Hurricane Milton Relief Coming From Miami Hurricanes, Florida Gators Stars' NIL Deal

A star from the Miami Hurricanes and Florida Gators football teams are joining forces to benefit Hurricane Milton relief efforts.

Aug 31, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward (1) throws the ball under pressure from Florida Gators defensive back Jordan Castell (14) during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. / Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

The state of Florida has been ravaged by hurricanes recently. First, it was Hurricane Helene crushing one side of the state, and now Hurricane Milton is impacting the other.

With so much devastation being caused, relief efforts are being set up to help anyone in need. College football stars are even getting in on the action with a unique NIL deal to help benefit Hurricane Milton relief.

Rivals on the field, Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward and Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway are putting their differences aside for a good cause.

They released trading cards with Leaf on Thursday priced at $9.99 and will be on sale through October 17th. All proceeds from the sold cards will be given to the Florida Disaster Fund.

“Leaf has partnered with DJ Lagway to support relief efforts, with 100% of the proceeds from the sale of this card being donated to the Florida Disaster Fund. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the devastation currently unfolding in Florida, and we stand with the community during this challenging time,” per the description on the page selling the card of the Gators star.

Hurricane Milton made landfall late Wednesday night and tore through the region through early Thursday morning. More than 3 million people were left without electricity, as some parts of the state had 18 inches of rain dumped on it.

That led to catastrophic and fatal storm surges that forecasters believed could reach as high as 15 feet.

Hopefully, the off-field efforts by Ward and Lagway are as good as they have been on the field.

The Miami star is one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy Award this season, helping lead the Hurricanes back to prominence, Currently undefeated and ranked No. 6 in the country, the team’s success should lead to even more NIL opportunities for Ward.

He currently has an NIL valuation of $2 million. That is good for seventh across all sports and sixth in college football.

Lagway, a five-star+ recruit was the highest rated quarterback in the 2024 class. His valuation right now is $1.1 million, which is 27th in all of college sports and 18th in college football.

The Florida star is only just beginning his career, as plenty of opportunities will come his way if he lives up to expectations. He has appeared in five games for the team this season, but In his first career start against Samford last month, he threw for 456 yards and three touchdowns.