Kirby Smart's bold take on NIL says everything about College Football's future

When a top recruit turns down Georgia for a rumored $2 million NIL deal, even Kirby Smart can’t stay silent.

The Bulldogs’ head coach—who’s built Georgia into a college football powerhouse—has never shied away from tough conversations. But his latest comments on Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) sent a clear message to college football fans and insiders alike: the system is spiraling, and it’s time to rein it in.

“It’s confusing. A lot of misleading information out there,” Smart said following the decommitment of highly touted offensive lineman Jackson Cantwell, who instead chose Miami. “Nobody really knows what’s accurate. A lot of schools are approaching it in different ways. We hear something different from every school.”

That ambiguity, Smart suggests, is hurting more than just recruiting rankings—it’s undermining the foundational structure of college athletics.

On The Paul Finebaum Show, Smart elaborated: “I just want to be able to have a freshman come in and not make more than a senior, and I’d like for other sports to be able to still survive. You know, we’re on the brink of probably one to two years away from a lot of schools cutting sports.”

His words hit harder in the wake of Georgia’s recent postseason stumble—a 23–10 loss to Notre Dame in the newly expanded College Football Playoff. While Georgia earned a first-round bye as SEC champions, some questioned whether the extra rest dulled their edge. Add to that losing Cantwell, who many expected to join fellow 2024 recruit Jared Curtis in Athens, and Smart’s frustrations with the current recruiting climate are understandable.