UCF QB John Rhys Plumlee Takes Tom Brady Approach To NIL Money, Makes His Team Better For First Year In Big 12

John Rhys Plumlee isn't concerned with the amount of NIL dough that is hitting his bank account each month. Central Florida's 22-year-old starting quarterback pulled a Tom Brady upon arrival in Orlando.

NIL is the heartbeat of college football in the modern era. Although money isn't everything, it has always played a role in recruiting and that role is only inflated with the current rules.

Amateurism is completely out of the window. Players are going to the school that can pay them the most. Not all of them, but some of them– if not most of them.

NIL funds have a direct correlation to success. Especially with recruiting and the transfer portal.

Standouts at Group of Five and FCS schools, even lower-tier Power Five schools, are being offered huge compensatory packages to transfer. It's not always easy to tell when a school is being genuine with its offer, but the offers are being made.

Schools with more NIL money are able to acquire, and retain, better talent. Period.

And in 99% of situations, the quarterbacks are going to make the most money. Most schools, through collectives and boosters, are making sure that their starting signal-caller is getting compensated according to his market value at the most important position on the field.

John Rhys Plumlee is different.

NIL deals are not made public, and there is no way to know how much a specific player is making through a specific deal, or in general. All of the agreements are handled privately.

Thus, the amount of money that Plumlee is getting paid at UCF is unknown. However, regardless of what that number might be, it is less than what he has been offered.

Plumlee is taking the Tom Brady approach.

By Business Insider's estimate, Brady left at least $60 million on the table during his time with the Patriots. He would sign contracts worth less money so that those funds could be reallocated to other positions. That allowed New England to sign better talent around him. Brady did it again in Tampa.

JRP is doing the same thing on the collegiate level.

Sean Tuohy Jr. (Yes, Michael Oher's brother) is the executive director of The Kingdom, UCF's top NIL arm. He recently spoke to On3's Pete Nakos about an upcoming camp that The Kingdom will help put on for/with John Rhys Plumlee.

It will be a two-sport camp led by a two-sport athlete.

Amid the discussion with Nakos, Tuohy revealed what Plumlee told him when they first met about NIL. He would rather see his money spent on a pass-catcher and someone to block.

Plumlee came and said he knew what we were talking about and said, 'I'm good. Take the money you're going to pay me and told us to use it on offensive linemen and a receiver.' He wants to win in the Big 12. And he said, 'I'll be fine.' As a collective, quarterback should be the highest-paid guy. So from our perspective, for our quarterback to tell us to put that money elsewhere, that put us in a really flexible position.

UCF will play its first season in the Big-12 this fall.

John Rhys Plumlee is in his second year with the Knights after three years at Ole Miss and wants to win. He understands the NIL climate and the role that money plays in talent acquisition.

To help surround himself with better players, he is taking less money. The Tom Brady approach has reached college football.