Nick Saban shook the college football world by announcing his retirement on Jan. 10, 2024. Less than a week later, one of his best Alabama players made his own big news: Caleb Downs entered the transfer portal, with most signs pointing to the star safety going to Georgia in his home state.
But another program swooped in: Ohio State nabbed Downs in a crowning move in an offseason in which the Buckeyes spent around $20 million to retain top players and bring in a handful of key transfers. A year later, Downs and Ohio State are national champions, while Alabama missed the College Football Playoff and Georgia lost in the quarterfinals.
For years, those two programs dominated in recruiting, and they won the three national championships from 2020-22. But as the landscape changed, other programs, desperate to get back to prominence, chipped away at Alabama and Georgia’s talent advantage. Now, after two years of not winning titles, is the desperation factor about to swing in their direction?
“Coach Saban would say to me from time to time, ‘Greg, the dinosaurs didn’t adapt,’” Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said. “We have to continue to adapt, and I think the great majority of our fans recognize that.”
But adapting doesn’t mean going overboard. Did Alabama and Georgia get outspent last year? The Athletic spoke to sources around both programs and others in the business of name, image and likeness, and the answer that emerged: Yes, they probably did, but blaming that for the way their seasons went is too simplistic.
‘More judicious’ in spending
The spending by collectives and the outside endorsement deals for players are not public; Ohio State’s athletic director made its figure public in a rare move this past summer. Georgia officials did not comment for this story. But multiple program sources briefed on the operations of Georgia’s collective, Classic City Collective, said that it spent an average of $1.1 million per month last year on football payments. That number fluctuates per month and doesn’t include outside NIL deals or special situations that come up.
Quarterback Carson Beck, for instance, earned around $1.5 million last year, according to a source close to the program, and there were additional, outside endorsements. Beck then transferred to Miami, where he is receiving an NIL deal believed to be around twice what he was getting at Georgia, which had allocated resources elsewhere by the time Beck decided he wanted to play in college one more year.
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How does Georgia’s spending compare? It’s hard to know given the lack of transparency, but the Georgia sources estimate they were outspent by Ohio State and semifinalist Texas. But while they think they probably outspent Notre Dame, the Irish have reason to believe they spent as much or more than the Bulldogs. Based on tax records, Notre Dame’s collective raised $20.5 million in 2023, Sportico reported last month, but it’s not known how much of that was spent on last year’s football team, and how much went to other sports, collective expenses or was carried over to 2025.
Either way, Georgia still beat Texas twice this past season, the program it feels confident it was outspent by. So it can’t be directly tied to spending.
“I don’t think UGA was ‘burned’ by its NIL approach in 2024,” said Drew Butler, a former Georgia punter and now an NIL adviser. “I generally am skeptical of most figures that are reported around the NIL landscape, but it is clear that Georgia is committed to spend what is needed to procure and retain the talent that they identify as necessary to compete at the highest level.”
It’s not that Georgia intentionally spends less or doesn’t have the money, say those Georgia sources. It’s that it has been “more judicious” with spending, as one source put it. And that often means not splurging to keep players who leave for playing time, which hurts depth but is a reality of the transfer portal era.
Then there’s the “discount” factor. Georgia, like Alabama, has been so successful on the field, and in putting players in the NFL, that it could get recruits and transfers to come for less NIL money. That was especially so for elite players who they argued would be able to make up for the money on the back end when they were drafted higher. Plus, the programs had the pull of playing for a winner.
But players also want to play, and as NIL and the portal evolved, it made it harder to hold on to players. Georgia has still recruited well on the front end: It has the nation’s No. 2 recruiting class in the 2025 cycle, and Alabama is fourth. But Georgia also had the No. 2 recruiting class in 2023, and 10 of those signees have already transferred.
Meanwhile, Georgia has missed out on some potentially key additions. Downs is the most obvious case, but even then people at Georgia think it may not have been just about being outbid: Downs, who rejected Georgia for Alabama out of high school, simply didn’t want to play for the Bulldogs.
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Dylan Raiola was committed to Georgia for six months in 2023 and moved to Buford, Ga., for his senior year of high school. But a week before the December signing day, he flipped to Nebraska. Nebraska also beat out Georgia this past cycle for receiver Dane Key, a transfer from Kentucky. Those could be cases of Nebraska, eager to get back to national relevance, outbidding Georgia, or they could be regarding playing time.
Georgia did eventually get a pair of highly sought-after receivers: Zachariah Branch from USC and Noah Thomas from Texas A&M. And it did sign eight transfers last cycle, although only one (tailback Trevor Etienne from Florida) made a huge impact right away. Ultimately, a source said, the thinking around the program is to rely on the internal culture and avoid having an “outlier at a position” that could cause chemistry issues.
“NIL has surely brought more parity across college football, and that was apparent this past season,” said Butler, who started in the industry as an executive at Icon Source, an early NIL company. “But I agree with UGA not getting in bidding wars with prospects or transfers that could set a bad precedent moving forward to simply outspend the highest offer.”
What about the coming revenue sharing, a result of the pending House v. NCAA settlement, where each program can spend a good portion of more than $20 million directly paying football players? One source close to Georgia believes it will “relieve pressure for the bulk of the roster” but only create a new battle to generate and facilitate “above the cap” money. In essence, it will raise the floor for all salaries.
The dynamics on who spends what, meanwhile, will be charged by the same thing: The desire — or desperation — for talent.
‘Are we just supposed to sit on the sideline and hope?’
Downs isn’t the only player of consequence linking Alabama and Ohio State. Former five-star quarterback Julian Sayin is primed to compete for the starting role for the Buckeyes in 2025, though a year ago, many would’ve thought he’d be doing the same at Alabama. Sayin, who had been committed to Alabama since December 2022, had been in Tuscaloosa only a few days before Saban announced his retirement. A little over a week later, Sayin signed with Ohio State.
It’s just one significant pivot among a tidal wave of change after Saban’s retirement, which contributed to 39 portal exits from Alabama — the most in the SEC during the last cycle and the most ever in one offseason at Alabama. The previous high was 23 in 2022.
One year later, how much has Saban’s departure tipped the balance?
The chance to play for one of the greatest coaches of all time, and what came with it in development and winning, made up one of the strongest recruiting pitches in college football. The Tide’s financial equation changed when Kalen DeBoer took over.
Alabama AD Byrne has been vocal in drumming up support for the Yea Alabama collective. On Dec. 18, as the Tide neared the end of a disappointing 9-4 season, he called for fan support via X noting that “it is time for the Bama Nation to fight back” against competitors offering large payouts to lure players away.
“Some people take it as a panic move on our part,” Byrne said in an interview with The Athletic. “Are we just supposed to sit on the sideline and hope? Or do we actually take steps to try to educate and encourage and say why there’s a need for it?”
Yea Alabama offers subscription-based memberships ranging from as low as $18 a month ($5 for students) to as much as $250 a month. Members receive access to exclusive content on the Yea Alabama website, as well as merchandise and special access to Alabama athletic events depending on tier. The organization received 800 additions and renewals 36 hours after Byrne’s tweet.
Overall, the collective has added a few thousand members in the past year and has paying members from all 50 states, which was not the case under Saban.
Alabama fans,
Over the past few years, there have been drastic changes in college athletics. We have been careful during this transitional period to protect our position at the top of college athletics while being mindful to listen, engage and learn from our generous…— Greg Byrne (@Greg_Byrne) December 18, 2024
On the field, Alabama’s four losses were the most since 2007. The consistency enjoyed under Saban seemed to fade quickly. Alabama lost to three unranked teams in 2024, while Saban lost to four unranked opponents in his 17 seasons.
But Alabama rebounded by signing a consensus top-four high school class and adding nine players via the portal. But the biggest data point toward growth in NIL is in player retention. The program retained double-digit players who had stay-or-go NFL draft decisions, while three juniors entered the 2025 draft. The financial commitment of the past two national championship teams at Michigan and Ohio State was tied to retaining key players who considered early entry.
There have still been missed opportunities. Alabama lost two five-star commits late in the recruiting cycle in wide receiver Caleb Cunningham (Ole Miss) and most recently offensive tackle Ty Haywood, considered a Michigan lean by multiple industry reports. This also marked the first time since 2000 that the program didn’t sign a single top-10 recruit in the state of Alabama. The No. 1 prospect, five-star Na’eem Offord, signed with Oregon. National top-100 player Zion Grady signed with Ohio State. The other eight prospects signed with rival Auburn.
The growth in Alabama’s NIL infrastructure over the past year gives the 2025 team its best chance to rebound from a disappointing season, but it needs to continue growing ahead of the pivotal next recruiting cycle.
The residual reputation from Saban, paired with a national championship game appearance to cap the 2023 season by DeBoer at Washington, resonated with prospects this year. But if the Tide miss the Playoffs for a second consecutive season, the benefit of the doubt that Alabama is still Alabama will start to fade.
The expected start of revenue sharing should be a net positive for Alabama. Byrne said that it gives the top programs a “similar model to work within.” On top of that, Alabama is aggressively building out its collective, angling it toward athlete-generated content such as podcasts, exclusive interviews and more, which paired with Alabama’s high visibility can elevate an athlete’s brand while competing for championships.
Now think about what you were doing at 17 🤔
Episode 2 of ‘Roll Tim Roll’ is out NOW, only on pic.twitter.com/oByQ6K3oxo
— Yea Alabama (@yea_ala) October 5, 2024
“We believe that good, legitimate NIL is something that can be generated through content,” Byrne said. “The stage that we have at Alabama, the passion of our fan base across the country, in numbers is as strong as anybody out there. So what we will need is for people to be involved in Yea Alabama at whatever level they can, to give us the opportunity to use our bright light and stage that we have to maximize opportunities.”
A pivotal moment
A more aggressive financial commitment is almost unavoidable for Alabama and Georgia to keep pace with their aggressive peers, but it’s only one part of the equation. There were signs pointing to a potential slip for both programs in 2024.
Georgia led college football in NFL draft picks over the past three years (33), including 10 first-round picks. It’s becoming increasingly harder to replenish that level of talent in this new era. There were also legal issues that hurt this team: Rara Thomas and Colbie Young, two of its projected leading receivers, were unavailable following arrests; Thomas in the summer and Young after five games, both too late to be replaced in the portal.
For Alabama, learning how to move on from the dominance of the Saban era marked one of the biggest storylines all year, but especially in the offseason. Alabama lost 10 players who were drafted, which tied for the third most of any school, then the wave of players via the transfer portal, highlighted by Downs. A new coaching staff and 42 new players — 27 from high school — were always going to make for an adjustment, and the result was a talented but incongruous team that ended up on the outside looking in at the Playoff.
It’s a pivotal moment for both programs. Two powerhouses with recent success and extremely high expectations but in need of a revamping to counteract competitors who seem stronger than ever. So what happens next?
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Georgia checked in at No. 7 on The Athletic’s way too early 2025 Top 25, but as constructed is the youngest team in the Kirby Smart era. The Bulldogs are at roughly 90 scholarship players, and 49 are true freshmen or redshirt freshmen. Alabama, No. 14 in the early ranking, has notable returning production, but there’s a looming quarterback question and arguably a more difficult schedule in 2025, including road games against Florida State, Auburn, Georgia and South Carolina.
The want-to of these programs to get back to the national championship stage isn’t in question, but where is the line between spending more to keep up with their peers and trying to continue to act judiciously to protect the environments that Smart built and DeBoer is trying to maintain. Someday, Alabama and Georgia may become like some of their competitors: desperate to get back and spending like it.
It doesn’t sound like they’re there just yet.
“We have tried to be very thoughtful in our entire approach from the get-go,” Byrne said. “I’ve made it clear — from my standpoint, nobody better write a check they can’t cash.”
(Illustration: Will Tullos / The Athletic; Images: Alika Jenner, John Fisher, Jeffrey Vest / Getty)
