Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, Texas’ Arch Manning top CFB NIL rankings

There are plenty of high-profile college football players who have created a lucrative image for themselves both on and off the field. Who’s in the upper echelon of that rank from an economic standpoint?

Here are the five highest-valued college football players in NIL worth according to On3, which unveils a list annually.

5. Alabama QB Jalen Milroe – $1.6 million 

Milroe just wrapped up his first season under center for the Crimson Tide and gradually came into his own as the season progressed. Across 14 games, Milroe totaled 2,834 passing yards, 23 passing touchdowns, six interceptions and a 172.2 passer rating, while completing 65.8% of his passes. He also wreaked havoc on the ground, rushing for 531 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Milroe’s standout moments came in finishing with 374 combined yards (219 passing, 155 rushing) and four rushing touchdowns against LSU, completing a game-winning, 31-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal in the Iron Bowl against Auburn, and helping Alabama knock off Georgia in the SEC Championship Game to get to the College Football Playoff.

4. Texas QB Quinn Ewers – $1.9 million

Originally a member of the Ohio State Buckeyes, Ewers transferred to Texas after the 2021 season and has since blossomed into one of the best signal-callers in the sport.

In what was just his second season as the Longhorns’ quarterback, Ewers totaled 3,479 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns, six interceptions and a 158.6 passer rating, while completing 69.0% of his passes (Ewers completed just 58.1% of his passes in 2022) and smacking in five rushing scores. Furthermore, Ewers helped Texas win the Big 12 for the first time since 2009 and reach the College Football Playoff for the first time since its 2015 introduction.

3. Colorado CB/WR Travis Hunter – $2.3 million

Hunter is one of the most special athletes in recent memory, as the soon-to-be junior has served as a two-way player across his first two collegiate seasons, which have been split between Colorado and Jackson State.

A lacerated liver sidelined Hunter for three games this season, but he was spectacular in the nine games that he appeared in for Colorado. As a defensive back, Hunter reeled in three interceptions. Meanwhile, he hauled in 57 receptions for 721 yards and five touchdowns as a wide receiver, while logging three 100-plus receiving yard games.

2. Texas QB Arch Manning – $2.8 million

Some things never change: death, taxes, Tom Cruise coming out with a new “Mission: Impossible” movie every four years, and the emergence of another Manning.

Arch Manning, the grandson of former Ole Miss star and NFL quarterback Archie Manning, and the nephew of two-time Super Bowl champion quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Eli Manning, committed to Texas in 2022 as a five-star recruit and served as the Longhorns’ primary third-string quarterback in 2023. He did appear in two games as a freshman this season, completing his first pass in Week 13. Manning is next in line at quarterback for Texas behind Ewers in the wake of Maalik Murphy transferring to Duke.

1. Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders – $4.7 million

Shedeur Sanders, the son of Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, put together an encouraging debut season in a Power 5 conference. Across 11 starts, Sanders totaled 3,230 passing yards, 27 passing touchdowns, three interceptions and a 151.7 passer rating while completing 69.3% of his passes. He also registered four rushing touchdowns. 

Like Ewers, Sanders is among the early quarterback headliners for the 2025 NFL Draft. Entering his senior season, Sanders and the Buffaloes look to improve on a 4-8 campaign in what will be their first season in the Big 12.

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