Glimpse behind the NIL curtain: Columbus reporter states Ohio priced out of unnamed 5-star to Georgia
Ohio reporter Biddle on Columbus radio reports Ohio could "only" offer $500k. Georgia offered $800k per season plus $1.8m signing bonus.
Though this story doesn't directly impact UM, I found it interesting. As the program increasingly seeks to make the jump to the next level in the NIL age, it illustrates what kind of numbers are going around, how our chief conference rival is feeling some constraint, and the resources at the disposal of the SEC elite.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:02 PM ^
We build 3* army!
December 14th, 2022 at 4:16 PM ^
Honestly the recruiting is beginning to look like peak Wisconsin but with good QBs mixed in. Not necessarily a bad thing but not what I was expecting with the success lately.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:33 PM ^
Sometimes things work out in the short term, but long term everything else being equal, better quality recruits will yield better results.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:35 PM ^
Jj, Edwards were 5* recruits. Corum was highly touted as well. Roster needs balance.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:41 PM ^
Every time people say this I always link to where Edwards is a four star.
well you’re lucky I’m on mobile
December 14th, 2022 at 4:43 PM ^
He was ranked 42nd in the country. 6 spots away from 5*. Essentially a 5* talent, as evidenced by what he can do on the field.
December 14th, 2022 at 6:52 PM ^
YIKES! WE DON'T WANT HIM TO BE A 5*. 5* RB'S AND UM DON'T GO WELL TOGETHER!
December 14th, 2022 at 5:16 PM ^
Edwards was actually ranked #33 overall, the last 5-star in 247's 2021 class ranking.
He was ranked #42, a high four-star in their composite rankings.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:30 PM ^
According to the STARZ people there are like 100 five stars every year, because they go by “if one service says 5 star, then 5 star.”
December 14th, 2022 at 9:06 PM ^
Corum was in the same range - just a handful of spots below 5*...
December 14th, 2022 at 4:49 PM ^
keep in mind that was before NIL. it's going to be tough getting similar talent unless we up the NIL game; at least close to what osu is doing. going all out GA or Texas A&M will fail in the long term, imo.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:10 PM ^
It's being reported that Michigan is second highest NIL after Ta&m.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:18 PM ^
It's being reported...
... by whom?
December 14th, 2022 at 5:39 PM ^
All the best people are saying this…
December 14th, 2022 at 5:45 PM ^
Fuck this. Fuck all of this. College football now become money, money, money. I respect that players deserve their fair share of the gazillions flowing into college football, lord knows the coaches and administrators aren't shy about cashing in. But now its a free for all, the system encourages (hell, demands) mercenary behavior. There are no rules and so everyone is asking "where's mine?" The sports gotta get a grip.
December 14th, 2022 at 6:10 PM ^
Yup, bring back the back alley money bags and slick salesmen handshakes.
December 14th, 2022 at 7:24 PM ^
Yikes.
Longing for the good 'ol days of the NCAA probably doesn't bode well for the future.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:46 PM ^
I think the difference with M's NIL is Michigan pays once they're on the team. Michigan has controls in place to prevent players from ripping the school off.
Other money cannons are apparently firing blindly.
^ Of course, this is getting interpreted as Michigan's behind the game in NIL. Not the case. Just running it different.
You're not going to see bonuses, at least right now, from Michigan a la what UGA is purportedly doing.
December 14th, 2022 at 7:50 PM ^
Fred.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:04 PM ^
Texas A&M bought there team and it clearly didn't work out... What is the point of an elite recruiting class if they move on at a higher clip and negatively impact your teams chemistry? Not saying 'buying players' is bad, but I don't think we fully know the impact on a college program as that class continues to age. Miami still hasn't done anything. Right now, USC used NIL successfully for transfers and an argument could be made about Alabama and Georgia, but they had success before NIL hit the main stream.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:47 PM ^
I think you answered your own question. Alabama and Georgia have been buying players for years (which is essentially what NIL is at the 6 figure level) and have had great success without issues with chemistry.
We already know the impact: It wins championships.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:48 PM ^
Didn't Ryan Day say it would take $13 million to keep the team together?
December 14th, 2022 at 6:43 PM ^
I can think of between 23 and 45 reasons why this is way too high.
Way too high.
December 14th, 2022 at 6:45 PM ^
I believe the figure he gave was $17 mil. I think he framed his comment as a form or complaint, but intended it as a veiled solicitation. Gene Smith's twitter solicitation was not at all veiled.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:28 PM ^
As long as it can conquer seven nations.
December 14th, 2022 at 7:29 PM ^
Is someone going to call Gene and the fans at osu how they have 4 and 5*’s littered everywhere on their team, and they got steam rolled by less star quality players comparatively? Maybe they can stop bitching for a couple days since the UM game now that they got the #2 WR. I hate them
December 14th, 2022 at 4:42 PM ^
Hutch, Dax, Mazi, Corum, Edwards, JJ, Will Johnson, Mason Graham say otherwise. You need high 4 and 5 stars sprinkled in at key positions to consistently stay at the level Michigan has been the last two years.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:02 PM ^
If those numbers are accurate, it's a stark reminder of the challenges now and down the road.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:07 PM ^
If those numbers are accurate, it’s a testament to how ridiculously out of control this has become. It’s also laughable that some people used the argument for NIL that this would help level the playing field.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:14 PM ^
What's out of control about people getting paid what the market will dictate for their skills? The numbers are getting high, but plenty of people are paid way for doing less
December 14th, 2022 at 4:27 PM ^
Yeah in 2020 economists put out a paper trying to estimate what college football players could be paid, using pro-sports collective bargaining deals as a framework. They found the average P5 starting QB is worth about $2.7M based on 2018 revenues.
I imagine using 2022 revenues those numbers would be higher. It's a 60 page paper, and I'm sure we can nit-pick assumptions all day long, but the point is that there is an incredible amount of money flowing through this sport, and paying a few million or a top tier QB is probably somewhat reasonable. Given that being an elite football program brings in so much more money than being an average P5 team.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:36 PM ^
but plenty of people are paid way for doing less
Not sure what to make of this comment. This kid should go get paid as much as possible, can’t blame him or anyone else for doing this. And this isn’t “the market”, this is Georgias market. If OSU can’t keep up, then this will create worse disparity than we had before NIL. Even NFL teams have salary caps, what does the NCAA have? Every year this number will go up. This kid will also make more in his 4 years of college based strictly on potential (assuming he stays that long) than the average American will make in 50 years in the job force. Pay players, that’s fine. Regulation of NIL is needed though. Schools around the country are already cutting non revenue sports and their scholarships just to try and be competitive in the NIL football and bball realm.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:14 PM ^
Ok, say there is regulation. Certain teams will pay what they legally can, then the rest will be given under the table and back channels like the old days. Then we are right back to square one. There is no way to control it.
December 14th, 2022 at 6:09 PM ^
Yes, the NFL has a salary cap on what teams can collectively pay their players. But, There is no cap on how much those players can make in side endorsement deals.
Isn't this exactly what the NCAA has? With the salary cap being $0.
December 14th, 2022 at 6:18 PM ^
Regulation of NIL is going to be difficult. Read Kavanaugh's concurring opinion in the SC case. Anything that suggests antitrust will be the subject of legal challenges.
What I think would work, and talk is cheap, is if the conferences banded together and players formed a union similar to the NFLPA. You could then have a more uniform payment schedule for recruits whom, BTW, are going to have to be paying taxes on all that NIL money.
December 15th, 2022 at 5:51 PM ^
This was Georgias market before NIL. Where do you think last years semi pro team, minus Bennet came from. Now it’s just legal for Georgia.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:42 PM ^
Players getting paid is good. But, no structure is not good if parity is a concern.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:36 PM ^
What's wrong is that only a fairly small percentage of schools can pay top dollar and they then set the market value for the best players at well beyond the reach of most schools. If even OSU can't keep up with the SEC's inflation of values, what chance do the rest of the schools have, and how does that promote parity?
December 14th, 2022 at 7:04 PM ^
Doesn't that fairly small sector of schools able to pay top dollar, significantly overlap with the small sector that could afford to pay to get top coaches and the best training facilities? Ie, this isn't a new problem.
December 14th, 2022 at 7:41 PM ^
There has never been equality. Very few schools have stadiums that seat over 100,000 to say nothing about equal facilities. Full, large stadiums generate an awful lot of revenue as do wealthy donors and of course, TV revenue.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:18 PM ^
It's not just a "somewhat" different world from just 5 years ago --- it's a radically different world.
Coaches not only have to manage the early signing day (which didn't exist 5 years ago), there's also NIL (didn't exist 5 years ago), and all the goings and comings in the transfer portal (didn't exist 5 years ago).
I honestly don't know how some coaches and programs are keeping up with it all. Not just the amounts of $$$, but the sheer amount of roster management that is now necessary given the transfer portal.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:36 PM ^
In my opinion, elite programs should hire a GM and roster management staff.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:40 PM ^
And that will happen (if it isn't already).
To the degree that NIL and the transfer portal "levels" the playing field (and I think those things do do that, slightly) --- the result of the above would be the reverse. The "elite" programs will easily be able to afford that extra headcount. The less elite programs, not so much.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:40 PM ^
Just not anyone who used to work for the Lions.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:38 PM ^
Teams right now (including Michigan) have directors of player personnel.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:49 PM ^
Should that be what, for example, Scott Goldschmidt and Tom Gamble do?
December 14th, 2022 at 4:20 PM ^
Apparently, the same people who thought it would level the playing field also seriously underestimated the amount of money others were willing to put in the Michigan money cannon they like to brag about.
December 14th, 2022 at 4:32 PM ^
Lots of excitement now while this whole NIL thing is fresh and new, but it doesn't feel sustainable for the people spending millions of dollars on unproven athletes. Eventually they'll realize the return on their investment just isn't there and things will calm down.
December 14th, 2022 at 5:24 PM ^
Definitely agree. Eventually most places will lean towards compensating guys who have been on campus, playing, and contributing. There will still be touted recruits that folks will pay out the nose for.
December 14th, 2022 at 6:52 PM ^
I think I actually disagree with this. Look at how often fans clamor for unproven backup QBs over a solid starter.
There will always be rich idiots hoping to buy some wins.