Five-Star Defensive Lineman Eddrick Houston Explains How Recruits Must Look At NIL In Terms Of Basic Microeconomics

College football prospects in the Class of 2024 have a unique outlook on recruiting and NIL. They are the first group of recruits to go through their entire process with an underlying understanding of Name, Image and Likness.

NIL first came into existence in July of 2021 and has transformed the sport. Where money used to exchange hand under the table, like Eric Dickerson at SMU, all of those deals are being brokered in the public eye. It is legal for a college athlete to be compensated while in school, and the deals are growing in value, daily.

There is a lot of money out there, especially for a top-30 recruit like Eddrick Houston. Houston, a five-star defensive lineman, is the No. 15-ranked prospect in his class (per On3 Sports) and the No. 4-ranked player at his position.

Needless to say, he is in high demand. Georgia, Alabama, Clemson Ohio State, and USC are among the 25+ schools that have offered him a scholarship.

This puts Houston in a unique position in terms of financial opportunity. There are only a select group of elite athletes at his position in his class, and it's a position that is extremely valuable.

So how does that translate to NIL? Houston currently is attending the On3 NIL Elite Series in Nashville, where top recruits will spend three days learning how to better navigate the space.

NIL requires athletes to know their worth.

Houston spoke to OutKick about the importance of Name, Image and Likeness and how it plays a role in his recruitment. His biggest point of emphasis was in knowing how he fits within his class.

You have to know your worth— especially within the position. I know that there is a need for true EDGE rushers that can stop the run and pass rush.
I've got my coach, who has been on top of it since it started. He helps me to understand how different schools have needs at my position, and in the general sense of college football.
As the game changes, with a lot of teams switching to a pass-first offense, it is important that I know my worth with my skillset. I can do both. Teams need that.

Houston's approach to NIL is, in essence, based on the fundamental principle of economics— supply and demand. Supply speaks to the production of a good or service, and how much of said product is available. Demand refers to the open market's desire to purchase the aforementioned good.

In this specific instance, Houston — a dual-threat EDGE — is the good. The market is the recruiting class.

From there, Houston, as both the producer and the product, can go into the market and set his price.

For example, USC recently landed Georgia transfer Bear Alexander. Alexander showed off his brand-new L.A. apartment not long thereafter.

Houston took note. Supply and demand.

With that all being said, though, NIL is not the driving factor in the 6-foot-3, 255-pound Georgia-native's recruitment. The money will come, he says. Relationships with coaching staffs and how he fits in a specific system come first. Everything else follows.