Bueckers, Raiola Lead NIL Store's September Sales

UConn All-American, Nebraska freshman sensation highlight NIL apparel top-selling athletes

Michael Ehrlich | Oct 11, 2024

Apr 5, 2024; Cleveland, OH, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) dribbles the ball against the Iowa Hawkeyes in the semifinals of the Final Four of the womens 2024 NCAA Tournament at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

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With college football season in full swing and basketball right around the corner, some familiar-named star athletes led September sales for Campus Ink's NIL Store network.

UConn All-American guard Paige Bueckers - who has been on a world tour of sorts ahead of the upcoming season, from WNBA and NFL games to the U.S. Open - led the way as the top-selling female athlete for September. A month ago, she not only earned that same honor, but also had the two top-selling jerseys across the NIL Store network.

The momentum ahead of the upcoming basketball season continues for Bueckers, who has added partnerships with the likes of CeraVe, Madison Reed and a fashion cover with High Snobiety to her diverse portfolio.

She and USC super sophomore JuJu Watkins will certainly take the throne from former Iowa legend and now WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark as the most talked about - and NIL successful - women's basketball players this season.

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On the men's side, Nebraska freshman quarterback star Dylan Raiola - who recently launched an apparel collection with his Cornhusker legend Dad - was the top-selling male for September as he burst onto the scene as QB1. Raiola's teammate Nash Hutmacher came in at No. 2, leading Nebraska to the distinction of the top-selling school for the month.

Football players dominated the top-10 list, that included big-names players such as Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart, Heisman Trophy candidate running back Ashton Jeanty of Boise State, Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord, among others.

Jeanty just launched a new NIL Store collection highlighting his "Deuce" nickname. He is off to a historic start this season, leading the country in rushing yards (1,031), rushing yards per game (206.2), rushing touchdowns (16) and yards per carry (10.85).

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With the NIL industry's leading merchandise payouts, the Mark Cuban-backed brand puts money directly into athletes' pockets with each sale. NIL store now counts 15,000 athletes and 100 schools nationwide within their network.

Published Oct 11, 2024

MICHAEL EHRLICH

Michael Ehrlich is a seasoned sports marketing executive with experience across the global sports brand, athlete representation, media and education sides of the business. The Founder and CEO of Playbook Marketing, Ehrlich consults with brands on all things NIL and athlete partnerships, advises student-athletes on their personal brand building endeavors and is an adjunct professor at his alma mater, the University of Southern California where he teaches a course on athlete communications and marketing. As a writer, his previous bylines include Boardroom, Business of College Sports, DIME Magazine and UPROXX, among others. You can follow him across social media at @MichaelEhrlich and reach out via michael@playbook-marketing.com