The idea of NIL entering the high school sports landscape has raised some eyebrows and concerns, due to the current landscape of the NCAA and college sports and how they have handled the new rule thus far.
Though there are numerous questions still needed to be asked about the extent of NIL in high school sports, one of its many benefits was displayed on Wednesday afternoon at Grayson High School.
Five-star Grayson linebacker and the No. 10 overall player in the class of 2026, junior Tyler Atkinson, signed an NIL deal with Adidas to be a part of their “Adizero 7 Class” in June and is already hooking up his teammates with some gear for the rest for the season. The “Adizero 7 Class” is a collaboration between the footwear company and the sports media outlet, Overtime. Atkinson is the only player from Georgia to be included in the class.
Yesterday, Atkinson gave back to his team by giving them each a pair of Adidas cleats, showing his appreciation for his teammates’ hard work and devotion to becoming the best team they could be.
On3′s No. 1 ranked linebacker in the 2026 class, Tyler Atkinson inked an NIL deal with adidas in June.
He gifted his Grayson (Georgia) High School team new adidas cleats Wednesday as part of the agreement.
via @PeteNakos_: https://t.co/z6pSIrHl8J pic.twitter.com/uNYkX88TqU
— On3 NIL (@On3NIL) October 3, 2024
“I’m thankful for each and everyone of y’all,” Atkinson said during the Grayson team meeting yesterday. “I wouldn’t want to be a part of any other team, because yall put in so much work and I am glad to be a part of this team. I have been blessed to give y’all a gift, I got you guys some brand new cleats.”
Atkinson’s speech was followed by a roar of applause and excitement from the Grayson football team, as the linebacker presented two cleat-options for his teammates.
Name, image and likeness was implemented by the Georgia High School Association in October of 2023 and have made amendments to the rule since it was established. When it started, Georgia high school athletes were allowed to engage in any NIL activities with three provisions such as it wasn’t based on athletes performance, it didn’t dictate where you enroll in school and it can’t be from the school. In July, the GHSA made a major change in saying NIL was not allowed to be from an NIL collective or NIL club, but players are still allowed to promote products and so forth.
The Grayson-product is ranked as the No. 1 player in the state of Georgia for the class of 2026 and has received offers from every major college football program such as Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee and Alabama, including being in attendance in Tuscaloosa last weekend for the fireworks in the Georgia vs Alabama game.
According to MaxPreps, the junior is averaging a little over 10 tackles per game and has recorded 51 total tackles and nine tackles for loss so far this season.
The 6-foot-2, 205-pound linebacker from Loganville has had an accomplished high school career thus far including a First-Team All-State nod from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and another from the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association.
As a freshman in 2022, he was invited to play in the FBU Freshman All-American Bowl where he was named as a top performer as well as being named a MaxPreps Freshman All-American. Before even entering high school, Atkinson was the first ever eighth-grader to be invited to the All-American Bowl and participated in the UA Next All-American Game.
Atkinson’s recruitment will continue to heat up with teams across the country flocking to one of the top linebackers in the Class of 2026.
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