Aquinas College Volleyball Player First to Capitalize on NIL Deal

Chloe Mitchell, a volleyball player at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Mich., has become one of the first college athletes to monetize their brand on social media. 

Mitchell’s success comes after the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics began allowing athletes to profit off of their name, image and likeness in October. 

Mitchell’s Business Moves: Mitchell has more than 2.6 million TikTok followers and a growing audience on Instagram and YouTube.

She also co-founded Playbooked, an app to connect college athletes with paid opportunities, leading to her first piece of sponsored content with advertisers Bloodline Golf and Delta Putt. 

Mitchell is projected to make between $15,000 and $20,000 in NIL earnings for her work.

NIL Outlook: Beginning on Aug. 1, 2021, college athletes could have more opportunities to make money. 

Recently proposed rule changes will be voted on by the NCAA Division I Council in January. Updated rules would let athletes:

• Earn money from signing autographs and providing lessons
• Use their NIL to promote products and personal appearances

A typical athlete could be able to earn anywhere from $75,000 to $100,000 annually from their NIL, while ESPN estimates that All-Americans in high-profile sports could generate between $500,000 and $2 million per year.