NIL
Exclusive: Texas quarterback Arch Manning made over $3.5 million in NIL deals in 2025, data shows
Two Fortune 500-sized companies will collide Friday at Royal-Memorial Stadium, and while everyone’s excited for the annual Lone Star Showdown between Texas and Texas A&M, the money that will be on that field will be staggering.
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Not the coaches, mind you. The quarterbacks.
The average starting quarterback in the SEC earned $900,000 in revenue sharing payments and money from name, image and likeness opportunities in 2025, according to Opendorse, the company tracking NIL deals across the college athletic landscape.
Texas’ Arch Manning made at least $3.5 million this season, a figure that has gone unknown until now. Is Manning worth it? He just became the first Texas player to run, pass and catch a touchdown in Saturday’s 52-37 win over Arkansas.
Per privacy laws, Opendorse co-founder and president Blake Lawrence said he cannot confirm exactly how much Manning or anyone earned. The company, which started in 2012 and partners with UT, compiles aggregate data and shared some of its proprietary data with the Houston Chronicle.
Arch Manning didn’t take any NIL payments until he was the starter at Texas. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
Opendorse data reveals the highest-earning SEC quarterback this season made at least $3,537,808, while the average quarterback made $38,021 – a figure brought down by backups and third-string player totals.
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Again, Lawrence wouldn’t confirm if that high-water figure is Manning or not. However, he told the Chronicle without any hesitation, “Being the starting quarterback at Texas is the most valuable position in college sports.”
“It is the largest market that is absent a professional sports team,” he said. “It is the largest athletic department budget and largest football budget combined. You are the face of the entire region of the country that is football focused. The university itself is a national and global brand.”
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What about Texas A&M’s Marcel Reed? His last name alone isn’t as big as Manning’s, so it’s an unfair comparison, really. Reed won’t stand out in Opendorse’s bell-curve data like Manning does on the far right.
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Almost all schools, including Texas A&M, keep athlete payment data confidential. Texas Tech may be a lone wolf in this regard. General manager James Blanchard told the Chronicle in October the Red Raiders spent $27 million on their 2025 roster. Billionaire Cody Campbell is pumping all of his oil money into winning the Big 12 and getting Tech into the College Football Playoffs.
Money can’t buy everything, though. Reed is the one now being mentioned for the Heisman Trophy, not Manning. The third-ranked Aggies (11-0, 7-0 SEC) are the ones aiming for a spot in the SEC championship game, not the 17th–ranked Longhorns (8-3, 5-2).
‘TROPHY SEASON’: A special year at Texas A&M faces a familiar rival
Reed captivated the college football world by orchestrating a 27-point come-from-behind win against South Carolina. It was the biggest comeback in school history, which kept the Aggies atop the SEC standings. Want to drive up your NIL value and your NFL Draft stock? Keep winning.
Texas A&M quarterback Marcell Reed, who has NIL deals with ENG Aviation, a Houston-based private jet company, and Sonic Drive-In and Rhoback clothing, has a football-first view. “I told my dad this and even my agents, at the end of the day, I came to play football just because of the love of the game.” (David J. Phillip/Associated Press)
“I told my dad this and even my agents, at the end of the day, I came to play football just because of the love of the game,” Reed said before the South Carolina game.
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“I never expected to get NIL when I first came to college or do any of those things. I got here and play the game I’ve been playing since I was 5 years old just to have fun, you know, because that’s what the game is.”
Manning’s name, social following drives valuation
When you look at the NIL deals both quarterbacks received this season, common sense should indicate who received a financial windfall.
Reed had an NIL deal with ENG Aviation, a Houston-based private jet company, and Sonic Drive-In and Rhoback clothing.
Manning had deals with Red Bull, Panini America, EA Sports, Uber and Waymo, Vuori clothing, Raising Cane’s and Warby Parker eyewear. Manning is represented by Alan Zucker of Excel Sports Management, the company that represents the entire Manning family.
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To his credit, Manning honored his grandfather Archie’s request the last two years and had no NIL deals until he became a starter. “I wanted to earn my money, work hard, get to know the players. Kind of earn my way up,” Manning said in a preseason interview session with ESPN’s Marty Smith arranged by Red Bull.
During the build-up to the season, Manning deflected most NIL questions. “I don’t really know how it’s going to work,” he said. “I’m just here to play football.”
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Breathless headlines appeared in August when On3, the national recruiting service, pegged Manning’s NIL valuation at $6.8 million. While On3’s valuations garner attention, nobody can tell you if they’re remotely correct.
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On3 claims it uses a “proprietary algorithm” whereas Opendorse is collecting data from actual NIL contracts submitted by Power 4 institutions.
On3 quietly lowered Manning’s “valuation” as the Horns’ season progressed and it became clear Manning needed more seasoning. Now, it’s sitting at $3.6 million, just under Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith’s nation-leading $4.2-million valuation.
Reed is ranked 14th nationally with a $2.2-million NIL valuation, according to On3. But again, is that even right? Before the South Carolina game, On3 had Reed valued at $1.9 million.
“I think that Texas A&M has one of the more advanced and well-developed NIL machines,” Lawrence said. “A&M in general has a ton of support. Marcel Reed is having an outstanding year. But what I can say is Marcel Reed has 144,000 followers on his social channels and Arch has four times that amount.”
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Revenue share, NIL under constant change
NIL is here to stay, and schools must adjust. But it’s the Wild West.
Before this season, third-party collectives were used to funnel NIL money to players. University administrators went along with it but didn’t like how they couldn’t control it.
The House vs. NCAA settlement paved the way for revenue sharing, and most schools are now using $20.5 million to pay athletes. Roughly 75% of that total is being spent on football at most universities. The collectives have been brought in house, and now the university can control the two major buckets – revenue share money and NIL money from donors.
Raising Cane’s was one of Arch Manning’s first NIL deals (Kaitlyn Morris/Arch Manning)
The revenue sharing pool was supposed to create a quasi-salary cap model. But as long as donors can pour in theoretically unlimited resources, nothing’s really changed. The Haves will win while the Have Nots will struggle.
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“I’m all for opportunity for young people,” Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said. “But we went from a known system to now we have 39 different state laws. So we don’t know how to govern ourselves right now.”
Opendorse calculated that college athletes received $393 million in 2021, the first year NIL was allowed. It ballooned to $1 billion by last year and projects to hit $2.4 billion in 2026.
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Want to field a good football team? An above-average Power 4 starting quarterback could cost anywhere from $2.5 to $3 million, a high-level running back starts around $620,000 and standout offensive and defensive linemen are in the $725,000 range.
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If one team went all in and paid the right end of the bell curve at every position, it’s likely a $17-million investment just for 22 starters, according to Opendorse data.
Coaches are starting to use NFL salary cap models to spread their budget across all position groups. Texas A&M coach Mike Elko said “it’s very much a moving target” based on how much the Aggies are willing to spend at various positions.
“There’s not a lot of structure, there’s not a lot of rules, there’s not a lot of regulations and so it just makes it really difficult to come up with an actual strategy and standard,” Elko said. “You’ve just got to stick to your principles and make sure that you balance your roster with enough of the type of players that you believe can build a championship.”
Does Elko know when he’s overpaying for a recruit? Or how about when a recruit is under-bidding themselves?
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“See, I don’t think you can do it like that in college,” Elko said. “I think what you have to do is you’ve got to identify difference makers, and you’ve got to figure out how to bring them into your program.”
Texas A&M coach Mike Elko on the new world of college football and NIL: “There’s not a lot of structure, there’s not a lot of rules, there’s not a lot of regulations and so it just makes it really difficult to come up with an actual strategy and standard. You’ve just got to stick to your principles and make sure that you balance your roster with enough of the type of players that you believe can build a championship.” (David J. Phillip/Associated Press)
Aggies have history of big spending
On a large level, college football is still about recruiting, talent evaluation and coaching ’em up.
The Chronicle reported Texas spent $35-40 million for its 2025 roster, although school officials pushed back on that number saying it was too high.
Texas A&M was rumored to spend $30 million on its 2022 team under former coach Jimbo Fisher. Now, Fisher’s long gone and earns $7.2 million annually through 2031 as part of his buyout agreement.
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Elko won’t admit how much A&M is spending on this year’s roster. Elko declined to say whether more NIL resources were part of his new six-year contract agreement.
Through open records obtained by the Chronicle, A&M revealed it paid out $50.5 million in NIL deals to all athletes from July 2024 to July 2025, a $31.1 million jump from the year prior. About $48.3 million of that went to male athletes.
The Aggies and Longhorns are neck and neck in the 2026 recruiting wars. A&M’s class is currently ranked seventh nationally while UT’s is eighth, according to Rivals.
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Not everyone is getting paid big money at their chosen school. Opendorse calculated that 90% of the football players on Power Four teams are getting $100,000 or less this season.
Coaches pay based on where a player ranks on the depth chart. A starting tight end lured out of the transfer portal could make $900,000, a returning receiver might make $750,000, another receiver can get $500,000 and others are scrounging around at $100,000 or so.
Players who don’t like their paycheck can jump in the transfer portal.
“I don’t know that a lot of these kids nowadays, they want a check. They don’t want physicality,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said last Saturday after beating Texas. “And if you have the check and no physicality, you end up with nothing. So we’re not just getting checks at our place. We’re hitting people.”
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Elko said during the evaluation process, “I think you’ve got to identify how they’re wired and what they’re driven by. And I think that impacts kind of where you’re willing to go for certain players and how much they’re actually really worth as you go through the process with them.”
This article originally published at Exclusive: Texas quarterback Arch Manning made over $3.5 million in NIL deals in 2025, data shows.
College football bowl season isn’t what it was a decade ago. In the modern age of the sport, most of the significance and attention sits on the 12-team College Football Playoff.
That hasn’t stopped the postseason from delivering plenty of exciting moments and some very competitive games. Look no further than Saturday’s slate. Five of the eight matchups came down to a single possession.
One of the comebacks of the year fell just short in the Isleta New Mexico Bowl. North Texas prevailed over San Diego State, 49-47, but not without plenty of drama. Trailing 49-20 entering the fourth quarter, the Aztecs went on a 27-7 run, including a punt return for a touchdown.
San Diego State’s final score came with just one second remaining, allowing North Texas to run out the clock on the ensuing onside kick. The result moved the Mean Green to 12-2, the best record in program history, and more wins than in their last two years combined.
Coming out of the game, North Texas is having a hard time celebrating after taking a few transfer portal hits. The school previously lost its head coach, Eric Morris, to Oklahoma State.
Breakout Running Back Moving On To Transfer Portal
On Saturday evening, redshirt freshman running back Ashton Gray announced his decision to transfer after two seasons at North Texas, per On3’s Hayes Fawcett.
Gray came out of nowhere to play a big role in the New Mexico Bowl. He saw increased playing time with Makenzie McGill and Kiefer Sibley unavailable. Gray finished the game with a career-high 16 carries for 152 yards and 2 touchdowns, while adding one reception for nine yards.
The Arkansas native scored twice in the first half, including a 51-yard scamper early in the second quarter that put North Texas up 28-13. His first touchdown gave the Mean Green a 14-7 advantage that they would never relinquish despite San Diego State’s late rally.
Gray entered the game with 42 carries for 225 yards and 3 touchdowns on the season. That just goes to show how impressive his final outing of the fall truly was.
Including the bowl game, Gray totaled 40 carries for 283 yards and 4 touchdowns in his last four appearances.
Gray signed with North Texas as a three-star prospect in the 2024 class. He redshirted during his first season with the program. Gray was recruited by former head coach Eric Morris and could potentially fit in at Oklahoma State.
The 6-foot-0, 208-pound running back will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.
Gray was the Little Rock Touchdown Club State Player of the Year and an all-state selection during his senior season at Marion High School in 2023.
North Texas has multiple starters expected to enter the portal, including quarterback Drew Mestemaker and running back Caleb Hawkins.
Read more on College Football HQ
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Tennessee finished the 2025 season 8–4 (4–4 SEC) under fifth-year head coach Josh Heupel, a sharp drop-off from its 10–3 finish and College Football Playoff appearance in 2024.
Starting quarterback Joey Aguilar threw for 3,444 yards with 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, while backup Jake Merklinger has publicly indicated he plans to enter the transfer portal when it opens.
With Aguilar’s future at Tennessee up in the air, Merklinger’s departure would remove an experienced depth option and leave the Volunteers primed to add a quarterback from the transfer portal for 2026.
On3’s Pete Nakos reported Saturday that UNLV quarterback Anthony Colandrea is expected to enter the NCAA transfer portal, with Tennessee already emerging as one of the programs being linked to him.
Colandrea enjoyed a breakout 2025 at UNLV, being named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year after throwing for 3,459 yards with 23 passing TDs and nine interceptions, adding 649 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs.
He started for UNLV during its run to the Mountain West title game and a postseason bowl appearance, finishing 19 of 30 for 184 yards and one interception with 28 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in the Rebels’ 17–10 Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl loss to Ohio.
A Lakewood (St. Petersburg, Fla.) product and consensus three-star recruit, Colandrea began his career at Virginia before transferring to UNLV ahead of the 2025 campaign.
Ranked as 247Sports’ No. 72 quarterback in the 2023 class, he drew nearly two dozen offers, including Kentucky, Florida Atlantic, Hawaii, South Florida, Troy, and Georgia State.
Throughout his collegiate career, Colandrea has amassed 7,542 passing yards and 1,151 rushing yards, totaling 61 touchdowns and a career completion rate of 63.8%.
As a dual-threat, experienced starter with a proven track record of high-volume production, he fits Tennessee’s pass-heavy offense and addresses a clear need for depth and competition at quarterback amid roster turnover.
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LARAMIE — When it comes to the controversial subject of Name, Image and Likeness in college sports, Tom Burman will be the first to tell you Wyoming has been playing catch up.
That doesn’t mean a solution isn’t on the horizon.
“We need to grow it quickly,” the school’s longtime athletics director admitted on Saturday night.
A report by the Cowboy State Daily earlier in the day stated the department is only allocating $1.4 million annually in NIL funds, $800,000 less per year than regional programs Montana and Montana State, which compete in the FCS.
While the latter dollar amount could not be substantiated, Burman said the initial figure for UW is now at $1.5 million, adding that number only illustrates the revenue sharing monies between the school’s two largest income generating programs, football and men’s basketball. An additional $200,000 is being divvied up between women’s basketball, volleyball and wrestling, he added.
“This does not include any third-party NIL dollars or Learfield NIL partnerships, which are likely another $500,000 total,” he continued. “This also does not include Alston Scholarship dollars, which is $1.1 million, and are included as revenue sharing as part of the House Settlement analysis.”
There are other future plans in place to bring in additional revenue, Burman said. including jersey patches, field and court logos and venue naming opportunities.
UNLV, one of the Cowboys’ current Mountain West foes, recently announced a 5-year, $11 million deal to promote a local Las Vegas company on its uniforms in football, men’s and women’s basketball and baseball. That is expected to be approved in August.
Burman said this will happen at UW, but added, “We’re not going to give it away.”
The same can be said for a permanent field sponsor inside War Memorial Stadium.
Ramos Law, a firm based out of Colorado, purchased that space for the Cowboys’ home finale last month against Nevada — the “Josh Allen game” — for a reported $90,000-plus. The company logo was placed at both 25 yards lines.
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There are other potential avenues that could help Wyoming gain ground on the competition.
“If we get support from the state — and not a budget cut, also — and continued investment from the private sector, coupled with support from campus, we will be in a good place in short order,” Burman said.
The department earlier this month asked the joint appropriations committee of the Wyoming Legislature for an additional $3 million on top of the annual $11.2 it receives annually through the school’s block grant. The state will also match up to $5 million a year in private donations.
The grand total is just over $19 million.
Though the $3 million, annually, wouldn’t go directly to NIL and revenue sharing, Burman said, it will help UW to handle other escalating costs that have occurred due to inflation and additional costs related to the NCAA House settlement and Mountain West membership changes.
The university is now on the hook for reimbursements to former student-athletes. That number totals $2.8 billion in damages. Over the next 10 years, Burman added, Wyoming will lose funding to the tune of $550,000, annually.
The current media rights deal with the conference, which currently brings in $3.7 million a year, is also likely to take a hit.
San Diego State, Fresno State, Utah State, Boise State and the Cowboys’ Border War rival, Colorado State, are departing in July for the new-look Pac-12. The league is adding UTEP and Northern Illinois, the latter in football only. UC Davis and Grand Canyon have joined on the basketball side. Hawaii is also now a full member.
The department, though, could soon see an influx of cash once the legal battle between the Mountain West and Pac-12 is finalized. Poaching fees and exit fees are at the heart of the litigation. The next hearing in that case is set for Sept. 9.
Donations to the Cowboy Joe Club, the department’s lead fundraising arm, will also open up additional opportunities to retain and lure future student-athletes, Burman added.
“We are starting to see people donate,” he said. “That frees up money for revenue sharing through ticket sales, media rights, corporate dollars, television, etc.
“We are just getting started.”
University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players
The rules are simple: What was the player’s impact while in Laramie? That means NFL stats, draft status or any other accolade earned outside of UW is irrelevant when it comes to this list.
This isn’t a one-man job. This task called for a panel of experts. Joining 7220’s Cody Tucker are Robert Gagliardi, Jared Newland, Ryan Thorburn, and Kevin McKinney.
We all compiled our own list of 50 and let computer averages do the work. Think BCS — only we hope this catalog is fairer.
Gallery Credit: 7220Sports.com
– University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players
It’s getting hard for Clemson to ignore the downfall of Dabo Swinney.
Prior to the start of the 2025 season, Clemson was a trendy pick to make the national championship game. The program’s hopes of making a run in the College Football Playoff were destroyed once Swinney’s squad fell to 1-3 on Sept. 20. Although the Tigers finished the regular season with a 7-5 record, the reality is they underachieved this year.
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As if this season wasn’t brutal enough for Clemson fans, they had to watch their team get dismantled by Penn State in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl.
Clemson’s offense was neutralized by Penn State’s defense. On the flip side, the Nittany Lions received a sharp performance from quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer.
Before Penn State even put the finishing touches on its bowl victory over Clemson, people voiced their complaints about Swinney online. Most of them believe he should be fired this offseason.
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Nov 14, 2025; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney talks with the officials during the first half against the Louisville Cardinals at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images
Dabo on the hot seat.
“Fire Dabo, fire the whole staff, cut the entire team. Losing to a piss poor Penn State team is unacceptable,” one fan said.
“Please fire Dabo..it’s time,” a second fan wrote. “I’m sorry but it’s time.”
“Fire Dabo NOW,” a third fan commented.
“Dabo Swinney has stated numerous times that he’s against NIL If he can’t adapt then Clemson needs to fire him,” another fan argued. “I think he’s a great football coach and would have success in the NFL, but the college game is a lot different now.”
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Swinney, a two-time national champion, has accomplished remarkable things at Clemson since taking over the program in 2009.
At the end of the day though, Swinney has struggled to adapt in the NIL era of college football.
Should Clemson fire Swinney this offseason?
This story was originally published by The Spun on Dec 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Oregon redshirt sophomore quarterback Austin Novosad plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, according to a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Saturday afternoon.
Novosad, a native of Dripping Springs, Texas, spent three seasons at Oregon and appeared in seven games. During that span, he completed 12 of 15 passes for 99 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
Novosad waited his turn in Eugene throughout that time. He learned behind Bo Nix during his true freshman season in 2023 and Dillon Gabriel in 2024. Novosad remained with the program losing the spring quarterback competition to Dante Moore, and played very little during his third season with the program.
A member of the 2023 recruiting class, he was the No. 113 overall prospect and the No. 10 quarterback in the cycle, per the Rivals Industry Ranking, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all of the primary recruiting media services. He was the No. 21 player from the state of Texas that year.
Novosad is set to have have two years of eligibility at the next school he attends. He used a redshirt during his true freshman season.
As a high schooler, he completed 563-of-873 passes (64.5%) for 8,983 yards and 114 touchdowns compared to 18 interceptions during a three-year career at the varsity level. He had three games where he finished with seven touchdowns, as well as one six-touchdown game, and six separate games where he threw five touchdowns. Novosad was recruited by the likes of Ohio State, Texas A&M and Baylor, among others. A one-time Baylor commit, he flipped late to the Ducks before National Signing Day.
More on the NCAA Transfer Portal
Once the NCAA transfer portal opens on Jan. 2, players can officially enter their names in the NCAA transfer portal and go on to initiate contact with their preferred schools. The portal will be open for 15 days and close on Jan. 16.
Notably, players who are on teams competing in the national championship game are allowed five extra days to make their portal decision. The College Football Playoff championship game will be played on Jan. 19, so the players on those teams will be allowed until Jan. 24 to enter the portal and choose their next school.
To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.
James Madison completed a historic 2025 campaign, capturing the Sun Belt title and earning the program’s first-ever College Football Playoff berth before a first-round loss to Oregon.
Even with the postseason loss, the Dukes finished ranked inside the top 25 and reinforced their status as one of the fastest-rising programs in the FBS after transitioning from the FCS in 2022.
The team’s biggest contributor was junior running back Wayne Knight.
Across the season, he totaled 1,373 rushing yards on 207 carries (6.6 yards per carry) with nine rushing touchdowns and added 40 receptions for 397 receiving yards, producing 1,770 all-purpose yards.
Knight posted multiple 100-yard rushing games, set a school record with 234 all-purpose yards in the Sun Belt championship (including a 212-yard rushing effort), became a Paul Hornung Award finalist, earned first-team All–Sun Belt honors, and garnered All-American recognition from select outlets.
However, on Saturday, Knight announced his intention to enter the NCAA transfer portal.
Early reporting has already linked him to several Power Five programs, with Yahoo Sports explicitly naming No. 1-ranked Indiana as a logical fit.
Knight redshirted in 2023 before establishing himself as James Madison’s primary back in 2024, totaling 449 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns while adding 137 receiving yards and two receiving scores ahead of his breakout 2025 campaign.
Knight signed with James Madison in December 2021, choosing the Dukes over more than a dozen other scholarship offers, including Delaware, Navy, Brown, Howard, and Maine.
Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti is the central link in the Knight to Indiana storyline.
Before taking the Indiana job in 2024, Cignetti led James Madison to an 8–3 record in 2022 and an 11–1 finish in 2023, reaching as high as No. 18 in the AP poll.
Knight played under Cignetti during both seasons and was originally recruited to JMU by him.
For Cignetti and Indiana, adding a high-production, battle-tested running back would bolster depth and special teams for a program now competing at the highest level.
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