The last time social media sensation Olivia Dunne came across a crossroads in changing her athletic life, she decided to stay in Baton Rouge and have one final season of college gymnastics with LSU, and that list begins today.
In about three months, Dunne's time as a Tigers gymnast will end, even if LSU repeats as national champion.
Dunne is one of the biggest stars in college sports and what he does next in life will be highly anticipated.
The 22-year-old has a name, image and likeness value of $4.2 million per On3and that number is likely to skyrocket once it is no longer under the NCAA banner and no longer generating revenue for itself.
The fact that Dunne will have a larger role at LSU, as she was usually the first off the bench on the floor exercise and once competed on the uneven bars, will only give her more attention by the time she hangs up her leotard for last time.
With Dunne's athletic career likely having an end date, here's what could be next for arguably the biggest star of college sports' NIL era…
Olivia Dunne's final college gymnastics season at LSU begins in meet against Iowa State
Dunne will keep an eye on her all year as the Tigers try to repeat as national champions.
Become a full-time influencer
Dunne has more than 13 million followers on social media, a huge number even if TikTok were banned in the United States.
Through his brand deals and social media, Dunne likely earns enough to support himself without getting a “real” job.
Dunne already knows the ins and outs of what it takes to make social media his primary career, as he does it on top of all the time he spends at LSU.
Now, Dunne would have time to focus off the mat and balance beam on generating more content and, therefore, more money.
Dunne could expand that reach as well, through YouTube or any other medium that emerges in the future.
Dunne has modeled in the past for Nautica and could pursue that line of work as a full-time job.
If Dunne doesn't pursue modeling, television work could be in her not-too-distant future.
More traditional career paths
When looking for a career outside of social media, your college major in interdisciplinary studies, which essentially means studying in a few different fields, doesn't provide any information.
An adjacent career in social media, which Dunne dabbled in at LSU, would be modeling or television work.
Whether through Nautica or her own social media, Dunne has a knack for getting the best quality photos and is clearly comfortable in front of the camera.
Being camera-ready could propel Dunne into a television career, either for the SEC Network or for a future Olympics.
Dunne has been dating basbeall star Paul Skenes since they were both student-athletes at LSU.
Skenes has been at Dunne's side and vice versa during many notable events in their lives.
Embrace the MLB WAG Lifestyle
Dunne's romance with baseball star Paul Skenes has become an indelible part of his brand.
She watched his minor league appearances at LSU and made sure to travel the country with him as he rose to the Pittsburgh Pirates' rotation and then an All-Star starter.
Skenes enters the 2025 MLB season as one of the best pitchers in baseball and shows no signs of slowing down.
Although Opening Day and the end of gymnastics season will likely coincide, spending a lot of time traveling across the country to see Skenes launch seems like a perfect post-college gift for Dunne.
And it would be great for social media content.
Dunne's active gymnastics may be coming to an end, but he doesn't have to leave the SEC
Dunne, posing here with LSU signee and Team USA's Hezly Rivera, could coach in his future
Stay in the sport of gymnastics full time.
There's a hidden candidate for Dunne here, with a route possibly being there for her if she's interested.
There are plenty of Division I gymnastics programs that wouldn't mind having Dunne's experience on their staff.
Although becoming an SEC coach seems like a distant goal right now for Dunne, current Arkansas coach and former Team USA gold medalist Jordyn Wieber started at a top school at age 22.
Wieber has also been the Razorbacks' head coach since 2019. Dunne could easily follow in those footsteps.