If you’re an elite college football player or prized recruit, you’re going to be paid handsomely to perform moving forward. That’s part of the recruiting process with revenue-sharing and NIL deals now one of the leading enticements when trying to sway a prospective addition’s commitment.
Florida-based recruiting analyst Zach Blostein of Noles247 recently interviewed a dozen commits in the 2026 recruiting cycle anonymously and received their thoughts on NIL packages from various programs, along with which schools have offered the most money to sign.
Only two of the 12 commits acknowledged they picked the school that offered them the most money to lead their signing class.
“It wasn’t a huge factor because I don’t really care about the money, I just want to play football,” one recruit who is finalizing a $800,000 deal said. “The money, it brings a bit part of it so I would say yeah, a little bit.”
The other player who committed to the program that sent the highest offer said it was a “very, huge amount” and dwarfed the offer he received from the school he was committed to previously.
One recruit said he was offered nearly $1 million to sign with the promise of a “$100,000 bonus if you start.” He did not commit to that program despite that being the largest NIL package he received.
“I picked my school based on where I could see myself growing and developing into the best player I can be for the next three to four years,” the recruit said. “I don’t want to go somewhere just for the money and end up transferring and looking for somewhere else.”
A couple recruits mentioned longevity and player development being the primary factors — not money — for choosing their respective landing spots.
“I feel like it’s more about development and the coaching staff,” one player said. “Seeing like the longevity if they’re going to be there or not and not chasing the money. Me, I know I’m a high-time player. If I get developed right, I’m going to the NFL. So I’m chasing the longevity money.”
This reasoning is backed by many coaches who are struggling to keep up with the demands of player payments and contracts in the NIL era.
Deepest pockets winning recruiting wars
Even college football’s elite have felt the effects of losing recruiting battles to others over money. Five-star defensive lineman Justus Terry helped Texas secure the top-ranked signing class in the 2025 cycle after pledging to the Longhorns over Georgia largely due to an enhanced offer.
Miami’s sizable NIL package helped the Hurricanes land five-star 2026 offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell over Georgia, Oregon and Ohio State. And the Bulldogs lost out on retaining two-year starting quarterback Carson Beck this offseason after he chose to transfer to Miami for reportedly more than $4 million as one of the top players on the market.
Even Miami, one of the biggest spenders in recruiting according to three of the 12 recruits who were interviewed, lost talent this offseason due to higher offers elsewhere. One of those players — wideout Isaiah Horton — took a better deal from Alabama, one source told CBS Sports earlier this spring.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart has been outspoken about the challenges of new recruiting, and while he didn’t mention any of the aforementioned losses specifically this month, touched on the NIL era overall and what his staff deems most important when evaluating talent during the process.
“We sell relationships over transactions,” Smart said last week at SEC Media Days. “We don’t believe in just being transactional. When you’re transactional, you can not reach your ultimate goal without relationships.”
