A fake NIL pitch graphic is making the rounds online this week and it is a good reminder that the internet is still way too easy to trick.
Fake NIL post about Malachi Toney goes viral
The post, shared by the X account "No3 Sports," claimed Miami's Malachi Toney was offered a package that included "$1.4M yearly" plus "$500k" for every additional season he stays at Miami, along with "unlimited use" of booster John Ruiz's private yacht and a private suite for Dolphins home games.
NEWS: Miami Hurricanes NIL pitch to Malachi Toney for his freshman season🤯 Per @PeteNokos_
— No3 Sports (@No3sports) February 19, 2026
• $1.4M yearly & $500k additional each season he finishes at Miami
• Unlimited use of Booster Billionaire John Ruiz private yacht
• Private suite for any dolphins home game pic.twitter.com/S4zylIOOsZ
The "No3 Sports" account is a parody page, but the post still spread fast, racking up roughly 972,000 views and more than 9,000 reposts.
The account is a spoof on "On3," the national recruiting and NIL outlet. And the attribution in the post pointed to "PeteNokos_," a miss spelling that looks close enough to On3's Pete Nakos at a glance (and is also a separate parody account).
Why some fans fell for the fake post
In the current climate of college athletics, anything seems possible.
Ruiz has been one of the most visible boosters in the NIL era, and he has spoken publicly about his spending. Ruiz has said he has offered more than $20 million in NIL deals to athletes.
Toney just put together a monster 2025 season. He finished with 109 catches and 1,211 receiving yards while earning national recognition, including the FWAA Offensive Freshman of the Year.
The post was co-opted by a non-parody account
The bigger issue is how quickly a joke can become "truth" once it is not attached to the parody account. The claim jumped to other corners of the internet and reposted as if it were a real report.
TRENDING: Miami freshman phenom WR Malachi Toney has an insane NIL package on the table next season 🤯
— Recruits CFB (@recruits_cfb) February 21, 2026
• $1.4M + 500k for every year finished at Miami
• Unlimited access to a boosters PRIVATE YACHT
• Private suit for every Dolphins home game
Absolutely insane for a 18 year… pic.twitter.com/yStsR6Ie7Y
X has tried to push labeling for parody and other accounts but the burden still lands on users to check what they're reading. The posts were rightfully given context and there was no harm at the end of the day outside of some rogue commenters (which unfortunately would have happened under any post for any set of circumstances).
At the end of the day, it's just one of the many reasons why the old saying "don't believe everything you read on the internet" is still so relevant.
And it should be noted that Toney would be worth every penny of any future NIL deal he cuts with Miami.