Columbus, Ohio - The Ohio State Buckeyes have surpassed 1,000 Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals in its first year of the agreement. The school now leads in the most student athletes signed to endorsements and the most overall money earned for its sports stars.

Just like their namesake, the Buckeyes are raking in the big bucks.

Collegiate sports, largely unchanged for more than a century, has experienced unprecedented changes within the past year.

Much of these changes have been centered around its governing body's new ruling on Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deals that now allows for student athletes to be paid for promotion around their athletic performances.

After the NCAA's NIL rule went into effect on July 1 2021, a slew of endorsement announcements immediately followed, from large-scale NFT and Nike partnerships to local restaurant and car dealership deals between athletes and brands.

While most schools were caught flat-footed, some schools got out in front - the most successful being The Ohio State University.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are leading the way in the new NIL college sports era, and the athletes putting in the work are finally starting to reap the benefits.

By earlier June, Ohio State athletes across all 36 varsity sports had reached 900 deals totaling nearly $3.5 million over the last 11 months. Since then, that number has significantly risen.

Most famously, Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud teamed up with a high-end luxury car dealer sponsorship, promoting and getting to drive around in Mercedes Benzs.

Including Stroud's, the Buckeyes have achieved more than 1,000 NIL deals, according to a report by the university, ranking first in student athletes signed to endorsement deals across the nation and overall money accumulated from sponsors.

Ohio State's athletic department has made clear that every student athlete has the chance at NIL deals, not just the school's money-making football and basketball players – who in some cases have signed for incredible million-dollar endorsements.