With NIL endorsements on the line, having a lot of social media followers for a collegiate athlete can mean big bucks.
And right now on Instagram, four out the top five most-followed NCAA basketball players from the 2025 March Madness tournament are female, according to multiple reports including on Sportskeeda.
Which one guy made the cut? Duke’s Cooper Flagg. The Blue Devil clocks in at 1 million followers. Like many of the most in-demand young athletes, his entire bio consists of the email contact for the person in charge of his NIL “business inquiries.” The popular forward currently stars with two of the women (No. 4 and No. 1) who out-rank him on this list in a Gatorade commercial.
Flagg, however, out-paces the women in endorsement deal income, boasting a $4.8 million NIL valuation, according to On3. (Valuations aren’t available for three of the women on this list.)
Coming in at No. 4 is Juju Watkins, at 1.1 million followers, who also used her bio to spread the word about her agent. But the injured USC star — who partners with Nike, Gatorade and more — did add a personal touch to her platform with her most recent Instagram Story: “Thank you for all the incredible love and support,” began the message to her fans. “Seeing all your…
