🏈 For some NFL Draft prospects, joining the league now means a pay cut from college football - NY Times

[SEC Sports]

For some NFL Draft prospects, joining the league now means a pay cut from college football

“I’m definitely making less with the Colts,” former Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard said. And he's not alone.

www.nytimes.com

Two months ago, in a courtroom in a rural Mississippi town of 157 people, Trinidad Chambliss and his lawyers argued against the NCAA with a clear goal: keep him at Ole Miss for one more year — and away from the NFL.

Chambliss, 23, was projected as a middle-round NFL prospect with potential to be the third quarterback taken in next week’s draft. But in a sign of the shifting landscape of college football, his lawyers made the case that going pro would actually cost Chambliss millions of dollars compared to the value of his name, image and likeness deal at Ole Miss.

And Chambliss isn’t alone.

Last year, Vanderbilt star quarterback Diego Pavia waged a similar fight, getting a court to rule in his favor, gaining another year of eligibility. This year, Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar and Virginia quarterback Chandler Morris fought to extend their college careers, too, though judges ultimately ruled against them.

The influx of NIL money in college sports has changed the dynamic. For some, running out of eligibility means facing something new when they enter the NFL: a pay cut. Chambliss’ case was an extreme, but it’s a trend that began before this year. Both starting quarterbacks in the 2025 national title game told The Athletic they earned less in their first year as NFL players than they did in their final seasons at Ohio State and Notre Dame.

“You can create generational wealth now and it doesn’t have to start in the NFL,” said quarterback Will Howard, who won the national title at Ohio State two seasons ago.

Chambliss is expected to make between $5 million-$6 million this season at Ole Miss. Only the first 11 picks in this year’s draft will make more than $5 million in the first year of their contract, according to Spotrac. If Chambliss was a second- or third-round draft pick, his salary would range from $1.2 million to $2.35 million as a rookie.

Chambliss had other reasons to return to school; last season was his first as a starter at the FBS level after four years at Division II Ferris State, and he will be one of the sport’s leading Heisman Trophy contenders. But if NIL money wasn’t a factor, would he — or anyone — want to go to court to delay their future in professional sports?

Chambliss’ father, Trent Chambliss, paused and sighed when the question was posed.

“Boy,” he said, “That’s a good question.”

He believes the family might still work its way to doing the same thing. But there’s no way to know.

Trinidad Chambliss looks downwards.

And the gap is growing between what athletes — especially quarterbacks — can make as college stars and what they earn as NFL rookies.

Miami paid Georgia quarterback Carson Beck over $3 million to stiff-arm the NFL and spend a season in South Beach. He’s projected as a fourth-round pick this year. If he’s selected there, he can expect to make around $1.1 million, according to the NFL rookie wage scale.

Aguilar, according to his failed lawsuit, had a $2 million deal from Tennessee. Next week, he could go undrafted.

Last year, Howard and former Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard faced off with the national title at stake. Howard won and, a few months later, became a sixth-round pick for his hometown Pittsburgh Steelers. Leonard landed with the Indianapolis Colts four picks after.

After being drafted by the Colts, Leonard signed a four-year contract worth $4.4 million total. Howard signed a nearly identical deal that averaged out to $1.1 million annually.

“I’m definitely making less with the Colts,” Leonard said. “And you see the numbers flying around college football. The money’s doubled since I’ve been there.”

Leonard declined to say how much he was making in his final season at Notre Dame but said reported numbers of $1.5 million were “overshooting it a little bit.”

He said he made more than 10 times at Notre Dame what he was making the previous year at Duke.

Howard, too, said he made less as an NFL rookie than he did leading Ohio State to the national title as a transfer from Kansas State in 2024.

“It’s weird,” he said. “It’s definitely different.”

And in the NFL, there’s a catch.

“In college, the money is way more guaranteed,” Leonard said. “Only like $200,000 of my contract is guaranteed. You have to make the team every year for four years straight to earn it all.”

To be clear, Howard and Leonard aren’t complaining.

“You’re still in the top .0001 percent for people my age,” he said.

Leonard said he stashed most of his money at Notre Dame in real estate, treasury bills, private equity and index funds. He only had access to about 6-8 percent of his earnings in college.

Leonard, who graduated from Duke with a degree in public policy and minors in markets and management studies, never had an interest in financial literacy. Until he started cashing checks way bigger than he imagined possible in college.

“I learned by having money and dealing with it,” Leonard said. “I’m a huge advocate for school and stuff, but I don’t remember too much of what I learned in the classroom. But when my real money had to be spent and invested, I was for sure locked in.”

His only real splurge was an engagement ring for his girlfriend. He lived in a three-bedroom apartment with Notre Dame’s kicker and punter.

He did buy a house in Indianapolis after he was drafted.

“I still turn the AC off whenever I leave the house to save money on the power bill,” he said.

Players like Leonard and Howard’s experiences showed how quickly the draft dynamics have changed.

In 2021, Leonard sat in a meeting with his Duke teammates as team compliance officers explained the advent of NIL and what was now legal and illegal. Leonard mostly rolled his eyes and laughed.

“I told my buddy after that meeting, ‘If somebody gives me a free cheeseburger for posting on Instagram, I’ll be there every day,” he said. “There’s no way this ever happens. There’s no way anybody does a deal with us. There’s no way there’s a market there.”

Howard bided his time before a big payday. He spent four seasons at K-State, starting 27 games. In his final season, though, incoming freshman Avery Johnson — Howard’s backup — was being paid more.

“I was a naive kid. I didn’t know. The nature of myself, I didn’t want anything or need money. I said I was good,” Howard said. “There were a lot of politics the last year. There were games I was splitting time with him for no reason that I knew other than there was money going to him that wasn’t going to me.”

Howard said he never signed a deal with Kansas State’s collective, though he did secure a few smaller deals through community businesses.

“Everything I did was on my own. They kind of took advantage of me and got me for cheap, so I decided to go somewhere else and make a little money,” Howard said. “It’s different when you go to a school, and you’re the guy getting money. It’s amazing how different you’re treated. It was the best decision I ever made.”

Howard’s deal with Ohio State included an apartment, a Ford Bronco and money that totaled seven figures. He was paid quarterly, whereas NFL players earn weekly checks that are only paid out about half the year. NFL players are paid as W-2 employees, with taxes already deducted, while collective payments are treated as independent-contractor income, so players have to set aside money for taxes themselves.

Howard saw the move to Ohio State like Leonard saw the move to Notre Dame: A baby step into the NFL. Little did he know that the money would rival what he’d get as a late-round pick, too.

Last year, Chambliss didn’t arrive at Ole Miss until the summer and was expected to backup Austin Simmons.

He emerged as one of the breakout stars of last season and led Ole Miss to the College Football Playoff semifinals. This offseason was the first time he could truly cash in on his NIL.

And he grew so much in just seven months with the program, the Chamblisses are hopeful that a full year as the program’s starter will pay even bigger dividends — literally. Another big year could further boost his draft stock. If it rises high enough, he can avoid the pay cut that players like Howard and Leonard took as rookies. And in the meantime, he can make more than ever as a college quarterback.

“Those that are serious about their field or trade or career, they would appreciate having all the time they need to make sure they’re ready to launch,” Trent Chambliss said.

And college football has never been a more lucrative training ground.

 

[mando]

College sports is ruined in my eyes... I am sure as with anything there will be pros and cons as NIL starts to find a reasonable sweat spot and maybe some regulations get put around it. Even then it is just not the same as when I was growing up. Kids played for the pride of the jersey and I am sure there are still some that do. Others will chase the $$. Can't say I necessarily blame them just wish it was not that way.