College Football Coaches Are Now In NIL Bidding Wars Inside Transfer Portal With $100K Shakedowns From Their Own Players

What do you get when the transfer portal, bowl games and high school recruiting all occur at the same time? Madness would be the best word to sum up the last few weeks of college football, especially with championship Saturday, early signing period, the portal and NIL thrown into the mix.

Unfortunately this has become the norm for coaches across the country during the month of December, along with NIL collectives negotiating deals for potential players. Key to any team, keeping important players from leaving has become a standard practice. But there is only so much a coach or collective can do when another school is offering to raise the market value of a star player.

As of Monday, December 11th, there were 1,364 players that had entered the transfer portal according to On3. In addition to the portal, we're getting closer to the early signing period for high school recruits. Speaking of high school, it was reported on Monday that 5-star quarterback Dylan Raiola is getting the full-court press from Nebraska.

The Georgia commit was recruiting potential teammates for the Bulldogs just last Friday, but obviously something has changed in the past 72-hours. This is where NIL comes into play, even though Raiola is a Cornhusker legacy, with his father attending school at Nebraska, and his uncle Donovan Raiola being the current offensive line coach.

Could this be a sign that Nebraska boosters have decided they want to win now, not later?

While we are enamored with the dollar figures being thrown around for some of the top transfers in college football, some collectives are still trying to recover from the first open market. Fans are under the impression that these NIL warchests being maintained to entice players are still being refilled after the market went crazy in 2022.

The NIL Market For Players Hasn't Reset Since First Arrival

Nobody at the time had a clue on how much to spend on a quarterback or wide receiver, leading to contracts that sounded ludicrous at the time. Thanks to a player like Caleb Williams, quarterbacks are now at a premium. What was once a four-year commitment to a school has now turned into a one-year lease, with an option for additional years.

Sure, collectives can sign these players for four years, but if the athlete has a good agent, those contracts will have a clause about transferring to a new school.

"It's my job to find my clients the best opportunity, both financially and on the field," one prominent NIL agent told OutKick. "The whole tampering thing comes down to schools themselves, not me. I can reach out to potential schools and gauge their interest, players can't. So if you're wondering how some of these athletes already have a school lined up, they most likely have good representation.

"Look at the market right now. There are schools offering anywhere between $500,000 and $5 million for a player, depending on the position. This is now a business, and the athletes have figured out how the NIL game works. One quarterback who is currently in the transfer portal is looking for $4.5 million for one year, but this is the market we negotiate in now."

The agent isn't wrong, and the coaches are put into a tough spot during this busy time of year. While many coaches are still uncomfortable with the bidding wars taking place out in the open, there's no turning back now.

Uncomfortable Conversations Regarding 'Pay-For-Play', NIL

Lost in all the chatter surrounding NIL and the transfer portal is the players returning for another year. While coaches need to figure out what their numbers will look like for next season, some players have taken the opportunity to leverage the school for more money. If the linebacker who fills a void on the team has leverage to return for another season, they're going to look for a better financial opportunity.

But these conversation have gotten extremely awkward for the coaches involved, in the new era of college athletics. This is a business, and the players finally have some leverage, if they're good enough.

"I had one player come into my office in the last two weeks and tell me he wants to stay, but more money is needed for his services,"one Power-5 head coach told OutKick. "The player sits down in my office and says 'Coach, I've spoken to my parents and we feel that I should be making more money'. Seriously, this player tried to shake me down for an extra $100,000 to return.

"I get it. He's hearing from friends, family and his NIL rep, but my goodness that was awkward. And this isn't the first or last time it will happen, it's a constant conversation with assistant coaches or the collective. It's blows my mind that these talks are happening in the open, when four years ago I'd be given a show-cause for having this type of discussion. I don't have time to deal with this s**t, but that's where we are now."

Head coach Dan Lanning of the Oregon Ducks looks on during the fourth quarter against the Washington Huskies. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Where Do We Go From Here With The Transfer Portal?

When the portal opened up last Monday, over 1,300 players from all divisions decided to look around, with over 1,200 coming from the FBS level. Once again, players are under the impression that there are greener pastures, including more money and playing time.

Whether you like it or not, the financial aspect of the portal isn't going away anytime soon, even with the NCAA floating out new ideas. When they opened the NIL box without many guardrails, this was the way it was going to stay until congress got involved. If you're wondering why players are asking for a few million to play quarterback for one or two years, it's because the schools will make even more money if they're successful.

NIL collectives are trying their hardest to restock the warchest at a time where donors are hesitant to give. But, now that we're expanding to a twelve-team playoff, there are more opportunities for different schools, which is why these collective donors are ready to pony up.

Even at a school like Georgia, there is speculation that quarterback Carson Beck is asking for upwards of $4 million to return next season. While some of the numbers you hear might sound outrageous, they aren't that far off, besides that ludicrous report that Marvin Harrison Jr. was being offered $20 million to return for another season at Ohio State.

Group Of Five Coaches Having A Difficult Time With Portal

What started out as a way to get endorsements has turned into openly paying for players to attend a school that places the highest bid. The ones complaining are the coaches that have yet to adapt to a system that isn't going anywhere in the near future.

Most of them are starting to come around, at the Power-5 level. The same can't be said for the coaches working out of the Sun-Belt, AAC. Conference USA and other group of five conferences. While they take care of the development of players, Power-5 coaches are ready to swoop in and snatch the player for a year or two. The problem is that obviously these smaller schools cannot compete from a financial standpoint, or the opportunity to compete for a national title.

So, while a school like Florida Atlantic can spend two or three years recruiting a prospect, then another three years developing, their talent could disappear if Florida or Florida State came knocking at the door. After speaking with G-5 coaches over the last ten days, this has turned into a street-fight to keep some of the more talented players.

But what they unfortunately keep running into is the school that can offer a little more, both on the playing field and the bank account.

Every transfer portal period that has opened over the last two seasons has shed light on how far we've come from an NIL experiment that has turned into a free agency. Even though these coaches like to complain, they won't care when the $3 million dollar quarterback wins them a national title.

The players have figured out the game, so pony up.

Follow Trey Wallace on social media, at @TreyWallace_ on X/Twitter or email your thoughts to trey.wallace@outkick.com