$934,000 NIL-valued Cam Ward gets warm welcome as Miami QB signs endorsement deal with Canes Connection collectives

Former Washington State quarterback Cam Ward has had an eventful offseason so far. After the 2023 season, Ward announced that he would be forgoing his college eligibility to declare for the 2024 NFL draft.

But since Cam Ward didn't hire an NFL agent, he had his college eligibility intact. Thus just two weeks later, he decided to return for the 2024 season and announced his commitment to the Miami Hurricanes.

The $934,000 NIL-valued quarterback announced a new partnership on Friday, with a NIL collective based out of Miami called the Canes Connection.

The NIL Collective was launched back in August 2022. It is led by Zach Burr and Brian Goldmeier who are both expert fundraisers with more than 30 years of experience in the business development profession. The Canes Collective has contracts with 75 of the 85 scholarship football players on the Miami Hurricanes along with the entire basketball team.

With this backing, Cam Ward can expect growth in his NIL valuation in the coming days. Signing with Canes Connection could lead to him receiving endorsement deals from other brands even before taking the field for head coach Mario Cristobal.

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Cam Ward's college career so far

The 21-year-old quarterback began his college career back in 2020 with the Incarnate World Cardinals as a true freshman starting QB. He had a breakout sophomore season where he recorded 4,648 passing yards and 47 TD passes.

Ward then transferred to the Washington State Cougars ahead of the 2022 season and spent two seasons as their starting quarterback. In his debut campaign for Washington State, he led them to a 7-6 campaign and compiled 3,231 passing yards and 23 TD passes.

Last season, Cam Ward could not help Washington State be bowl-eligible but did put up better individual statistics. He recorded 3,735 passing yards and 25 TD passes and had a pass completion percentage of 66.6%. Now it will be interesting to see how he performs for the Hurricanes in 2024.