Last school year, North Carolina officially began allowing high school student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness — like college athletes. A dozen students did so, including one who scored a deal worth more than $1 million.
A report from the state Department of Public Instruction released this week found 12 student athletes from 11 different schools signed a total of 17 name, image and likeness deals. The headline deal was the two-year, $1.2 million deal signed by one high schooler. State Board member Wendell Hall noted that was a standout case with a quarterback who generated a lot of buzz.
“$1.2 million is not a bad income for a junior or senior,” Hall quipped. “And I would have thought … there would have been more children, more student athletes than just the 17.”
While the report didn’t name student athletes, it was a lawsuit from the family of Greensboro quarterback Faizon Brandon that pushed the state to allow NIL deals last year. At the time, the lawsuit suggested Brandon was working toward a deal that could be worth more than $1 million.
State officials said the deal was an outlier — the next two highest high school NIL deals were for $10,000, and the rest were just for the monetary value of the item the athlete was endorsing, which included things such as sports drinks and apparel.
The report found no instances of NIL violations — for instance, students endorsing prohibited merchandise or failing to keep up with certain academic requirements.
The state board of education had initially planned to prohibit NIL deals for the 2024-25 school year as it worked to finalize statewide rules, but the Brandon family sued the state in an effort to preserve Brandon’s deal. A Wake County judge sided with the Brandon family last fall, and the board set temporary rules for this past school year.
