Charlie Woods, one of NIL's biggest names, commits to Florida State

by Shon Crewe

February 12, 2026

Charlie Woods has committed to Florida State University.

The Benjamin School junior carries a $3 million Golf NIL Valuation, up from $2.5 million, and had the leverage to choose any program in the country. Florida State was the choice.

That decision hands Florida State one of the most commercially valuable athletes in all of college sports. Woods’ commitment is a reminder that the best juniors still chase competition first but now treat NIL upside as part of the calculation.

No. 21 in the AJGA Boys Rankings, Woods holds the No. 1 spot in the Golf NIL Top 10 and Golf NIL High School Boys Rankings.

NIL has formalized how family recognition converts into market value. Athletes like Bronny James, Shedeur Sanders, and Arch Manning have shown how name recognition translates into immediate commercial leverage at the amateur level. Charlie Woods already sits in that group in a sport where the NIL market is still taking shape.

Charlie Woods at the 2025 Junior PGA Championship | Ryan Lochhead/PGA of America

Florida State provides the structure to capitalize on that leverage. Woods joins a program that has already secured AJGA No. 1 Miles Russell, with a $1 million Golf NIL Valuation, up from $750,000. Russell’s commitment reflected access to elite competition, real NIL infrastructure, and a coach in Trey Jones with a track record of sending players from college directly into the professional ranks. Luke Clanton, a Florida State alum who turned pro in 2025, is the proof.

Together, Woods and Russell headline the Seminoles’ 2027 recruiting class, pairing the sport’s most valuable legacy athlete and the top-ranked junior in the country. For Florida State, that combination raises both its competitive ceiling and its commercial footprint, with Woods’ arrival effectively boosting the value and visibility of the entire roster, including Russell.

His presence also changes what matters in college golf’s week-to-week rhythm. The biggest names have typically drawn coverage at elite amateur events, through sponsor exemptions into pro fields, or in the crucible of the NCAA Championship, not during routine play. With Woods on the roster, Florida State’s events are positioned to attract a level of live interest and coverage that regular-season college golf has almost never commanded.

Woods’ decision shifts Florida State into a spotlight that college golf rarely occupies, across major college sports outlets and mainstream sports networks. For the first time, a college golf program will be wired into sustained, multi-platform attention, and Florida State will be in that conversation as long as Woods is on campus.