Colorado's Shedeur Sanders signs NIL deal with Nike: 'You know what Time it is'

Shedeur Sanders secured a notable name, image and likeness (NIL) deal on the eve of Colorado's 2024 season.

The standout quarterback has signed an NIL footwear and apparel deal with Nike, the athletic apparel company announced Wednesday. In its announcement, Nike showcased a poster of Sanders doing his iconic watch flex celebration with text that read, "You know what Time it is."

Sanders will follow in his father's footsteps with the Nike deal. Deion Sanders had a line of cleats produced by Nike during his playing days. Nike relaunched the line after he became Colorado's coach, officially reuniting in July 2023.

The younger Sanders shared on the most recent episode of his podcast, "2Legendary", that he hoped to expand his father's line with Nike.

"I would want to build on it. I want to build on it," Sanders said. "Have like a different version. But I think concept, because I feel like now, like just looking at life and looking at everything, it's more about generational. It's more about what could be passed down year after year after year after year, rather than everybody starting to think they're whole new wave and whole new because there's no real substance behind it.

"Everything that's great has to have a story behind it. Every great player has a story about. So, I feel like when it comes to design or anything like that, it has to have a great design behind it."

Colorado also has an apparel deal with Nike, making it possible for Sanders to rock any custom-made cleats in games. 

Sanders followed his father from Jackson State to Colorado for the 2023 season, putting up impressive production in his first year of FBS play. He threw for 3,230 yards, 27 touchdowns and three interceptions. 

In the process, Sanders became one of the biggest stars in college football as well. In fact, Sanders has the highest NIL valuation ($4.7 million) of any college athlete, according to On3.

While Sanders had an impressive stat line, Colorado went on a skid to end the 2023 season. It finished the year with a 4-8 record, losing seven of its final eight games. 

Still, there's a considerable amount of buzz surrounding Sanders entering the 2024 season as Colorado moves from the Pac-12 to the Big 12. He has +3500 odds to win the Heisman at DraftKings Sportsbook. Looking beyond the 2024 season, Sanders has also been projected to be one of the top prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft. He's currently the odds-on favorite to be the No. 1 overall pick, holding +400 odds for that honor at DraftKings.

Colorado kicks off the 2024 season on Thursday night, when it hosts North Dakota State. Maybe Sanders will debut something from Nike in his first game with the new NIL deal. 

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