11 Athletes That Would Have Made Bank On New NCAA NIL Ruling: Reggie Bush, 'Fab 5' And More

A new ruling from the NCAA that allows incoming and current student-athletes the ability to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL) went into effect on July 1.

One of the big hypothetical questions now being asked is what former NCAA athletes could have made the most money if the ruling was in place when they were in school.

The question posed on Twitter by Joe Pompliano got tons of responses and including a wide range of college athletes over the last several decades. Here is a look at some of the players who likely would have banked under the new NCAA NIL ruling.

Reggie Bush: One of the popular answers on the Twitter thread was former University of South Carolina (USC) running back and NFL player Reggie Bush.

Pompliano said estimates show Bush could have made $4 million to $6 million annually under the new NIL rules. Instead Bush saw his Heisman Trophy taken away because he accepted $300,000 while USC made millions of dollars off of his performance.

Bush took Thursday as an opportunity to issue a statement on working with the NCAA and the Heisman Trophy Trust to try and get his Heisman Trophy back.

“It is my strong belief that I won the Heisman Trophy solely due to my hard work and dedication on the football field,” Bush said.

Johnny Manziel: One of the few players to trademark a phrase on their likeness while in college, Johnny Manziel could have been one of the most sought-after sponsored athletes. Manziel trademarked “Johnny Football” and was one of the most marketable players of all time.

Manziel took to Twitter Thursday to offer support and advice for current college athletes.

“Set up a business. Create Shopify account. Design merch w/ fulfillment to ship and handle customer service. Tweet/IG directly to your fan base,” Manziel tweeted.

He also suggested not ordering too much merchandise ahead of time to make sure excess amounts aren’t left over saying he “learned that lesson the hard way.”

Zion Williamson: One of the hardest items to predict in the hypothetical scenario is how big of an impact the number of playing years in college and the decade they played in would matter.

ZIon Williamson played only one year of basketball at Duke University. During his time, Williamson was one of the biggest recruits and most coveted players in the NBA.

Williamson signed a deal with Nike Inc NKE out of college in a bidding battle between several companies and launched his own signature shoe earlier this year.

Tim Tebow: Playing four years of football at the University of Florida, Tim Tebow is one of the most popular football players of the last two decades. Tebow won two NCAA Championships for Florida during his four-year career.

Tebow was a three-time Heisman Trophy finalist and was the first sophomore to ever win the award.

Tebow has spoken out about not thinking he deserved to be paid while in college while acknowledging the strong demand for Florida jerseys with his number on them.

“I think my jersey was one of the top-selling jerseys around the world. It was like Kobe, LeBron and then I was right behind them,” Tebow said.

After announcing a return to the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars as a tight end, Tebow’s Jaguars jersey became the bestselling one in the NFL Shop in 24 hours of the announcement.

Related Link: NCAA Athletes Can Now Make a Profit Off Their NIL: What To Know And Some Early Deals 

Trevor Lawrence: Clemson University quarterback Trevor Lawrence was the number one overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Despite playing a single down with the Jaguars yet, Lawrence signed deals with PepsiCo, Inc. PEP unit Gatorade and Cryptocurrency company Blockfolio.

Lawrence won the NCAA Football Championship as a freshman in 2019. This win could have scored a large number of regional and national deals for Lawrence under the new NIL rules.

Lawrence played three seasons at Clemson and posted a 34-2 record as a starter.

The Fab Five: One of the greatest recruiting classes in history is considered to be the 1991 University of Michigan Men’s Basketball team, commonly known as “The Fab Five.”

Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson were highly recruited and became the first all-freshman starting team in the NCAA Championship game in history.

A documentary called “The Fab Five” that aired on Walt Disney Co DIS unit ESPN remains one of the most-watched episodes.

The five players helped boost sales of Michigan merchandise and saw high viewership of basketball games and many young basketball players wear baggy shorts and black socks to play like the Fab Five.

Tiger Woods: Many responses on the question of who would have benefitted the most under the new NCAA ruling were basketball and football players.

Another popular answer was golfer Tiger Woods.

While at Stanford University, Wood participated in several PGA Tour events including the 1995 Masters, as well as in several U.S. Amateur titles and an NCAA golf championship.

After two years at Stanford, Woods turned pro and saw huge demand from companies wanting him to endorse products because many believed he had the potential of being the greatest golfer of his generation.

Deals included Nike and Titleist. Woods landed some of the biggest deals ever for a golfer and became a television ratings powerhouse for golf.

Honorable Mentions: Other names mentioned in the comments that could have had strong NIL earnings include Deion Sanders, Brian Bosworth, Jennie Finch, Diana Taurasi and LaMelo Ball.

Some athletes have praised the ruling, others have pointed out the earnings they could have made, and then there’s this from former Duke Blue Devil J.J. Redick:

“From 2004-2006, I would have made a bag on NIL endorsements. Sadly — I would have blown it all on Natty Light and Lacoste polos (with the collars popped, of course),” Redick tweeted.

Photo: Skoch3, via Wikimedia Commons