Top five On3 NIL Valuations in Colorado-Oregon matchup

For three weeks, Colorado has been the story of the college football season. But the Buffaloes visit Oregon on Saturday afternoon, Deion Sanders’ first taste of Pac-12 play.

The Buffaloes will be without two-way star Travis Hunter, who is expected to miss the next few weeks. The top-20 matchup features two of the sport’s top quarterbacks this season: Shedeur Sanders and Bo Nix. Both in the Heisman conversation, each quarterback has built major NIL brands.

Before kickoff, we’re diving into the top five On3 NIL Valuations in the Colorado-Oregon matchup:

1. Shedeur Sanders — Colorado

On3 NIL Valuation: $5.2 million
Social media followers: 2.1 million
Position: Quarterback

The Colorado quarterback is a favorite in the Heisman Trophy race as the end of September nears. With more than 2.1 million social media followers, Shedeur Sanders’ NIL portfolio competes with Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr. Combining the on-field success with his last name and major social media following, it’s easy to see why brands would want to work with him. His On3 NIL Valuation has jumped $3.9 million in the last 10 weeks. His valuation now sits at $5.2 million, which ranks No. 1 in college football.

Working closely with SMAC Entertainment and Constance Schwartz-Morini, Sanders previously signed with Gatorade, launched his own barbecue sauce, been tabbed as the BRADY brand’s long-term ambassador and promoted Mercedes Benz. 

The youngest son of Deion Sanders is doing something nobody else in college sports has yet to master in the NIL Era: building out an apparel brand. A play on his name, Shedeur Sanders has created the SS2LEGENDARY brand. Merchandise started populating in December 2021, with a simple red sweatshirt and the “$2” logo, which frequently appears on the apparel. Sanders filed to trademark the mark in February for goods and services, including footwear, sweatshirts athletic apparel, baseball camps and skull caps. 

All the business opportunities aside, Shedeur Sanders has proven to be one of the top quarterbacks in the nation. He’s thrown for 1,251 yards with 10 touchdowns and just one interception.

2. Bo Nix — Oregon

On3 NIL Valuation: $1.3 million
Social media followers: 197K
Position: Quarterback

The Bo Nix Heisman campaign has stretched to all corners of college football. Before the Oregon quarterback even played a snap this season, billboards were put up in New York City and Dallas. A full-page ad in the New York Times. And on every edition of “College GameDay” this year, multiple “Bo-Dacious” signs have appeared. Earlier this week, “Bo-Dacious” T-shirts were released by Ducks of a Feather, the apparel line of the Oregon-driven NIL collective Division Street. All merchandise is created by Nike, with profits going back to Oregon athletes.

Nix’s Heisman campaign can benefit all Duck athletes. The quarterback also has a preexisting contract with Division Street and Ducks of Feather. A source told On3 that plans are in place for the entire Oregon student section to wear the shirts for Saturday’s top-20 matchup.

Through three games this season, Nix has delivered on the preseason Heisman hype. The former Auburn transfer has a 77.6% completion percentage, throwing for 893 yards and eight touchdowns. The former five-star prospect signed with 7-Eleven this week. As part of the agreement, the Oregon quarterback will team up with luxury designer The Shoe Surgeon to create their own individual pair of custom cleats that fans can win through weekly auctions.

3. Shilo Sanders — Colorado

On3 NIL Valuation: $719,000
Social media followers: 1.1 million
Position: Safety

While his brother continues to grab national headlines, Shilo Sanders continues to impress. He hasn’t had any problems in making the jump from Jackson State to the FBS level. Shilo has 19 total tackles and a forced fumble through three weeks. His pick-six last week against Colorado State sparked the Buffs, earning him Pac-12 Week 3 Defensive Player of the Week honors.

A graduate transfer from and an Under Armour All-American coming out of high school, he tallied 59 tackles, 12 pass deflections, five INTs, and two forced fumbles in 20 games at JSU. He, too, has been attractive to brands to partner with. He’s signed NIL deals with Oikos, Actively Black and KFC. He also has an impressive social media presence of more than 1.1 million followers.

4. Bucky Irving — Oregon

On3 NIL Valuation: $696,000
Social media followers: 300K
Position: Running Back

After an impressive sophomore season for Oregon, Bucky Irving has emerged as one of the nation’s top running backs. He appeared on a number of preseason national lists after earning Pac-12 All-Conference honorable mention a year ago. In three games this season, the running back is on track to surpass the 1,000-yard mark for the second consecutive season. He’s carried the ball 27 times for 216 yards, scoring three touchdowns. Irving has a major opportunity Saturday to piece together a big game against a Colorado defensive front that has struggled to shut down the run.

The former Minnesota transfer has more than 300,000 followers. While he publicly hasn’t announced many NIL agreements, he has a website filled with merchandise.

5. Ajani Cornelius — Oregon

On3 NIL Valuation: $696,000
Social media followers: 5.7K
Position: Offensive Tackle

 Ajani Cornelius started each of the past two seasons at right tackle for Rhode Island and was one of the hottest transfer commodities on the market. The 6-foot-5, 310-pound offensive tackle was a first-team All-Colonial pick this season. The Ducks had a vacancy at right tackle and Cornelius has filled it. Cornelius is one of two key o-line transfers for the Ducks, who also reeled in guard Junior Angilau (a three-year starter at Texas who missed 2022 with an injury). Cornelius has already played 209 snaps this season and has yet to allow a sack, according to Pro Football Focus.

Oregon will have the offensive tackle for at least another season; he isn’t eligible for the NFL draft until 2025. Dan Lanning has called Cornelius a “professional.” Since getting on campus this spring, he’s signed NIL deals with the collectives Ducks Rising and Division Street.

About the On3 NIL Valuation

The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets the standard market NIL value for high school and college athletes. A proprietary algorithm, the On3 NIL Valuation calculates an athlete’s NIL value using dynamic data points targeting three primary categories: performance, influence and exposure.

About On3 NIL Valuation, Brand Value, Roster Value

While the algorithm includes deal data, it does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals athletes have completed to date, nor does it set an athlete’s NIL valuation for their entire career.

The On3 NIL Valuation accounts for an athlete’s roster value and brand value. Roster value is the value an athlete has by being a member of his or her team at his or her school, which factors into the role of NIL collectives. Brand value factors in an athlete’s personal brand and the value it could bring to regional and national brands outside of the scope of NIL collectives.