Sky’s the limit for Iowa diver Makayla Hughbanks

Failure has led to some of Iowa diver Makayla Hughbanks' favorite social media content.

In these videos, the 5-foot-3-inch diver steps onto the board, bounces on the diving board and jumps into a flip. Then, instead of perfectly executing the pirouette and gliding into the water, the senior crashes into a belly flop. Try not to laugh when watching these videos.

"I've done a couple of those because people love fail videos because they're funny," she said. "I laugh about it, too, because obviously they're funny, but I mean, they definitely hurt."

The diver, who boasts about 75,000 followers on Instagram, posts her successes along with her failures.

"I really like the 'in practice' posts I do because it shows the realness of being in athletics," she said. "The fail videos also show what really happens behind the scenes."

Hughbanks has been sharing her life on social media since high school. Growing up, she would post her outfits and reach out to her favorite brands. She would receive free gifts in return for a picture posted tagging the brand.

As Hughbanks began her college diving career, she would take videos of herself diving to watch her form and execution. This sparked ideas for content involving her diving, her student-athlete experience and her teammates. Hughbanks also has been pursuing her pilot's license, and she often features content related to flying.

"I've never really been one of those to worry about what other people think about me," she said. "I incorporate all kinds of content. I do diving, lifestyle, fashion, beauty and then the flying, so it sort of just happened all at once. It's just my personality."

Hughbanks applied and got accepted to the NCAA x Meta NIL Empower Program, which seeks to help women maximize their name, image and likeness endeavors throughout their time as college athletes. 

Each year, the program selects 100 female student-athletes for one of two three-month programs. Each program consists of one virtual session per month, providing participants with the opportunity to form direct relationships with Meta experts, who share product and business best practices. Participants also make valuable connections with other student-athletes and industry professionals while receiving exclusive access to various NCAA events. 

"The program has opened my eyes to a lot more than just NIL because everyone is on the same page. Everyone wants to build their own brand, and it's very motivating," she said.

One aspect of the program is the daily announcements, where Meta provides social media best practices and content ideas. 

"It definitely gets the creative juices flowing, just being a part of the program. The people who run the NIL Empower Program, they're so creative with throwing out ideas for us on the daily announcement."

In fact, a gift she received through the program has helped her with her content as she pursues her pilot's license.

"I got these Ray-Ban Meta glasses, so I put my Meta glasses on when I was flying, and it  was an easy way to get content," she said. "When I was coming into the runway, it recorded a video of me flying the plane."

Hughbanks has used the NIL Empower Program as a tool to elevate her content while focusing on authenticity in every piece of content she posts.

"I want them to think, 'Dang, this girl is so motivated. She's humble. She's into her faith. She prioritizes good virtues and good morals,'" she said. "I don't want people to think that my life is just a movie. I've worked for everything that I've gotten."

Part of that work has involved becoming a Division I diver. 

Hughbanks began her diving career in high school. She formerly competed as a gymnast and a cheerleader yet felt burned out in those sports by high school. During a swim lesson in gym class her sophomore year, Hughbanks did a bunch of flips off the diving board for fun. The gym teacher noticed her skill and encouraged her to join the high school team. She decided to give it a try. She found immense success and two years later won the Iowa state championship.

Out of high school, the Bettendorf native wanted to dive for Iowa, but the program recently had been cut. Hughbanks began looking elsewhere when Iowa reinstated its program. She decided to walk on to the team.

"I'm like, bingo. I'm gonna go," she said. "I'd love to try it, and I've always been into sports my entire life. I wasn't ready to be done, so I went as a walk-on."

Because she had used 1-meter boards in high school, having to also dive on the 3-meter boards in college became an immense challenge.

"My first year, I was so bad. I think I got last probably almost every single meet, besides maybe one or two," she recalled. "So it was very humbling and extremely hard."

Those "fail" videos that Hughbanks posts for fun now were part of the learning curve she had at the beginning of her collegiate career. Yet instead of giving up, Hughbanks worked even harder. By her junior year, she had won four individual event titles and been named the MVP by her diving team. She also earned Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honors her sophomore and junior years.

Throughout the ups and downs of her career, she has loved her experience at Iowa.

"I love to meet new people, and the people that I have on my team are so amazing. This is genuinely a group of people that I think I'll connect with the rest of my life," she said.

Her relationship with her coach, Todd Waikel, also has made her experience fulfilling.

"I would not be at Iowa if it weren't for my coach. It would be one of those things where, if my coach moved, I would move to follow him. He's very much like a father figure."

Going into her senior year, Hughbanks is focusing on enjoying her experience.

"Everything's sort of falling into place, and now I can just sit back and enjoy it. That's what's so amazing about it. Count your blessings because eventually it will result in something positive."

To apply for the program, click here.