Dia Bell, the five-star quarterback and Texas Longhorns commit has signed a major NIL deal with Gatorade, adding to a growing endorsement portfolio before his senior year even kicks off. The deal comes shortly after Bell was named the 2024 Florida Gatorade Player of the Year, a title earned by only the most elite high school athletes. His numbers justify the hype: 2,597 passing yards and 29 touchdowns in a single season at Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage.

A Natural Fit for Gatorade

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Gatorade has a long-standing tradition of partnering with athletes on the rise, and Bell fits that mold perfectly. He now joins fellow Florida standout DJ Lagway as the only recent prep football players in the state to both win the Gatorade Player of the Year award and sign with the sports drink giant. This move also underscores Gatorade’s continued push into the NIL space, targeting top-tier talent at earlier stages of their careers. Bell’s leadership, arm talent, and marketability make him a smart investment for brands aiming to connect with Gen Z sports fans.

Building a High School NIL Powerhouse

With a current On3 NIL Valuation of $927,000, Bell ranks No. 4 nationally among high school football players. This new partnership with Gatorade follows his initial NIL deal with Leaf Trading Cards and positions him as one of the most valuable amateur athletes in the country. He’s also a confirmed invitee to this summer’s Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles, where top quarterbacks solidify their national reputations. With Bell currently listed as the No. 4 overall player and No. 2 QB in the 2026 class, his rising profile is attracting not only college scouts—but corporate ones too.

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Final Word

Dia Bell isn’t just the future of Texas football—he’s the present of high school NIL. And with Gatorade now backing him, the spotlight is only going to get brighter.

Related: Kentucky turns heads with new NIL structure

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NASHVILLE, TN — The ownership group behind On3, led by Shannon Terry, has reached an agreement to acquire Rivals—the original authority in recruiting, high school sports, and fan communities—from Yahoo Sports.

On3 and Rivals will create a network that will serve millions of fans and student-athletes nationwide, offering unparalleled coverage of college and high school sports, recruiting, and the rapidly evolving NIL landscape. On3 and Rivals subscribers will gain access to premium content across both platforms—dramatically increasing the value of each subscription and elevating the fan experience.

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As part of the transaction, Yahoo Sports will take an ownership stake in the On3 parent company. Yahoo Sports will have a seat on the On3 parent company board and leverage its unique scale to help On3 and Rivals grow their content and subscription businesses.

The deal is expected to close by the end of the second quarter of 2025.

“Rivals is an icon in college sports and recruiting media,” said Shannon Terry, CEO of On3 and original co-founder of Rivals. “We’re excited to build on the momentum behind Rivals, which has a longstanding legacy as the most recognized brand and author of the recruiting industry. We look forward to taking Rivals to new heights with significant new investment focused on recruiting, high school sports, and passionate college fan communities.”

“We’re thrilled to be working with the Yahoo Sports team again,” added Terry. “From the start, it was clear both parties saw tremendous value in a partnership. Yahoo Sports has world-class distribution, a strong editorial platform, and an expansive content network that will play an integral role in the continued growth of On3 and Rivals.

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“Rivals has a proud legacy, a vast network, and has stood among the most respected names in college sports coverage for over two decades,” said Ryan Spoon, President of Yahoo Sports. “It’s long been a cornerstone of our sports ecosystem, and together with On3, we are creating a powerful, future-forward platform that elevates athletes, energizes fans, and drives innovation across the sports industry.”

On3 will maintain its focus on college sports coverage, supported by a powerful database platform and industry-leading reporting on NIL, the transfer portal, and fan-driven media.

About On3
On3 is a leading sports media and technology company delivering trusted coverage, data, and connectivity across youth, high school, and college sports.

About Yahoo
For 30 years and counting, Yahoo has served as a trusted guide for hundreds of millions of people globally, helping them achieve their goals big and small online through our portfolio of iconic products. For advertisers, Yahoo offers omnichannel solutions and powerful data to engage with our brands and deliver results.

(Editor’s note: This is the third installment of a multi-part series by MTN Sports on the current state of college athletics. For Part 1, click here. For Part 2, click here.)

BOZEMAN — Student-athletes have never been more empowered than they are in this current era of collegiate athletics.

With name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities, looser academic eligibility requirements and next to no transfer restrictions, collegiate athletes have more options and can earn as much as someone is willing to pay them. While the effects of the new rules — or lack thereof — are felt in all sports, football is one of the largest drivers of change.

“I think college football’s almost turning into a huge free agency type of landscape, and then there’s good in that and there’s bad in that,” Montana State receiver and return specialist Taco Dowler told MTN Sports. “Having a little bit of extra cash obviously helps. I mean, everyone wants a little bit of extra cash, but we don’t have the amounts that are going to change your life, necessarily, at this level.

“So, learning how to budget, learning how to save, just with a little bit of extra cash, I think is huge. For the (offensive) linemen, I know it’s big for grocery bills. For me, it’s nice to take my girlfriend out on a nice date once a week or whatever that may be.

“And, you just can’t go wrong. You have to be smart with the money that you do have. And I think that us not getting a bunch of money is nice, but us having a little bit of buffer is also good to learn.”

Dowler, a Billings native who has become an All-American punt returner for the Bobcats, is a fan favorite in Bozeman. Fans can be seen wearing “Taco Tuesday on a Saturday” baseball caps or foam tacos on their heads or holding “Taco Time” signs.

Slim Kimmel / MTN Sports

After games, including MSU’s Sonny Holland Classic that concluded the Bobcats’ slate of spring practices in April, the affable athlete is often swarmed by kids wanting photos and signatures.

“I feel like I’m a normal guy until people come up and want to take a picture with me, and I’m like, oh, I guess they think I’m cooler than I actually am,” he deadpanned. “But, it’s really an honor, and it’s really cool that I’ve been put in a position where I can be a role model for kids and show them what to do and how to do it the right way — and that ages all the way up to freshmen that come in here to play with us. And it really is a huge blessing more than anything.”

Dowler is happy to acquiesce and pose for photos as long as fans are lining up, but the small-town fame has also provided him with a platform to benefit. As a marketable star on one of the biggest brands in FCS football, Dowler has earned plenty of NIL offers.

He — like former Montana State quarterback Tommy Mellott, who was recently selected by the Las Vegas Raiders in the 2025 NFL Draft — has turned down some NIL deals that focused solely on him so more members of the team could get a share of the pot.

“(Football is) the best team-sport game you could possibly do, and I think just the closer you are, the more you love your brothers on the team, the better you’re going to perform,” said Dowler.

“I don’t think there’s any, like, jealousy or anything. Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, that’s sweet, dude,’” Bobcats defensive tackle Alec Eckert said. “I mean, we’re all on the same team, we’re all trying to win games and stuff, and if one of your friends gets a cool deal, you feel like you’re part of it, too.”

If Dowler is a poster child demonstrating the potential good of NIL, Eckert is just as strong of an advocate for the transfer portal. After spending three years at Washington State, the Lewiston, Idaho, native transferred to Montana State prior to last season.

“I think, for me, it was a little bit different just because there was no bad blood or anything (at Washington State). It wasn’t like I was leaving with a bad attitude or anything. It was just that school was getting expensive,” said Eckert, who was a walk-on at Washington State. “And I talked to my coach there, and he was pretty good friends with (Montana State head coach Brent Vigen), and he called coach Vigen up for me, and he helped me get recruited here.”

“It’s been the best decision I’ve ever made,” Eckert added. “I mean, I’ve made friends for life and brothers for life on this team and couldn’t be happier with the community and being in Bozeman and being a Montanan.”

Slim Kimmel / MTN Sports

Eckert is one of only eight transfers currently featured on Montana State’s online roster (which does not yet list quarterback Justin Lamson, who is joining MSU from Stanford). On the other hand, the Bobcats lost at least 14 players to the transfer portal after last season’s run to the FCS national championship game.

All-Big Sky Conference performers Scottre Humphrey, Conner Moore, Rohan Jones and Andrew Powdrell left Bozeman for FBS programs New Mexico, Michigan State, Arkansas and UNLV, respectively.

Eckert didn’t criticize any of his former teammates and said the ability to transfer and profit off NIL earnings is generally a good thing but admitted “there’s some disadvantages, too.”

“You see a lot of selfishness and guys, I think, maybe leaving for the wrong reasons and making decisions based solely off finances when they don’t realize that maybe they had a better thing where they were,” Eckert said. “They might not have been making as much money, but they were on a better football team, or they were with better people, and people actually cared about them.”

NIL deals at major college football programs can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars or more. The market is even higher for quarterbacks — around $4 million for the top players, according to CBS Sports — and former Tennessee QB Nico Iamaleava somewhat infamously had a reported NIL dispute with the Volunteers that ultimately led to his transfer to UCLA.

FCS athletes aren’t earning near that ballpark, but, according to a source involved in the NIL marketplace, there’s a “big four” of Montana State, Montana, North Dakota State and South Dakota State that are playing at a different level than their contemporaries.

“None of us are getting $250,000 or $2 million like Nico or whatever,” Dowler said. “It’s just different. It’s hard to grasp how much money that actually is.

“And there’s offers obviously coming in for some people that decide to stay here, and I think that says a lot about your character and your morals.”

With college athletics bracing for the expected approval of a $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement, the University of Kentucky is believed to be the first school to convert its athletic department to a limited-liability holding company.

The creation of Champions Blue LLC, approved last week by the university’s Board of Trustees, is seen as a way for Kentucky to become more nimble in finding new revenue. The pending settlement in the House case will clear the way for schools to share up to $20.5 million annually with their athletes, but name, image and likeness deals on top of that are seen as a key asset in landing and keeping elite recruits — and that takes money.

The plan calls for a board that will have wide experience in fundraising, and the school noted it hopes to “unlock new revenue streams through public-private partnerships and potentially other transactions, such as real estate.”

“There are so many benefits to creating Champions Blue,” said Jacob Most, UK’s director of strategic communications. “It provides the flexibility needed to help us stay well-positioned during this period of continued evolution in college athletics. We will benefit from a new board of internal and outside experts with sports business experience — including in pro sports — that will help guide us in finding revenue streams to support our teams.”

The so-called House settlement and changing landscape were driving factors in the decision, and UK said in its announcement Friday that the changes “will add millions more each year to the expenses of intercollegiate programs.”

It might not work across the board, however.

Making the shift requires thoughtful consideration, said Jim Booz, a former deputy athletic director at Virginia Tech and now the director of college athletics advisory services at the accounting firm James Moore & Co.

“It’s important for every institution to really think about their strategic alignment and what it is that they want to accomplish in this new landscape of college athletics,” Booz said. “Certainly, a move like this one allows the University of Kentucky to be a little bit more agile and nimble in executing, in all likelihood, some strategies that they plan to implement post the House case.”

Helen Drew, a sports law professor at the University of Buffalo, said agility is increasingly valuable in college athletics. As the amateur model vanishes, athletic departments are more inclined to make changes.

“The traditional structure has never fit particularly well, and certainly now it does not fit well at all with the transactional nature of college sports,” Drew said. “This is the first institution to acknowledge that we’re in a different era and that the organizational structures that we’ve used up until this time don’t work well with the new reality.”