Name, Image and Likeness changed the entire landscape of college football forever. That is not new news. The last two+ years have been absolute mayhem and, even though NIL has been largely beneficial in a lot of ways, it continues to be the driving force behind all of the mounting issues within the sport.
As a result, coaches at programs that aren’t Ohio State, USC, Georgia, Texas, etc. are at a disadvantage. Athletes who have breakout seasons at smaller programs hit the portal at the end of the year and transfer to a bigger school for more money.
Getting paid more to play at a better program is, in most instances, a no-brainer.
Take Liberty University wide receiver C.J. Daniels. He caught 55 passes for 1,067 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. Three days after the Flames lost in Fiesta Bowl, 6-foot-2, 200-pound pass-catcher entered the transfer portal with two years of eligibility remaining.
According to Liberty head coach Jamey Chadwell, LSU spent a lot of money to land Daniels’ commitment. He told Ross Dellenger that the Tigers presented his former receiver with an NIL package that sat comfortably in the six-figure range.
LSU paid for a car and an apartment and like $300,000. What do you do?
— Jamey Chadwell, via Yahoo Sports
Daniels is just one of hundreds of examples.
Anybody who is 6-foot-5 is gone, even if it’s to join (Power Five) scout teams. If you’re a 6-foot-1 corner, you’re gone. You lose your best players.
— Former ULM coach Terry Bowden, via Yahoo Sports
And to make it even crazier, Chadwell’s estimated price tag for Daniels is relatively cheap when compared to other transfers across the country! The going rate for an elite quarterback hovers around $1 million… at the very least.
NIL collectives on the Group of Five level cannot keep up. They can’t pay enough money.
Coaches spend countless hours developing athletes only for them to leave when they’re good enough to do so. The cycle never ends.
We are a farm system. No matter who you are, you are going to have to try hard to hold on to your top players. That gets taxing. We are taking the approach that if a freshman plays and he does well, we are only going to have him for one more year.
— Jamey Chadwell, via Yahoo Sports
This is the new reality of college football and it’s not going to change until legislation requires it do so. Unfortunately, the NCAA is incompetent so there is no clear solution in sight.