When a billionaire oil executive decides to shake up college football, everyone pays attention.

Cody Campbell isn’t just throwing money at Texas Tech’s NIL program; he’s rewriting how schools compete for elite talent while fighting to reform the system he’s dominating.

How Did Billionaire Cody Campbell Transform Texas Tech Into an NIL Powerhouse?

Cody Campbell has become a central figure in reshaping the NIL landscape at Texas Tech, orchestrating one of the most aggressive pushes in the nation to secure elite talent through values-driven leadership and financial backing.

As chairman of the Texas Tech Board of Regents and a billionaire oil executive, Campbell has used his influence to vault the Red Raiders into national prominence. The most striking example came with a groundbreaking $2.3 million NIL deal for prized recruit Felix Ojo.

Ojo, a 6’7″, 285-pound lineman, was heavily pursued by blue-blood programs such as Texas, Michigan, Florida, and defending national champion Ohio State. But it was Texas Tech, once considered an outsider in these recruiting battles, that landed him through a revenue-sharing agreement reportedly worth at least $2.3 million over three years.

This approach has completely transformed how the Red Raiders compete. Campbell’s financial backing has turned Tech into a top destination for elite talent, allowing them to capitalize on the transfer portal while aggressively targeting high school athletes nationwide.

Why Does Campbell Want to Reform the System If He’s Winning?

Speaking with On3’s Andy and Ari at Big 12 Media Days, Campbell acknowledged the duality of competing within the current NIL system while advocating for reform.

“We’ve played the game as well as we could based on the rules that are in place,” he said. “That doesn’t necessarily mean that I think it’s good for the long-term health of the sport or all the sports, because I know it’s not.”

Beyond his NIL investments, Campbell has launched an initiative called “Saving College Sports,” which aims to preserve Olympic and non-revenue sports amid rising financial pressures.

“There are 500,000 student-athletes in the country,” he said. “The kids that play non-revenue sports are just as important as the kids who play football and men’s basketball.”

While Campbell insists athletes should be compensated, he opposes a monopolized model that benefits only the top-tier programs. His vision extends far beyond just winning recruiting battles for Texas Tech.

RELATED: ‘College Sports Are in Trouble’ — Texas Tech Billionaire Explains His Plan To Save Athletes, but the Public Isn’t Convinced

“The opportunity the kid gets at Colorado State is just as important as the opportunity the kid gets at Georgia,” he said. “We have to have a sustaining level of cash flow coming through.”

Campbell even drew parallels to a political moment, quoting U.S. President Donald Trump when he said, “We’re playing the game because we want to be competitive, but that doesn’t mean we think it’s the right thing to do.”

As NIL continues to reshape college football, Campbell represents a unique position in the landscape. He’s both a participant and a reformer, using his resources to compete at the highest level while working to ensure the system works for everyone involved in college athletics.

By David Ubben, Justin Williams and Chris Vannini

FRISCO, Texas — Texas Tech has become one of the splashiest stories of the college football offseason thanks to the money poured into its 2025 roster. And opposing Big 12 coaches have taken notice.

“They’ve built the best team money can buy,” one conference head coach told The Athletic. “But if they don’t win the Big 12, holy cow.”

He was among a dozen Big 12 head coaches The Athletic interviewed about Texas Tech’s spending spree at the league’s media days this week, offering anonymity in exchange for their candor. The responses ranged from good-natured to cynical, with at least a touch of jealousy.

“Good for them. Hell, if I had Cody Campbell, I’d be doing sleepovers at his house,” said one coach of the Texas Tech billionaire booster who has become a significant figure in college sports. “‘Hey, best buddy. How can I help you?’ You sh—in’ me? I don’t blame them. If you’re gonna buy a player, buy the right one. And they bought some good ones.”

The program, which has benefited from an influx of name, image and likeness spending in recent years, doubled down this offseason. Texas Tech athletes will earn roughly $55 million in NIL across all sports in 2025-26, including $20.5 million in direct revenue sharing under the recently approved House settlement. Tech star softball pitcher NiJaree Canady is entering her second year with a seven-figure deal, and men’s basketball standout JT Toppin is back on a deal worth more than $3 million. But a large chunk of that money is invested in a football roster that added 20-plus transfers — many highly coveted — and retained a number of core players with the help of frontloaded NIL deals from the Matador Club collective, co-founded by Campbell and fellow alum and oil magnate John Sellers.

It’s a massive investment for any school, particularly a Big 12 program that is not a traditional blue blood. But Tech, coming off an 8-5 record in 2024, isn’t shying from it.

“I do think people feel a little threatened,” Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire said in an interview with The Athletic. “The last box (to check) is, Texas Tech has never won the Big 12, never played in the Big 12 championship. That’s why this year is so critical.”

The players are embracing it as well. “I love the bull’s-eye we got on our back,” senior quarterback Behren Morton said.

Count Colorado coach Deion Sanders, a longtime admirer of McGuire from their high school coaching days, among those paying attention.

“Yeah, Joey got some money! Spending that money! I love it,” Sanders said Wednesday from the Big 12 event’s main stage. “Can you send a few of those dollars to us so we can get some of those players, too?”

Others were less enthused.

“I mean, it’s childish. I think it’s, ‘Hey, look at me,’” said another coach. “I don’t think it’s good for college football.”

Six coaches said they wished they had similar financial support and would do the same if they were in McGuire’s (very expensive) shoes.

“It’s awesome if you got it,” said one coach. “I wish I had it, oh, my gosh.”

“Good for them,” said another. “I’m jealous.”

Others scoffed at the extent of the spending and how it might impact the locker room.

“Ridiculous. …They’re not just outbidding, they’re outbidding (other teams) by 3X,” said one coach. “Wild, but it will be interesting. If the players are good kids, about the right things and about winning, I think it’ll go great. If they’re about themselves, the first time adversity hits will define them.”

Another suggested that “the pressure that’s going to come with all the money Texas Tech spent is going to be tough.”

A couple of coaches questioned the sustainability and legitimacy of the dollar figures being thrown around, with one calling it “asinine.” Another mentioned conflicting reports over 2026 offensive line recruit Felix Ojo, who committed to the Red Raiders last weekend and agreed to a three-year revenue sharing contract. Ojo’s agent said the deal is worth $5.1 million, but multiple program sources told The Athletic it’s worth $2.3 million with the potential to increase.

Another coach expressed frustration that Texas Tech’s roster was being paid 10 times what he was paying his players.

“I don’t know what to believe. I don’t even know how it’s possible,” said the coach. “Those are big numbers. There will be a lot of young men taking pay cuts when they get done playing college football.”

A few coaches stressed that NIL spending doesn’t always buy wins, with one stating: “Let’s see how it plays out. Complaining, b—ing, whining, nobody wants to hear that.”

A different coach was more realistic about the advantages in a conference in which most schools don’t have anywhere near the same level of resources. That doesn’t prevent others from competing on the field, as evidenced by Arizona State winning the league title in 2024 with a roster budget that ranked in the “middle to lower middle” of the Big 12’s 16 teams, according to Brittani Willett, the president of the Sun Angel Collective, in December. But financially, perhaps only BYU’s booster network has the capital to keep pace with Tech, with the coach comparing it to the payroll disparities in Major League Baseball.

“Some people are going to spend like the Yankees and Dodgers and some people are going to spend like the Rays and the Royals,” he said. “And that doesn’t mean we all don’t have a chance. But it’s tough.”

It’s also unclear how the House settlement will impact those disparities. The frontloaded NIL deals this offseason were a one-time way to supplement the new financial model that started on July 1, which caps a school’s revenue sharing at $20.5 million in the first year and aims to restrict the lucrative “pay for play” NIL deals popularized by collectives. If the settlement works as intended in future years, this should curb third-party NIL spending and level the financial playing field, though many coaches remain dubious the richest programs will fall in line.

“Some schools are not gonna let it happen. They’ve done it one way, and they’re gonna keep doing it that way. They don’t want the gap to get closer,” said one coach.

If that’s the case, Texas Tech seems poised to keep spending in a sport that has long favored the fortunate — to the envy of those vying for the Big 12 throne.

“If it simply boils down to whoever has rich boosters wins football games, that’s bad,” said a coach.

But every man has a price.

“Don’t hate the player, hate the game,” he said. “If we had that money, I would have wanted to do the same thing.”

(Photo of Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire: Raymond Carlin III / Imagn Images)

Deion Sanders stood at the podium during Big 12 Media Days with a message that addressed college football’s biggest problem.

The Colorado head coach wasn’t mincing words about NIL deals and the chaos they’ve created. His solution? Stop pretending the current system works and start copying what does.

Why Does Colorado HC Deion Sanders Think NIL Creates an Unfair Playing Field?

The college football landscape has shifted rapidly, largely due to the rise of NIL deals. While these opportunities benefit student-athletes, they have also deepened the divide between powerhouse programs and those with limited funding.

Wealthier schools now leverage major donor support and lucrative endorsements to secure elite talent, leaving smaller programs struggling to compete. As these major developments continue to unfold, Sanders has closely monitored them, expressing concern about the NCAA’s uncertain role in this evolving system.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders has reemerged on the college football stage, and with him comes a renewed critique of the current state of NIL deals. Speaking at Big 12 Media Days, Sanders didn’t hold back while addressing the competitive disparity NIL has introduced into the sport.

He pointed directly at the imbalance in spending among programs and its visible impact on postseason appearances. “All you gotta do is look at the [CFP] and see what those teams spent, and you’ll understand darn well why they’re in the playoffs,” Sanders said.

His frustration was rooted not in the principle of player compensation, which he supports, but in the lack of structure guiding it. Sanders voiced concern over how programs now land recruits based primarily on NIL money rather than coaching or development.

“You got a guy that’s not that darn good, but he could go to another school and they give him a half a million dollars and you can’t compete with that,” he said. “We’re not complaining because all these coaches up here could coach their butts off… but what’s going on right now don’t make sense.”

Sanders noted that schools with the largest donor bases are stockpiling talent, while others simply can’t keep pace financially.

“And you’re talking about equality, not equality, like equal, I guess, equality. And all you have to do is look at the playoffs and see what those teams spent, and you understand darn they’re wider in the playoffs.”

What Solution Does Sanders Propose for College Football’s NIL Problem?

Sanders has long advocated for NIL regulations and, earlier in April, proposed a clear solution: a salary cap mirroring the NFL’s structure.

“There should be some kind of cap,” he said in an interview with USA Today‘s Jarrett Bell. “Our game should emulate the NFL game in every aspect. Rules. Regulations. Whatever the NFL rules, the college rules should be the same.”

Sanders believes a structured cap would allow fairness to prevail across programs of varying size and resources. This approach would level the playing field by preventing the wealthiest programs from simply outspending their competition for top talent.

RELATED: Colorado HC Deion Sanders Takes Cheeky Jab at Texas Tech HC Joey McGuire’s Transfer Portal Activity While Praising Red Raiders

However, the current trajectory suggests his concerns are only growing. As part of a recently approved antitrust settlement in the House v. NCAA case, schools will soon be permitted to share up to $20.5 million annually with athletes. However, for Sanders, that measure falls short of addressing the core issue.

“It’s kind of hard to compete with somebody who’s given $25, $30 million to a darn freshman class,” he said, pointing out the growing gap between schools flush with cash and those without such advantages.

Sanders’ message was direct and uncompromising. Without firm guidelines, the sport risks becoming a predictable cycle dominated by the wealthiest programs. His NFL-style salary cap proposal represents a fundamental shift toward structured competition rather than the current free-for-all approach that has transformed college recruiting into a bidding war.

College sports entered an entirely new, and entirely unprecedented, era on July 1 when the House v. NCAA settlement finally took effect. For the first time ever, schools can directly pay players for performance via revenue sharing contracts. 

To coincide with the change, the College Sports Commission (CSC) was created to handle regulation and enforcement of player compensation issues. Among the CSC’s responsibilities, in cooperation with Deloitte, is the policing of name, image and likeness deals. 

The CSC and Deloitte launched an NIL Go portal to ensure “fair market value” and valid business purpose based on an actual endorsement. While the technicalities and qualifications of a valid NIL deal were nebulous for the first week of the revenue sharing era, the CSC released information Thursday clarifying exactly what qualifies as a legitimate NIL deal. 

How athletes will be paid as July 1 ushers in new era for college sports: NIL changes, enforcement, contracts

Shehan Jeyarajah

The NIL Go portal allows student-athletes a way to report third-party NIL deals to be evaluated for rules compliance. An athlete can do this before accepting a deal to ensure that their eligibility will not be impacted. 

NIL deals will be judged on a set of three criteria: 

• Payor Association: “The relationship between the payor and the student-athlete’s school”
• Valid Business Purpose: “Whether the payor is seeking the use of the student-athlete’s NIL for a valid business purpose, meaning to sell a good or service to the public for profit” 
• Range of Compensation: “Whether the compensation paid to the student-athlete is commensurate with compensation paid to similarly situated individuals”

Payor Association 

The “Payor Association” category is especially important given that, under previous NIL guidance, boosters could facilitate deals with prospective athletes. Under the new NIL Go guidelines, boosters would be classified as an “associated entity.” 

The CSC also classifies “associated entities” as:

• Those that are known or “should have been known” to an athletic department that exist with the express purpose of either promoting an institutions athletics programs or creating NIL opportunities for an institution’s student-athletes — i.e., an NIL collective. 
• An entity that has been directed by an athletics department to assist in recruitment or retention of athletes. 
• An entity controlled by someone or something other than a publicly traded corporation. 

It is not clear whether NIL deals facilitated by “associated entities” will be denied immediately by the CSC, but they will be subject to further scrutiny. 

Valid Business Purpose 

The Valid Business Purpose qualification is rather self-explanatory. Instead of just handing an athlete a contract under the mask of an NIL deal, any deal that an athlete enters into must demonstrate “Evidence of using the student-athlete’s NIL to promote a good or service being offered to the public for profit.” 

Specifically, NCAA Rule 22.1.3 — the valid business purpose requirement — prohibits NIL collectives from paying athletes to appear on behalf of the collective at an event, even if said event is open to the public. The purpose of the event would be to raise money for the collective, which does not provide a good or service to the general public for profit — even those collectives that sell merchandise. 

Now were a restaurant or an apparel company to strike a similar bargain, it would satisfy the valid business purpose requirement, since the aforementioned industries do provide a service to the public in exchange for money. Collectives can still act as quasi-marketing agencies that match athletes with businesses. 

Range of Compensation 

The CSC will also ensure that an athlete’s NIL compensation is “commensurate with compensation paid to similarly situated individuals with comparable NIL value.” Essentially, is the deal a fair deal from a numbers perspective? 

Several factors will be taken into consideration when calculating an athlete’s Range of Compensation (RoC), including “the deal’s performance obligations, the student-athlete’s athletic performance and social media reach, the local market and the market reach of his or her institution and program.” So, an athlete like Texas quarterback Arch Manning will have a higher RoC than, say, a freshman punter and, therefore, he’ll have an easier time pitching deals with a considerably higher monetary value. 

Deal Review 

Once an athlete submits a third-party NIL deal to the NIL Go portal, the CSC will analyze the information provided. There are three outcomes that can be reached: 

• Cleared: The deal can proceed. 
• Not Cleared: The deal does not meet necessary requirements, but there are other options. 
• Flagged for Additional Review: If there are legitimate concerns about any of the above categories, the athlete will be notified and and investigation will be launched to review the terms. 

An athlete does have some recourse if the deal is simply “Not Cleared.” They can revise the deal to ensure that it meets all three of the requirements, they can cancel the deal and return any money they may have already received, or they can appeal the decision to a neutral arbitrator. 

It should be noted that athletes risk punishment, including a potential loss of playing eligibility, only if they go through with a deal that was “Not Cleared” without addressing any of the concerns identified by the CSC. 

iStockphoto / © Ben Queen-Imagn Images

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The College Football 26 video game dropped this week, resulting in a significant payday for NCAA student-athletes. Each player whose name, image, and likeness were used received a $1,500 check from EA Sports.

Western Kentucky teammates are wasting no time spending that dough. A viral TikTok video revealed how roster members plan on using their cash.

The video game franchise resumed after a decade-long pause thanks to changes in the college football landscape. NIL payments are now legal. In exchange for payment, the game is able to use players’ images, even if that likeness isn’t 100% accurate.

Last year’s total payout to players was around $600. This year, those athletes saw a huge raise.

Safety Virgil Marshall has been building anticipation for the video game drop on social media. He’s been looking forward to his payday for some time.

The money hit the bank this week for those at Western Kentucky following the game’s release on July 10th. Marshall was over the moon.

The $1,500 payments give players a little extra spending money to enjoy before kicking off their 2025 seasons. It seems Marshall, who’s entering his fourth year with the Hilltoppers, plans to put his check to good use.

What will Western Kentucky players do with their ‘College Football 26’ NIL checks?

Marshall hasn’t yet unveiled exactly how he intends to spend his dough. He did ask a few teammates their thoughts, though. The answers were incredible.

“Ruth Chris?” one player joked, hinting at a celebratory steak dinner. “Full [tattoo] sleeve on the way,” said another.

Defensive lineman Jakeem Fletcher’s reaction might’ve been the best. “I’m real blessed, bro. Real blessed,” he replied. That’s what it’s all about!

Virgil Marshall posted a follow-up video to grab a few more reactions. The responses, again, didn’t disappoint.

Others around college football have had similar reactions to the College Football 26 NIL checks. Most are appreciative of not only being featured in the game but also landing that notable deposit.

Tulane freshman wide receiver Oliver Mitchell Jr. was speechless. He appeared extremely thankful for the chance to be paid while doing what he enjoys. That $1,500 can go a long way for a teenager.

With payments beginning to hit college football players’ bank accounts, we can likely expect to see a few more of these viral videos as the offseason winds down.