Travis Hunter leverages commitment in ‘genius’ move, will result in YouTube dollars

Travis Hunter had the college football world around his finger on National Signing Day in 2021.

He’s doing it all over again a year later. The top-ranked player in On3’s Transfer Portal rankings and former Jackson State two-way star announced Wednesday afternoon he will make his commitment known when he reaches 100,000 YouTube followers.

It’s a brilliant move from the former five-star plus recruit. Since the NCAA put its interim NIL policy into place in 2021, athletes are able to monetize their publicity rights. They’re also able to pull in compensation from their YouTube channels. UCF kicker Donald De La Haye opted to end his career when the NCAA gave him an ultimatum between college football or his YouTube page in 2017.

Since Hunter made the announcement, he’s added more than 10,000 subscribers. As On3’s Chad Simmons reported on Tuesday, Colorado and Georgia have emerged as the teams to watch in his recruitment.

While fans follow Hunter’s YouTube page, they’ll also be boosting his brand value. Between TikTok, Twitter and Instagram alone, he has more than 1.2 million followers.

“It is genius because a subscriber on YouTube is paid by the ad network, not the actual subscriber,” INFLCR founder Jim Cavale told On3. “Everyone is indirectly paying to hear his decision because he will monetize it through the YouTube ad network.”

“… Athletes have really been their own media channel for a decade. I don’t know if they’ve all realized that, to the degree they could, this is an example of doing so. Using a moment where people want a piece of information that you would usually announce on another network that is monetizing it with their own sponsors. Instead, you’re using a platform with an ad network already built in and turning on the monetization tools with scarcity, urgency and exclusivity.”

YouTube will pay when Travis Hunter’s sleeping

As the adage goes in the digital media world, YouTube pays when the creator sleeps. With an ad network built into the platform, Travis Hunter is earning money every time someone watches one of his videos. In a video he dropped earlier this week, titled “What’s Next For Travis Hunter,” the 6-foot-1, 165-pound former Five-Star Plus+ recruit received 450K views and counting.

That number will only jump with a larger subscriber base.

“One of the things about YouTube — and I would tell every student-athlete who has the want to be a content creator to be on YouTube — is you can have those active sponsorships but you will also be making money while you sleep as well off ad revenue,” Opendorse’s senior directing of brand marketing Sam Weber said. “If you’re getting a million views on a video, which is very few and far between for college athletes, you’re making about $5,000 in ad revenue. So, it’s not peanuts.”

Weber pointed out YouTube activation are few and far between on Opendorse. But the average cost is significantly higher than a simple social media post.

Athletes such as the Cavinder Twins have also used YouTube as a revenue stream in the NIL Era. The Miami basketball duo has a daily vlog with more than 80K subscribers.

Deion Sanders teaching athletes how to operate as media company

For all the attention Hunter’s announcement has received, much of the reason he already has a strong YouTube channel is thanks to his coach at Jackson State. Deion Sanders built the media company “Well Off Media”, which is managed by Deion Sanders Jr.

With more than 182,000 subscribers on YouTube, the account is constantly featuring Coach Prime and his players.

“Travis probably wouldn’t have this skill, have the foundation of an audience he already has, or this many followers if it wasn’t for Deion Sanders,” Cavale said. “The power of Deion is not just he was a star athlete in college and understands what you’re going to be dealing with. It’s not just he has children who are your age that are stars now in college and understands the modern athlete. It’s not just he’s one of the best cornerbacks of all time in the NFL.

“On top of all of that, he’s building a true media company that goes wherever he goes. He has a YouTube page he’s tagging and engaging the handles of his players. He’s giving them a spotlight they can latch on to.”

Travis Hunter’s On3 NIL Valuation

There’s been a notable jump in his On3 NIL Valuation since entering the portal, in part due to an increase in his social media following. He now has a $678,000 valuation, a $20,000 jump over the last week. He also has more than 1.2 million social media followers.

Travis Hunter sits at No. 53 in the On3 NIL 100, which is the first of its kind and defacto NIL ranking of the top 100 high school and college athletes ranked by their On3 NIL Valuation. The valuation also ranks No. 30 in college football.

Making the jump from FCS to Division I will only help his evaluation, with more eyeballs on him thanks to a bigger TV deal and recognizable college brand.

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.