s primed to start landing them after Week 1’s performance.
Lacy does have merchandise available through NIL Store.
Agency: GSE Worldwide
Isaac Brown – Running Back, Louisville
Why His Value Soared: Consensus Preseason All-American Brown scored two touchdowns and ran for 126 yards in Louisville’s win over Eastern Kentucky.
NIL Deals
No public NIL deals or social media profiles found. He might want to get those socials going if he’s going to continue having the kind of season he had in Week 1.
Earl Little Jr. – Defensive Back, Florida State
Why His Value Soared: Integral in FSU’s upset win over Alabama with nine tackles.
NIL Deals
No public NIL deals yet, but he does have nearly 29k followers on Instagram and is also active on X and TikTok.
Agency: Roc Nation Sports (Drew Samuels)
Harold Perkins – Linebacker, LSU
Why His Value Soared: Perkins created disruptive pressure in LSU’s win over Clemson with five tackles and a sack as part of a defense that limited Clemson to 261 yards and one touchdown.
NIL Deals
Perkins has one Instagram post with BallerTribe Productions and also has his own website with merchandise ranging from t-shorts to hoodies, hats, shorts and more.
Dani Dennis-Sutton – Defensive End, Penn State
Why His Value Soared: Even without playing much in the second half because Penn State was dominating Nevada, Dennis-Sutton had 2.5 tackles for a loss, a sack, a pass breakup and QB hurry.
NIL Deals
No public deals found yet, but he’s poised to get some attention this season.
Agency: Athletes First (Austin Lyman)
Mario Craver – Wideout, Texas A&M
Why His Value Soared: Craver led the Aggies with eight catches, 122 yards, and two touchdowns. The transfer felt underutilized with former team Mississippi State, but it appears to be integral to the Aggies’ plan this year.
NIL Deals
Craver also announced the creation of Craver Enterprises in July 2025.
Agency: Darren Wilson
Carson Beck – Quarterback, Miami
Why His Value Soared: Beck made an emotional and high-impact return by leading Miami to a dramatic 27–24 victory over No. 6 Notre Dame. Last season, UGA dropped 36 of Beck’s passes. The team behind him at Miami on Sunday dropped zero.
NIL Deals
Beck’s agents said in January 2025 that Beck had nearly $10 million in NIL deals in the past 12 months between brand deals and a contract with Canes Connection, Miami’s NIL collective.
- Canes Connection (at least $4 million)
- Chipotle
- Morgan & Morgan
- Powerade
- Beats by Dre
- Airstar Charter
Agency: Everett Sports Marketing
Kevorian Barnes – Running Back, TCU)
Why His Value Soared: The 75-yard touchdown run was not only a highlight of the game but also a viral moment—exactly the kind of breakthrough that can ignite an NIL value surge.
NIL Deals
- Athlete’s Thread
- Meep Meep Apparel partner
- Barnes has merchandise available in NIL Store
- NIL Potential: With that level of explosiveness in a high-stakes environment, Barnes is now ripe for NIL attention—especially in local markets and highlight-focused brands.
Stay tuned to see who can keep their momentum going into Week 2 and beyond.
