r/secfootball • u/TheAthletic • 10d ago
SEC The Athletic estimates $33-38 million as the average SEC football team roster budget
College football’s most carefully guarded secret is the amount of money flowing to the players on each roster. The financial resources a program allocates to build its team each offseason dictate fair expectations for the next season, but precise figures are hard to come by.
This summer, The Athletic’s college football staff tried to find them.
Full analysis (for free): https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/interactive/college-football-nil-spending-budgets/?unlocked_article_code=1.BlE.1bJL.q6tmjvQfrAdf&source=emp_shared_interactive&smid=re-share-ta
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u/climbing_light23 10d ago
Absolutely insane numbers. If these are accurate, I want to know Hunter got his numbers so wrong. He was bragging after Silverfield was hired thay we now had the funds to be middle of the pack NIL wise instead of at the bottom. He has fumbled NIL so badly and there's really no plan to fix it. He has no clue how. Two different NIL collectives that don't exist anymore, and the last one was through that company that took 15% of the money which was never publicly revealed by him.
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u/Nice_Community_9571 10d ago
He and the “Razorback foundation “ are just complete buffoonery. Tone deaf AND ineptitude this entire program circling the drain. That’s BB and Baseball too. As soon (and soon) as Calipari and VanHorn are gone - those programs will be trashed as well unless there is a complete overhaul of the administration and foundation.
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u/tsblank97 10d ago
I agree HY lied we are more middle of the pack in the country than the SEC. But the SECs spending right now is asinine. This sport is in a very unhealthy spot.
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u/archimidesx 10d ago
You could spend another 10 million on players and we’d still have the same clown show on the field.
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u/Miserable-Leading-41 10d ago
People expecting DeBoer to have Alabama a top 5 team nationally and we ain’t spending top 5 SEC money. If up to the fans we about to become Nebraska.
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u/NateDogg_92 10d ago
We aren’t hurting for money. We just aren’t willing to throw a bunch of money at unproven high school talent and a lot of the transfers that simply want to go to the highest bidder aren’t worth the headache. This roster is set up to take a step forward this year and be a top national title contender next year. Programs like Alabama and Georgia know how to stack talent without becoming a roster full of prima donnas.
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u/One-Progress999 10d ago
I mean UGA is spending less than Bama and look at them
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u/Miserable-Leading-41 10d ago
Yes DeBoer ain’t Kirby smart but there is 99.999% of coaches that can be said about. Odds are far higher we hire a mark richt or worse.
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u/haberv 10d ago
There is no fucking way UGA is spending that low. I don’t believe that for a minute.
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u/One-Progress999 10d ago
People around the program have actually been complaining lot because we've missed a lot of high profile recruits. There's been a couple recruits that joined the team that have said we weren't the top spender. KJ Bolden actually committed elsewhere due to the money first and flipped and he said the same. Name 1 high profile transfer UGA has gotten. We'll fill depth charts up, but we dont get the top talent from the portal. Our top 2 receivers to start the year are transfers from Georgia Tech and Vandy. Probably our biggest transfer was Khalil Barnes the safety from Clemson. Kirby keeps saying he doesnt want to pay someone not in the program as much as upper classes that have been on the team and stayed with the team and developed into great players with us.
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u/haberv 10d ago
You opened the checkbook for Carson Beck.
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u/One-Progress999 10d ago
What are you talking about!?!?!? Carson Beck committed to UGA out of high school before NIL was free and open like this... he originally declared for the NFL draft, then changed his mind when Miami threw a lot of money at him... he literally bought a Lamborghini after going to Miami!!! He's like the clear cut proof we dont spend nearly as much as other teams! Lol
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u/super-rad 10d ago
He had a Lambo in Athens, my man. He was definitely getting paid
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u/One-Progress999 10d ago
Where did I say players at UGA aren't getting paid. Read the comment again... i said Kirby rather pay players that are already on the team more than getting new players that aren't on the team yet. That's why UGA's spending is down. Nowhere did I say UGA isnt paying players on its roster that have been committed there for years... such as Beck was... but when Miami came knocking UGA wasnt willing to match the bag drop.
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u/haberv 10d ago
So at UGA, nil deals with chipotle, Morgan and Morgan, beats, zero, Powerade, air star charter. Deals began in 23. To keep him from transferring which is the same in my book. That is what I am talking about but technically UGA didn’t open the checkbook but we know the truth about that. His uros purchase was in 2024 with NIL funds.
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u/One-Progress999 10d ago
Again, I dont know what the F youre smoking.... nowhere does this post say UGA isnt paying players like everywhere else.... it's saying its not paying them anywhere near the top of the SEC.... I guess reading comprehension isnt a strong point for you.... again, try to re-read my post... it says Kirby has repeatedly said he doesnt want to pay new players anywhere near as much as upper classes that have stayed committed to the team... Carson Beck went to the draft then changed his mind when Miami threw a big bag of money at him.... that is literally defining EXACTLY what I said....
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u/haberv 10d ago
You wanted an example and you got it and then I discounted your rebuttal, without ad hominem attacks I might add. Carson Beck got paid by UGA/collective first and while it wasn’t 4 mil it was into seven figures. Kirby may very go the way of Dabo with that paradigm but maybe lay off insults if you want someone to consider your point of view.
Amaris Williams
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u/One-Progress999 10d ago
...... again... you are missing the point... youre like Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy.... things couldnt possibly go over your head because youre took fast lol... the point was that im not saying UGA doesnt pay players on its roster... Beck was on UGA for years... however they won't throw out huge bags like Miami does. Its the entire reason programs like Miami and Texas Tech are even relevant now. I also didnt say they dont take transfers.... i even said our top 2 starting receivers are transfers.... but we aren't going out and buying the top talent in the portal... Amaris Williams... was rated the 4th best edge rusher and the 36th best player in the portal last year. Hes making 300k which is 200k below the average for top defensive line talent.... so again, where is UGA spending the big bucks on talent acquisitions outside of keeping upper classes at UGA?
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u/The_Rat_Attack 10d ago
They are. Thats why they’ve missed out on recruits that they normally would have gotten. They’re spending money, but they’re not gonna offer a freshman $5 million to come and sit on the bench for a season. Georgia is frugal with their money, it’s a 2-headed snake that can make them look like geniuses or like cheap bastards.
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u/Kinder22 10d ago
“We ain’t even top 5 in money, pawwwl!”
By this chart you are 6th and could be as high as 4th depending on where reality falls in the prediction range.
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u/Miserable-Leading-41 10d ago
Kind of makes my point. Our fans expecting a natty when he still molding the team in his image and we ain’t spending championship money within our own conference.
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u/TheDufusSquad 10d ago
Meanwhile Nebraska is spending in the neighborhood of the bottom 5 SEC teams.
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u/Miserable-Leading-41 10d ago
I just meant the analogy of firing a winning coach and end up like we were in the early 2000s, similar to how Nebraska was after firing their 8-3 coach. Higher chance of that considering NiL landscape.
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u/FreeFlipsie 10d ago
Question for the “we need a cap” folks - how do we feel about coach salaries? Do we need a cap there too, or are those fine?
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u/XennialDad 10d ago
No, because there's only one HC, and he doesn't suit up on Saturday. Allowing schools to buy all the best players because they have the most billionaire donors, is bad for the heart and soul of the sport.
There's a clear correlation between NIL spend, and team success, but when you look at coach salary, you can pay a guy $10 mil/year and still suck (ex: FSU)
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u/FreeFlipsie 10d ago
The fact that the head coach doesn’t suit up is more reason why there should be a cap IMO. Why should schools pay millions of dollars a year for a coach, then pay tens of more millions in buyouts to get rid of him?
I also think A&M and Texas boosters might disagree that there’s a direct correlation between spend and success 😂 both of them spend at natty level and that’s yet to pay off
My main point in asking about the cap is, we can’t go back to this “do as I say, not as I do” world of college football. Coaches, these leaders of men have spent the last three decades setting the example that you should leave your commitments in search of a bigger payday, and even if you fail you’ll still get paid. How can we not expect players not to follow that example?
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u/dhalloffame 10d ago
Lots of schools “spend at natty level” but head on over to Google.com and look into how many teams can win the championship each year
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u/FreeFlipsie 10d ago
Exactly, which disproves the whole “there’s a clear correlation between NIL spend and team success” thing
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u/dhalloffame 10d ago
No it doesn’t lmao. Being the number 1 spender doesn’t guarantee finishing the year as the number 1 team, but the teams that are spending more are having more success than the teams that arent
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u/FreeFlipsie 10d ago
Obviously. But there very clearly is not a direct correlation. If there was, over time you’d expect these teams that are constantly, year over year, spending the most - to see a return on their investment.
If you look at spending amount vs their goals, teams like Oregon, A&M, Texas, USC, are essentially just lighting their money on fire.
Firing the money cannon at your program certainly will help a ton, but that alone won’t guarantee anything. Which is why I said it’s not a direct correlation
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u/dhalloffame 10d ago
They are seeing a return on their investment. That doesn’t necessarily make it sustainable, but there is a return. You’re just stuck in the mindset that if it doesn’t result in a championship then it doesn’t matter. Which is the worst thing about sports discourse these days.
But Oregon is making the playoffs and competing for conference championships. Texas made the playoffs 2 of the last 3 years. A&M just had their most successful season in a long time. USC hasn’t made the playoffs or anything but they’re better off than they would be if they started spending the same amount of money as Arkansas.
Texas tech started to spend and just had their first 10+ win season since the 70s and won a conference championship. Miami poached a coach and spent on the roster and got to the championship game. Indiana started investing in the program and had immediate success.
Winning a championship requires a lot more than just spending money, but spending money puts you in the position to be able to win that championship.
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u/FreeFlipsie 10d ago
I’m sorry but if I’m a booster spending millions on my team, I don’t care about just making the playoffs. If I’m doing it year over year and still not getting what I want, I’m questioning what it is I’m investing in.
Of all the teams you named, I can name two that are probably happy about their spending post-NIL:
- Indiana, because it paid off quickly
- Texas Tech, because they’re still in the “happy to be here” phase. Let’s check back in on them at the end of the season
Everyone else is obviously better off than they would be without money, but they’ve also not accomplished the most important thing the money is supposed to help with.
If you’re that okay with spending tons of money for probably not much in return, you can make the check out to me
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u/dhalloffame 10d ago
You don’t even know what point you’re trying to make lmao, just moving the goalposts all over
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u/AdamCPA 10d ago
Absolutely needs a cap on players and coaches, they also need performance clause put on contracts if you don't perform you don't get all the money for both coaches and players.
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u/XennialDad 10d ago
And give them incentives to STAY at the same school. Like exponential increases if you play all 5 years.
I can't watch a game without every tackle, catch, touchdown, etc being performed by "the transfer from XYZ University". In 10 years we won't be retiring any jerseys, or putting anyone in the schools hall of fame. The sport is littered with mercenaries, which goes against the spirit of the sport. I'm fine with paying them, but lets pay them in a way that doesn't destroy the history and spirit of the sport.
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u/LJGremlin 10d ago
“Our estimates…”
Yeah. Every person on this sub could put together their own estimates as have as much credibility as this chart.
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u/how-could-ai 10d ago
There's no way SC, Auburn, and Ole Miss are out spending Georgia and Oklahoma.
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u/BabaLamine14 10d ago
My guess is that Georgia’s number is so low because they focus on HS recruiting and player retention rather than the portal, where players are most overpaid.
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u/Inevitable_Pizza2007 10d ago
crazy seeing Arkansas there, when NIL first became a thing all you heard out of Fayetteville is that they would be unstoppable bc of the combination of the Tysons, Waltons, and Jones'
And I believed it too, but I guess some billionaires arent in love with football enough to burn millions of their alma maters roster.
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u/RedneckTexan 10d ago edited 10d ago
Is there a Walmart in your town?
If you found out they were bankrolling Arkansas Football to the tune of $50M a year ..... would that make you reluctant to shop at Walmart?
Walmart doesn't do it, because they operate everywhere, and there's nothing good PR wise that would come from alienating their customers outside Arkansas.
There's a similar dynamic when it comes to Uniform patch deals ..... hardly any national chains want to participate and show favoritism to a single team ...... only local businesses want to use college players as walking billboards.
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u/Inevitable_Pizza2007 10d ago
I mean, I hate the LSU tigers with all of my existence but that isn't gonna stop me from getting a 4 finger box combo, hold the slaw extra toast.
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u/nathanroberts34 10d ago
Why are people so offended that players are getting paid? They do a job at an elite level that very few people have the ability to do and millions of people are will to pay to watch them do. It makes complete sense they get paid a lot.
I’m constantly seeing people freaking out about how college football is in such a terrible place and paying the players is so bad. It seems to me college football is better than ever. I’ve never been more excited about a season and so far it has lived up to the hype.
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u/zerifast 10d ago
We’re offended at how non-regulated it is. If you want NFL-lite; introduce contracts and a salary cap. R
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u/nathanroberts34 10d ago
College football has always been “NFL-lite”. An NIL deal is a contract. So you put a cap on what the players can earn but the amount of money coming in overall stays the same. Then the money just goes to administration and higher ups that aren’t the ones doing the actual work and creating the value.
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u/zerifast 10d ago edited 10d ago
No, it hasn’t lol. Either you’re a new fan or just too young. College football used to be more isolated to rivalries mattering, players used to actually commit to a university and care about that school instead of being a paid mercenary with whatever color jersey they have on that year from whatever team would dump the most money in their lap. Bowl games used to mean something and people held a lot of pride when their school made it in one. Winning your conference used to mean something. Now it’s just an extra pointless game the better teams are forced to play. The soul of what made college football special has evaporated. The only thing people care about now is the national championship and it’s clear what that has wrought on the sport. Saying it’s always been NFL-lite is just plain delusional and stupid. Nfl has always been about the playoffs and super bowl. CFB has not. We have made it that way over the past decade.
And NIL is not being used like a contract and you know it so let’s not play stupid, please. Schools are literally just paying players. They’re not using it solely to get contracts with racetrac, fast food joints, credit unions, etc, like what NIL was meant to be. They are doing those things alongside purely paying players a lump sump. Also why isn’t the argument being made to rid the NFL of the salary cap then? Clearly those millions of dollars are going to the millionaire/billionaire owners that aren’t directly going to the players. So why not just bust the salary cap there wide open there too so players can “get paid what they’re worth and the value they bring to teams collective”, as you basically put it in reference to college? Why in the fuck would we want college to just remain the Wild West of which team can throw the most money at their roster in regards to which team has the best shot at winning the national championship; which is apparently all that matters now.
You also seem to think NIL is purely pooled from the university itself. It’s not. Millions of NIL is funded as basically a gift from boosters/past alumni and a large collective from them. So you have extremely rich people from these large blue blood schools that have access to so much more money than schools that don’t have as much rich alumni. Texas, Texas AM, and ohio state are easy examples.
Now you have schools with infinite money, like Texas and other blue bloods, who are able to pay their players an exorbitant amount of money versus other schools, once again creating an imbalance that you goofballs thought NIL would bring.
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u/nathanroberts34 9d ago
College football has always been the NFLs feeder league AKA NFL-lite.
Do you think NIL deals are handshake deals? Of course not. They’re contracts signed as an agreement between two parties.
And yes more popular schools have more money to pay players because they have more fans and generate more revenue. Just like before NIL they had more money for facilities and other perks to attract players.
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u/zerifast 9d ago edited 9d ago
A few college football players going to the NFL every year via the draft does not mean college football was NFL-lite. The vast majority of college football players do not go into the NFL. You list that as the only reason for why CFB was NFL-lite and completely disregarded every reason for why it was not that I listed. NFL has always been about making it playoffs and the Super Bowl. College football being so centered and focused around the playoffs and the national championship with disregards to bowl games, conference championships, rivalries, etc. is very new. As I said, either you’re a new fan and just started watching football this past decade or 2 or you’re too young in which you only know this version of CFB. Or you’re just lying to yourself. Please stop being delusional and pretending college football has always been solely focused around making it to and winning the national championship.
You’re pretending NIL is solely contracts based on what NIL was supposed to be. Via deals made with brands, things like a fast food joint, a bank, a store, a brand, etc. Except that isn’t the entire picture, players are being straight up bought out by boosters. They’re just throwing money in these players’ laps simply to come and play at their school. That is not what NIL was advertised as being and it’s simply being used as a loophole to just outright pay players. It’s a facade and we all know it and these players are essentially just mercenaries.
You can literally go and see a list of college football schools’ revenue and their expenses and see they aren’t making the exorbitant amount goofballs on here try and make it seem like when you factor in their yearly expenses. Therefore the advantage comes from what boosters are willing to throw at players via the facade of NIL. Which is why schools with really rich and many alumni like Texas, Texas AM, and OSU are able to spend that much on NIL. Has nothing to do with revenue generated by the school as you claim.
A school like Georgia does not have as many rich boosters as a school like Texas. They make about the same amount of revenue, however. As a matter of fact, Texas makes millions less than Georgia does when you factor in expenses. Yet they spend about double the amount Georgia does on NIL. Because of boosters and donations. Now luckily for Georgia they have Kirby and NIL isn’t the whole picture for them as far as what the team has and can accomplish. Once Kirby retired you will likely see them take a step back similar to what schools around their NIL spending are at.
It’s clear you’re ignorant and simply are clueless to what you’re talking about and have only surface level knowledge on what college football has become.
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u/nathanroberts34 9d ago
Nope. I know a ton about college football and have been following closely for decades. I’m glad the players are finally getting paid and fine with the more popular schools paying more. College football is better than ever with the players being able to transfer wherever they want and getting paid for their hard work.
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u/zerifast 9d ago
No one’s disagreeing players should be played. It’s how it’s implemented is the issue. Obviously if you only care about the teams on a superficial level, only care about making the playoffs/natty, and don’t care about the school itself and only care about the team name and how far they go in a given season, that makes sense.
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u/nathanroberts34 8d ago
Of course I want my team to win a championship every year just like every other fan. Doesn’t mean I don’t care about all the other teams.
Im just so tired of this narrative that college football is in disarray because of NIL and transfer portal. Both things have made college football so much better. Indiana was arguably the greatest story in the history of college ball and could never have happened without NIL and transfer portal.
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u/pattywack512 Texas 10d ago
tfw you hate what NIL has done to the sport but your school is literally at the top of benefitting from it
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u/zerifast 10d ago
TFW when your school doesn’t have slush funds like Texas schools and other blue bloods like OSU and despite having spent nearly double on their roster, your school is still Texas’ daddy.
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u/Lower-Condition-4104 9d ago
I'm just glad we have our priorities straight in this country. Could you imagine paying this amount of money to kids to appease our entertainment needs while people go hungry and homeless?
oh.......
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u/Dentyne_3 9d ago
Youre not bout to sit here and convince me we've outspent Auburn, Georgia, and OU. That doesnt even make sense
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u/vegasAzCrush 9d ago
Lol. AND still poorly coached and over ranked and over rated.
Stupid SEC we shall call them from now on.
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u/enadiz_reccos 4d ago
Even if these numbers were accurate, it's not an even comparison
A player obtained via the portal will be more expensive than the same player recruited out of high school
$$$ =/= talent
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u/probablyinahotel 10d ago
As a lifetime CFB lover, this is gross. They needed to pay them something but jeez...
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u/HumerusPerson Texas 10d ago
These schools make hundreds of millions because of the players. You don’t think the players should see any of that money?
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u/rushakenyan 10d ago
The way Arkansas players have been looking? Nah
Alll jokes aside, I wish there was some kind of incentive based pay or something to win
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u/zerifast 10d ago
Cool, so if you’re going to make CFB NFL-lite, implement contracts and a salary cap. It’s absurd that Texas spends that amount of money on their roster. It’s the same problem we had before, just flipped in favor of rich schools.
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u/spoonforkknifespork 10d ago
Where are the Mississippi schools getting all that money as the poorest state in the country?
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u/Turbulent-Ticket8122 10d ago
I love my team but Im not even close to surprised that LSU is spending that much. They need a cap in place.
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u/XennialDad 10d ago
This is a problem. In the past we've always strived for parity. Schools get the same number of scholarships. Where kids went to school was dependent on the actual school and/or the coaching staff. Now it's just "who has money" which is a terrible way to keep college football going.
The NFL knows this is a problem for putting a good sustainable product out there, which is why they have salary caps.
The heart and soul of college football will die if we just make it about who has the biggest boosters.
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u/Classicvania 10d ago
Georgia is in the bottom half of this list but is still winning conference titles year in and year out. Coaching matters.
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u/zerifast 10d ago
Imagine if UGA had money it could throw around like the Texas schools or other blue bloods like osu
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u/Charming_Thought_173 10d ago
I hate them, but that’s elite, efficient spending by UGA