Graham Mertz lands Range Rover at discount price thanks to NIL

Graham Mertz is riding around Gainesville, Florida, with a new set of wheels.

The Florida quarterback, who transferred from Wisconsin, announced his commitment to the Gators in late December.

He has now landed a Range Rover Sport Supercharged in an NIL partnership with Essential Motors NJ. The car dealership buys and sells vehicles, and it ships nationwide.

The agreement does not give Mertz the keys for free but it does provide a favorable discount on the car. The Range Rover’s initial retail value was $80,000.

Within days of coach Luke Fickell landing at Wisconsin, Mertz announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal. He finished last season with 2,136 passing yards, 19 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. A highly touted four-star quarterback coming out of high school, he made the move to Florida, looking for a fresh start in the SEC.

When Mertz decided to commit to Florida, he may not have been the favorite to start at quarterback this fall. But with Jaden Rashada released from his national letter of intent, among other attrition at the position, the Gators currently have just three scholarship quarterbacks. Ohio State transfer Jack Miller and redshirt freshman Max Brown will also challenge Mertz for the job this spring.

Florida head coach Billy Napier was blunt earlier this month about the quarterback situation.

“We definitely will be in the market in the spring,” Napier said. “If there presents an opportunity, there’s a player that passes evaluation, we certainly would be in the market for another player there.”

With a 19–13 record during his time at Wisconsin, Mertz has the most starting experience in Florida’s quarterback room. He has also been active in college athletics’ new space, signing with Panini America and Pepsi in the first 19 months of NIL.

Graham Mertz’s On3 NIL Valuation

The former Wisconsin quarterback has a $149,000 On3 NIL Valuation. The valuation ranks in the top 250 among college football players.

Since announcing his decision to transfer to Florida, Mertz has seen his social media following rise. He currently has more than 97,000 followers across Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.

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.