Mississippi high schooler, an LSU football commit, signs high-profile NIL deal
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Tristen Keys joins Adidas NIL roster, one of few high school athletes nationwide.
- Mississippi law change enables future NIL earnings for high school players.
- Keys’ deal signals rising visibility and market value for in-state talent.
The game is changing and the biggest impacts are hitting closer to home than ever before.
Hattiesburg High School wide receiver Tristen Keys has signed a Name, Image and Likeness deal with Adidas, becoming just the third high school football player in the country to strike a deal with the worldwide apparel company.
The news was announced by Adidas and launched across social media, particularly Instagram.
“Don’t blink or you’ll miss the future,” the Adidas football Instagram account posted Wednesday in tandem with Keys. The location tagged for its 500,000 followers: Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
Keys is a five-star prospect and the top-ranked receiver in the 2026 class who is currently committed to LSU. He joins Chris Henry Jr. and Kayden Dixon-Wyatt — teammates at Mater Dei in California and both four-star Ohio State commits — as one of three high schoolers on the Adidas roster.
“Tristen (Keys) is an unprecedented athlete and you see that with the amount of love and fanfare that he gets,” Hattiesburg first-year coach Kendall Lacy told the Sun Herald. “This NIL deal is just him reaping the benefits of his hard work. Him and his family have done a lot and have sacrificed a lot to get into this position.”
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It’s a representation of a rapidly shifting industry that just saw college athletes sign their likenesses away only a few years ago. With the quiet amendment of SB2690 by Mississippi’s lawmakers in early 2024, high school athletes in the state are now permitted to sign NIL deals.
Because the Mississippi High School Activities Association prohibits athletes from monetizing their NIL, they cannot get paid until they’ve exhausted their eligibility and have signed a letter of intent. This means Keys’ deal with Adidas included future compensation.
It’s still the highest-profile NIL deal signed by a Mississippi athlete, however, and one that could lead to more opportunities.
“A lot of people when they talk about Mississippi, they always talk about underfunded and there not being enough money in the state,” Lacy said. “I think this shows people you can do big things here if you stay here in the state. And a lot of talent is coming here to stay so it’s good to see these guys get the recognition and reap the benefits of what they do.”
Former five-star George County quarterback Deuce Knight was among the first from Mississippi to sign an NIL deal when he did so with Leaf Trading Cards last summer for a reported “life-changing” amount of money.
Keys caught 58 passes for 1,275 yards and 14 touchdowns as a junior in 2024. On3 has an NIL evaluation of $536,000 for Keys. He joins an Adidas roster that includes Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola and 2025 No. 1 overall NFL draft pick Cam Ward.
This story was originally published June 5, 2025 at 1:34 PM.
