Olivia Dunne is called LSU Queen for a reason! The 22-year-old gymnast is among the most popular collegiate athletes in the country. Along with that, her social media presence is also towering, making her one of the favorite stars for brands. Unsurprisingly, Dunne has done incredibly well with the NCAA’s NIL (name, image, and likeliness) regulations. And even though she isn’t the top earner on the NIL list, the reigning NCAA champ is definitely winning on other fronts.

Along with Livvy, Colorado Buffaloes’ QB Shedeur Sanders is also a top attraction for sponsors to help them make their brands more popular. Even with Dunne’s recent collaboration with boxing star and YouTuber Jake Paul, she hasn’t been able to topple Sanders from his high seat. However, Sanders has a long way to go to catch up with his NCAA colleague in other areas.

Olivia Dunne leaves Shedeur Sanders in the dust

On3’s updated NIL rankings show the Colorado senior sitting comfortably at the top of the list with an estimated $6.2 million valuation. With a $4 million valuation to her name, Dunne is closing the gap quickly and might be on her way to overtaking the football sensation soon. But she’s much, much, ahead in terms of the number of social media followers. With a staggering 13.6 million followers across various social media platforms (Instagram, TikTok, and X), Dunne’s number obliterates Sanders who is yet to reach the 3 million mark.

Moreover, with her latest venture with Paul, Dunne’s valuation and earnings are expected to rise even more. The gymnast and the social media influencer met at a party earlier this year, and Paul’s vision to bring affordable skincare products to the Gen Z crowd enthralled the LSU star. “I met Jake last summer at Michael Rubin’s White Party. Seeing how passionate he was in person really made me want to work with him,” Dunne told WWD about her latest NIL deal.

Livvy will be returning to the Baton Rouge campus for one last year. With that, she hopes to also be a member of the LSU which defended its first-ever national title. Winning the program’s first NCAA title last season, Dunne is understandably soaring high, and she’d want to keep the momentum going along with eyeing to make the most of the NIL regulations for her final college year. But she doesn’t need to fret about her earnings, we’d imagine.

Dunne isn’t slowing down right now

In a podcast interview in 2023, Livvy revealed that she earned close to $500,000 from one single social media post, underscoring the raging popularity she revels in. However, she also emphasized that long-term deals are something that she fancies even more, and wants to explore. “What I love with certain brands is getting long-term brand deals. Those are probably the best because you build a relationship with the brand and they want you year after year,” she said during the interview. Walking the talk, Olivia Dunne now boasts over 20 brand deals under her belt, including enchanting collaborations with Body Armour, Nautica, and American Eagle.

However, despite all this, Dunne believes the NCAA should pay more attention to empowering women student-athletes through its NIL regulations. “Women’s sports, in general, it’s quite unfair still with NIL,” she told FLAUNT last month, as she noted her displeasure at seeing how basketball, football, and baseball rakes in tons of money while gymnastics still has to live to scrapes.

How do you reckon this situation could be changed? Share your suggestions below!