Ohio State QB Getting Luxury Car With NIL Before Being Named Starter Exemplifies Decade Of Change In College Sports

Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord is entering his third season as the most-experienced signal-caller on the roster. His competition with redshirt sophomore Devin Brown for the starting job will continue into fall camp, and it sounds like it could bleed into the first few weeks of the season.

Kyle McCord. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

Regardless of whether McCord wins the job or not, he will be whipping around Columbus in style. The 20-year-old former five-star recruit signed a deal with a local car dealership for his Name, Image and Likeness.

McCord posted a photo of a 2023 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 53 on his Instagram story and thanked Mark Wahlberg Chevrolet. Yes, that Mark Wahlberg— who owns multiple dealerships in the midwest.

According to Car and Driver, the sticker price for a 2023 Mercedes Benz AMG GT 53 starts at $93,550 and it describes the vehicle as "the great white shark of luxury performance sedans." McCord, who is not yet of legal drinking age, will be behind the wheel. Not too shabby.

Kyle McCord's new ride exemplifies a decade of change in college sports.

As of right now, McCord is not the starting quarterback. He could end up serving as the backup to Brown by the time that a final decision is made.

That didn't stop him from signing with Mark Wahlberg Chevy.

C.J. Stroud was driving $100,000+ cars while he was at Ohio State, but he was a Heisman Trophy candidate. Defensive end Jack Sawyer signed an NIL deal with Wahlberg Chevy, but he is the first-string.

McCord, who has yet to earn the starting job outright, is driving an equally as luxurious whip. That's how the NIL era works. The sport has come a long way.

Terrelle Pryor, the starting quarterback at Ohio State from 2008 to 2010, fell under NCAA investigation back in 2011. College football's governing body looked into whether Pryor (and others on the team) had received improper benefits in the form of a car.

Pryor was allegedly loaned a GMC Yukon Denali, and test-drove a Dodge Challenger. The latter was ultimately nixed because it was too "high-profile" and may have raised red flags to the NCAA.

That was less than two decades ago. The Buckeyes were investigated, and later punished, in part because of Pryor's vehicles.

Now, 12 years later, McCord is driving a nearly $100,000 car as a backup. Legally.

Times have changed!