Latest news with #NorrisSellers
Fox News
10 hours ago
- Business
- Fox News
South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers rejected tempting transfer offers, the college football star's father says
The advent of name, image, and likeness (NIL) has significantly altered the college sports landscape. High-profile college athletes will often consider projected NIL figures before they commit to or transfer to another school. South Carolina football star LaNorris Sellers received tempting offers designed to entice him to enter the transfer portal. "He was offered all kinds of crazy numbers," Sellers' father, Norris, told The Athletic. The South Carolina quarterback ultimately turned down the offers in favor of remaining with the Gamecocks, according to his father. At least one of the lucrative proposals "he heard was for $8 million for two years," Sellers' father said. He also suggested that his son never intended to play college football to simply "make money" and that another university "offering more" wasn't enough to motivate the quarterback to transfer. "I told him he could say, 'I'm gonna stay or I'm gonna go.' [But] my two cents: It was to get into college on a scholarship, play ball, get our degree, and go on about our business," Norris Sellers said. "This NIL deal came later. We didn't come here to make money. We came here to get our education, play ball, and with schools calling, we're not gonna jump ship because they're offering more than what we're getting. If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Sellers, who will be classified as a redshirt sophomore this fall, finished the 2024 season with 2,534 passing yards and 18 touchdowns. He will be eligible for the NFL draft after the 2025 college season. Sellers and South Carolina are slated to open the regular season on Aug. 31 against Virginia Tech in Atlanta. College athletes started receiving compensation for their names, images, and likenesses in 2021. At the time, many athletic boosters formed groups called collectives. The collective effectively tapped NIL funds as de facto salaries for their respective teams. Prominent players have received millions of dollars from collectives. However, a federal judge's recent decision on a $2.8 billion settlement paved the way for college and university athletic departments to cut checks directly to athletes. Judge Claudia Wilken approved the multi-billion The House v. NCAA settlement. Wilken's ruling came just weeks before July 1, the date many schools planned to begin issuing payments directly to athletes. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Fox Sports
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Fox Sports
South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers Turned Down Multiple Pricey NIL Transfer Deals
LaNorris Sellers is back at South Carolina after his breakout 2024 season, hoping to lead the Gamecocks to the College Football Playoff after narrowly missing the 12-team field last year. But even though Sellers wasn't draft-eligible, the threat of South Carolina losing its starting quarterback still loomed this offseason. Sellers received multiple name, image, and likeness (NIL) offers from other schools, hoping he would transfer from South Carolina over the offseason, his father, Norris Sellers, told The Athletic. The largest offer Norris received from another was an $8 million deal over two years, according to the elder Sellers. Ultimately, Sellers remained in South Carolina after his father advised him that he didn't need the money that other schools were offering. "He was offered all kinds of crazy numbers," Norris Sellers told The Athletic. "I told him he could say, I'm gonna stay or I'm gonna go. By my two cents: It was to get into college on a scholarship, play ball, get our degree and go on about our business. This NIL deal came later. We didn't come here to make money. We came here to get our education, play ball, and with schools calling, we're not gonna jump ship because they're offering more than what we're getting. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. "You're 19. You don't need [$8 million]. You're in a great spot. There were several talks, but it never really crossed his mind [to leave]. It's a challenge with colleges offering younger guys that kind of money. Who's gonna say no to $8 million for two years? They're gonna be swayed if you don't have the right people in your corner." Norris Sellers didn't share which schools reached out to potentially get his son to transfer from South Carolina. If they were successful, though, Sellers would've likely been the top player to enter the transfer portal this offseason. He won SEC Freshman of the Year and was named third-team All-SEC in 2024 after throwing for 2,534 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions to go with 674 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns in 12 games. As a result of Sellers' strong play, South Carolina went 9-4 in 2024, going 3-4 against ranked opponents. It made a late surge in the CFP rankings as well, finishing No. 15 in the final ranking before the 12-team field was unveiled. While Sellers turned down NIL offers from other schools, he did accept a package from South Carolina. The program rewarded him with an NIL deal through its collective, The Garnet Trust, in December. The terms of the deal weren't disclosed and have yet to be reported. Sellers will enter the 2025 college football season as one of the most valuable players in the sport, so it'd be easy to imagine that it cost South Carolina a good bit of dough to keep him around. He has the sixth-highest NIL valuation among all college athletes entering the 2025-26 academic year at $3.8 million, per On3. [Related: Top 25 college athletes with highest NIL valuations] Still, Sellers insisted that his decision to remain at South Carolina wasn't related to money. "I've been playing football all of my life for free," Sellers told The Athletic. "I've built relationships here, my family's here, my brother's here. There's no reason for me to go someplace else and start over." Sellers, who is entering his redshirt sophomore season, has also been projected to be a potential first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt recently ranked Sellers as the eighth-best quarterback in college football entering the 2025 season. He also ranked South Carolina 11th in his post-spring top 25 poll, largely due to Sellers. Sellers will also enter the year as one of the favorites for the Heisman, holding the seventh-best odds to win the award (+1800) at DraftKings Sportsbook. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily. recommended Get more from College Football Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Daily Mail
17 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
College QB, 19, rejected stunning $8million offer to switch schools
The South Carolina Gamecocks are poised to be one of the best teams in college football next season and that's mostly thanks to their star quarterback. LaNorris Sellers is a Heisman favorite who can torch defenses through the air and on the ground - making him a perfect candidate for an early-round draft choice. It's that potential and pedigree that led one school to try and poach him from Columbia this past offseason. According to Sellers' father (via The Athletic), the quarterback was offered a two-year, $8million NIL deal from another school - which was declined. 'He was offered all kinds of crazy numbers,' Norris Sellers said. 'I told him he could say, I'm gonna stay or I'm gonna go. 'By my two cents: It was to get into college on a scholarship, play ball, get our degree and go on about our business. This NIL deal came later. We didn't come here to make money. 'We came here to get our education, play ball, and with schools calling, we're not gonna jump ship because they're offering more than what we're getting. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' LaNorris shared a similar sentiment: 'I've been playing football all my life for free. I've built my relationships here, my family's here, my brother's here. There's no reason for me to go someplace else and start over.' The old era (and by old, we mean since 2021) of college football saw boosters and donors offer outrageous amounts of money to players to transfer or stay at their schools. At the end of last season, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers was offered a rumored $6m to transfer to an unnamed school. He chose to enter the NFL Draft instead and was selected by the Miami Dolphins. Elsewhere, Carson Beck signed a reported $4m offer to transfer from Georgia to Miami. But now, there's a new era of college football after the 'House settlement' was passed - allowing schools to pay their athletes directly via a revenue-sharing agreement. Over the next year, the House settlement will allow each school to share up to $20.5m a year with their athletes. It now finally forces colleges and universities competing at the highest levels of the NCAA to face the reality that their players are responsible for the billions in television and other revenue brought in from athletics each year. Thanks to this settlement, college sports are now a fully and completely professional enterprise - with top stars in football and basketball specifically standing to gain the most on their paths to the NFL and NBA. But as for Sellers, he's primarily focused on trying to get the Gamecocks to their first SEC Championship since 2010. Last season, the redshirt freshman led the Gamecocks to a 9-4 record while throwing for 2,534 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushing for 674 yards and seven touchdowns. 'He's made of the right stuff,' South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer said. 'He's got a great family around him. He knows what he means to this state. LaNorris has a chance to leave a legacy here.'
Reuters
a day ago
- Sport
- Reuters
Gamecocks QB LaNorris Sellers offered $8M to transfer, dad says
June 16 - South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers is expected to be one of the best quarterbacks in the Southeastern Conference this season and, potentially, a high pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. According to his father, Sellers' stock was so high following his breakout 2024 campaign that schools made the family lucrative offers to induce him to transfer. In a story published by The Athletic on Monday, Norris Sellers said his son's highest offer was for two years and $8 million. The schools that reached out were not identified. "He was offered all kinds of crazy numbers," Norris told the outlet. "I told him he could say, 'I'm gonna stay or I'm gonna go.' (But) my two cents: It was to get into college on a scholarship, play ball, get our degree and go on about our business. This NIL deal came later. We didn't come here to make money. We came here to get our education, play ball, and with schools calling, we're not gonna jump ship because they're offering more than what we're getting. If it ain't broke, don't fix it." In his sophomore season -- his first as a starter -- Sellers completed 65.6 percent of his passes for 2,534 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He added 674 yards and seven scores on the ground. Most notably, Sellers helped the Gamecocks upset intrastate rival Clemson 17-14 on Nov. 30. He threw for 164 yards and rushed for 166 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning score on a third-and-16 play with 1:08 to go. Sellers earned third-team all-SEC honors (behind Ole Miss' Jaxson Dart and Texas' Quinn Ewers) while helping South Carolina finish the regular season 9-3 before a Citrus Bowl loss to Illinois. NIL endorsement deals poured in over the offseason, but his father advised him not to chase more money from rival schools. "You're 19," Norris said. "You don't need ($8 million). You're in a great spot. There were several talks, but it never really crossed his mind (to leave). It's a challenge with colleges offering younger guys that kind of money. Who's gonna say no to $8 million for two years? They're gonna be swayed if you don't have the right people in your corner." --Field Level Media
New York Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
How LaNorris Sellers, a QB no one knew a year ago, became projected top-5 NFL Draft pick
LaNorris Sellers' first college start left South Carolina fans wondering if the former unheralded quarterback recruit could handle life in the SEC. The opponent was Old Dominion. Trailing 19-16 in the fourth quarter, LaNorris misfired while throwing downfield on a third-and-3, passing up a 5-yard out route near midfield, drawing some groans. The Gamecocks lined up to go for it, but a false start by a freshman left tackle snuffed out that idea, which garnered loud boos. South Carolina's defense responded, forcing a fumble inside Old Dominion's 10 before LaNorris barrelled in on a three-yard touchdown run that secured a 23-19 win. Advertisement His passing numbers: 10 of 23 for 114 yards. LaNorris' father, Norris, said his biggest fear was that 'the blogs would crush him' if and when his son struggled. And sure enough, LaNorris saw the criticism. '(LaNorris) called me and said, 'Yo, people are killing me on Twitter,'' said then-South Carolina offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains, now the head coach at Appalachian State. 'I said, 'I've been an offensive coordinator for nine years. They're gonna kill you and me every week, but don't worry about it.' 'He said, 'Hey, I was nervous.' And I said it's OK to be nervous. You played in front of 80,000 people in a program that you grew up watching. He grew up real fast.' The ups and downs of LaNorris' early starts mimic how he arrived in Columbia, S.C. Head coach Shane Beamer can vividly recall a summer day in 2022 during his program's high school 7-on-7 camp. The biggest name there was one-time 2024 No. 1 prospect Jadyn Davis, a senior quarterback who, as a 13-year-old, had been offered scholarships by Alabama and Georgia. Beamer liked him a lot, he said, but as he watched Davis and another quarterback, he said there was 'zero doubt in my mind, the best quarterback in the camp was LaNorris Sellers,' a three-star recruit from Florence, S.C., that the Gamecocks had not offered. It baffled LaNorris' high school coach, Drew Marlowe, whose faith in LaNorris kept him motivated after his 2-6 coaching debut at South Florence High in 2020. LaNorris had ideal size and athleticism and was also a terrific student, but Beamer said that South Carolina still wanted to see a little bit of his senior film. True to his word, Beamer watched — or more like marveled at — LaNorris' film every Friday. 'My gosh, how many times can a guy throw '4 Verticals' for a touchdown because he did it like five times a game?' Beamer remembered. Still, he said, it was midway through LaNorris' senior season in 2022 before the program finally offered him a scholarship. 'I'd love to sit here and tell you, yeah, we knew it all along. But we didn't offer him until October of his senior year. And even then, it wasn't a slam dunk.' The 6-foot-3, 240-pound quarterback, just 19 years old, who almost no one had heard of a year ago and who didn't get an offer from the Gamecocks until late in his senior year, is now projected to be a top-5 pick in next year's NFL Draft. Loggains, a former NFL offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans, New York Jets, Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins, arrived at South Carolina from Arkansas in December, about six weeks after the Gamecocks had offered LaNorris, who was committed to Syracuse at the time. Loggains watched LaNorris' tape and asked about him. Advertisement 'They asked, 'Do you like him?' I was like, 'I love him,' Loggains said. He loved that LaNorris — a big goal scorer as a high school soccer star — had great feet and that he'd overcome setbacks, having bounced back from a season-ending chest injury the previous season. Loggains was even more impressed once he started hearing the questions the 17-year-old was asking: What Loggains believed in, scheme-wise; about other quarterbacks he'd coached who were similarly-styled; about when and why you change protections; about footwork in the shotgun. Loggains also liked that, unlike almost every other recruit he'd been talking to, LaNorris never asked about name, image and likeness. 'His questions were very mature,' Loggains said. 'I thought there was something special about his makeup. Seeing the talent was easy. I was wondering why we weren't recruiting him at Arkansas.' The Gamecocks had a week until LaNorris planned to sign with Syracuse in 2022's early signing period in late December. LaNorris had flipped from Virginia to Syracuse when UVA quarterback coach Jason Beck and OC Robert Anae moved to Syracuse. 'He had built relationships with them,' said Loggains. 'He is very much about trust. He's not a young kid. He's watching. He's listening. He's very perceptive. He judges everything. What a blessing to be there at that time, having a superstar right underneath your nose.' LaNorris' mother, Cheryl, implored her son to think carefully about his decision. 'My mom said, 'What happens if you go up there and that same coaching staff isn't there when you're there? I don't want you to go up there and get stuck so far away when you can stay home and play in the best conference,'' LaNorris recalled. 'And, they (Beck and Anae) were there for (only) six months after.' But for someone so much about trust and relationships, telling Beck and Anae that he wasn't coming to Syracuse was one of the hardest things he's ever done. 'I was supposed to sign that Wednesday, but I felt so bad that I ended up pushing my signing back until late Friday,' said LaNorris. 'I second-guessed myself a bunch in those three days.' Advertisement At South Carolina, LaNorris redshirted in 2023, sitting behind Spencer Rattler, who became like a big brother to him. Loggains prepped LaNorris as best he could for 2024. 'I threw Sellers out of practice like once a week,' he said. In late September, after Rattler had gone 18 of 20 against Mississippi State, LaNorris was put in for the two-minute drill and threw a pick on the first play. He ended up getting the boot. LaNorris was determined to bounce back. Every morning, he came into the office at 6:15 with his notebook and his breakfast and would watch tape with Loggains. 'I knew Sellers would be the quarterback in '24,' Loggains said. 'I wanted to callus him, be really hard on him, and see if he could take it. If he was immature, pouting, throwing his helmet, then you find a transfer portal kid. There were transfer kids available, who were good kids who wanted to come after Spencer left. But Sellers didn't flinch. I knew he was gonna be able to play.' LaNorris, who from an early age aspired to be an architect, also aspired to be like his regional NFL team's former starting quarterback: Cam Newton. LaNorris' dad, Norris, a truck driver, is a big Carolina Panthers fan. 'I would tell him he plays just like Cam and he kind of looked like him,' said Norris. 'I think that gave him the mindset: If (Cam) can do it, I can do it.' LaNorris became such a fan that as soon as he learned to write in cursive, he wrote Newton a letter. He was 11. 'I don't remember what I wrote,' LaNorris said, 'but I imagine it was something cringey.' 'He brings me this letter when I'm in the kitchen,' Cheryl recalled. 'It was the typical kid stuff: 'I'm your biggest fan. I want to be like you when I grow up.'' She chuckled. 'I didn't send it to him. I kept it.' ('She never mailed it out?' LaNorris said. 'She told me she'd mailed it out!') LaNorris practiced hard from a young age. When he entered sixth grade, he began working with a private quarterback coach, Ramon Robinson, whom LaNorris said has been 'super important' in his development. His parents drove him all over to sync up with Robinson for training on weekends in the offseason: to South Florence, Myrtle Beach, Columbia, Greenville, Atlanta. Advertisement The hard work was paying off. When Marlowe had thoughts of resigning at South Florence, he realized he had a special player in LaNorris — even if almost no college coaches realized it. Marlowe believed LaNorris struggled with confidence in high school — perhaps some of it stemming from his ranking as a three-star, or the lack of college buy-in. LaNorris' dream school was North Carolina. Marlowe reached out to them several times, he said, but the Tar Heels weren't interested. So before every game in LaNorris' senior season, Marlowe would grab him by his facemask and tell him, 'You're the best player on this field. Believe it, and play like it!' LaNorris can still hear those words: It's your team! Nobody else can stop you! 'He did that all the time,' LaNorris said. 'He did it every game, and after a while, you start to believe it.' Developing that mindset changed how LaNorris played. 'If you fully believe you're the best, you'll play like it,' he said. 'If you second-guess yourself and you're not confident in yourself, you won't play to your full potential.' His senior year, he led the Bruins to the 4A state title, throwing 45 touchdowns and just two interceptions while running for more than 1,300 yards and 17 touchdowns. When LaNorris struggled against Old Dominion, he conceded it was hard to block out all the outside noise. 'There's not really any way to escape it, whether it's from YouTube, TikTok or texting me stuff like that,' he said. 'I needed to learn from (that game) and just get better from it. Don't let it linger because if I did, it would've carried over to the rest of the season.' LaNorris responded with a cleaner performance the following week in his SEC road debut, completing 10 of 14 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-6 romp at Kentucky. He was even more impressive a week later against LSU, when he broke off a 75-yard touchdown run. He did, however, suffer a high ankle sprain right before halftime in a back-and-forth game that LSU rallied to win 36-33. Advertisement South Carolina played its worst game of the season coming off a bye week after LSU, losing 27-3 to Ole Miss. Loggains said LaNorris probably shouldn't have played because of his ankle: 'He gritted through it. They beat the crap out of him.' South Carolina was 3-3 at midseason, having dropped two of its previous three. That's when LaNorris, despite playing behind a porous offensive line, and the defense took over. The Gamecocks won the final six games of the regular season, and LaNorris saved his best performance for the finale rivalry game, at No. 12 Clemson. He ran for 166 yards and two touchdowns to lead a 17-14 comeback victory. LaNorris' wizardry as a runner gutted Clemson, starting with a dazzling 38-yard run before powering through the entire Clemson front four on the game's second play. He capped things off with a 20-yard touchdown scamper, bursting past and then around the defense on a third-and-16 in the game's final minute. 'After the game, I jumped over the wall to run on the field,' said Cheryl. 'Then, I turned around to see what looked like a million people running. I'm thinking, 'Oh my God, I made a mistake!' I'm scared, but by then, it was too late. I just had to run. But Coach D-Lo (Loggains) found me and helped me barrel through people to get to LaNorris, who gave me the biggest hug.' LaNorris admitted that beating Clemson in Death Valley had even more sweetness because the Tigers never offered him. 'I went to their camp. I felt like I had a good day.' NFL draft analysts — and rival coaches — are now all-in on LaNorris. The Athletic's Dane Brugler projects LaNorris going second in 2026. One mock at CBS Sports also has him going No. 2; ESPN has him going No. 4. Loggains, who spent two decades in the NFL, said it's not shocking to see folks talking about LaNorris as a potential top pick. 'This kid has created an unbelievable buzz of splash plays. There's some intermediate accuracy stuff that he's gonna improve on naturally. From an arm standpoint, there's no question.' Advertisement Right now, LaNorris' greatest superpower is his ability to extend plays because of his quick feet. But for Beamer, LaNorris's most impressive trait is his humility. 'He hasn't let any of this stuff go to his head,' Beamer said. 'No matter what's happening, whether it's after the Clemson game, when he made a play that will go down as one of the greatest plays in South Carolina history when he ran for the game-winning touchdown on a third-and-16, or it's a Saturday morning in the middle of a spring practice, he's the same. That is a great quality to have in life, but especially as a quarterback.' Plus, big endorsements in the NIL have flowed in fast. 'He basically got out of a Chevrolet Malibu into a Mercedes CLE,' Norris said. Later this month, LaNorris will close on a home in Columbia. He's also encouraged his father to get a new truck, as Norris is still driving his 2007 GMC Yukon. 'I said, 'For what? Every mile on that truck is all those memories of driving you to camps, to coaches,'' Norris said with a chuckle. Endorsement deals aren't the only offers that have flowed in for LaNorris. His dad said other schools reached out to see if he was interested in transferring, and the biggest offer he heard was for $8 million for two years. 'He was offered all kinds of crazy numbers,' Norris said. 'I told him he could say, I'm gonna stay or I'm gonna go. By my two cents: It was to get into college on a scholarship, play ball, get our degree and go on about our business. This NIL deal came later. We didn't come here to make money. We came here to get our education, play ball, and with schools calling, we're not gonna jump ship because they're offering more than what we're getting. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' 'You're 19,' Norris added, 'You don't need ($8 million). You're in a great spot. There were several talks, but it never really crossed his mind (to leave). It's a challenge with colleges offering younger guys that kind of money. Who's gonna say no to $8 million for two years? They're gonna be swayed if you don't have the right people in your corner.' Advertisement Asked if he was worried about LaNorris leaving, Beamer said with some people he might, but that he doesn't with LaNorris. 'I do realize that there is a money aspect to it, but I know he realizes he has a really good situation here, on and off the field.' 'I've been playing football all of my life for free,' LaNorris added. 'He's made of the right stuff,' said Beamer. 'He's got a great family around him. He knows what he means to this state. LaNorris has a chance to leave a legacy here.' (Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; John Byrum, David Rosenblum / Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)
