Shedeur Sanders was the NIL king for a good while, but with his move to the pros, it looks like there’s a new race to the top for those NIL bucks. Right now, Texas Longhorns QB Arch Manning’s leading the pack with a $6.5 million valuation, and Carson Beck’s right behind him at $4.3 million. Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway’s also in the mix, sitting on a $3.8 million NIL fortune. Looks like Billy Napier’s guy is making moves to climb those rankings, and he’s taking a page out of Michigan quarterback Sherrone Moore’s playbook. After all, Moore’s QB shot up in value after landing a big deal with a trading card company. Meanwhile, the Gators QB is also focused on giving back after signing some major NIL agreements.

You know how wild college football recruiting can get, right? Take the No. 1 recruit and all the drama with his commitment, for example. Sherrone Moore and the Wolverines were all set to try and snag the quarterback from Brian Kelly’s LSU Tigers. Word on the street was Michigan swooped in with a big $10 million NIL offer. Bryce Underwood’s NIL deal even included a partnership with Feldman Chevrolet of Highland. Back in November, right after committing to Ann Arbor, the Wolverines star signed his first on-card autographs with Leaf Trading Cards. He dropped autographed trading cards for $1,900 and $50 jersey tees for preorder. Now, Lagway’s catching that same kind of buzz.

On April 4, Leaf Trading Cards tweeted, “Please join us in welcoming DJ Lagway to the Leaf family—now an exclusive autograph signer! Big things coming👀🏈.” They gave a shout-out to the star freshman quarterback at Florida. They even noted down his stats on the card. “60% completion percentage, 1915 pass yards, 12/9 TD/INT 50 carries for 101 yards.” The trading card giant has had their eyes on the Gators QB for quite some time now. After all, the five-star plus prospect and top-ranked quarterback in the 2024 recruiting class was named Gatorade National Player of the Year. The endorsement deal with Leaf Trading Cards includes releasing a NextGen autograph card as part of the agreement.

The card is up for purchase at $69.99. With this, Lagway joins the rich legacy that the brand proudly boasts of. Leaf has worked with many high-profile athletes in the last 31 months. Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava and former USC Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams are both part of the big Leaf Trading Cards fam. Now that Lagway’s got that NIL money flowing, it looks like he’s striking the right balance between living life king-size and making meaningful contributions to society.

DJ Lagway’s off-field legacy begins

One question must be looming in the fans’ hearts—What was the first purchase Lagway made with his big NIL check? Lagway replied, “Mercedes. A little C-Class… It was nice. It was about $30,000.” Kept it pretty grounded, though. The Gators QB didn’t go all out on a G-Wagon or a Maybach, stuck with a C-Class. Got to respect that, especially since he’s got bigger plans.

He just started his own foundation to help out with charity stuff. Lagway didn’t hesitate to throw some of his time and NIL money toward good causes. Back on March 10th, he threw the DJ Lagway Foundation Kickoff Dinner. What was the goal? To raise $50,000 for local youth through UF Health. He even made it a whole event with silent and live auctions featuring art from Alex Ruiz.

A quick 10-minute painting of Lagway went for $9,000, and another piece almost hit $7,000. All of DJ Lagway’s close folks were there cheering on his new project. He and his mom, Niki Lagway, talked about their family’s commitment to giving back, something he learned from his grandma.

He said, “Through NIL, I have the chance to be part of that change and use this opportunity for good. And I’m so thankful for everyone who joined us at the foundation kickoff dinner.” Living it up, but giving back even more—Lagway’s setting a new standard for players with a purpose.