Tennessee Vols commit makes NIL claim that proves the current state of college football recruiting is unhinged

2026 four-star tight end Carson Sneed, a Tennessee Vols commit since last August, made an NIL claim this week that proves that the current state of college football recruiting is completely unhinged. 

Sneed, who is believed to be considering a flip to the Florida Gators, told On3 that a college football program made a wild NIL offer to him when he was still just a high school freshman. 

“There was one school that, going into my freshman year, [said] they were going to pay me more than any of the tight ends they got right now, even their starters,” said Sneed to On3. “That was probably the wildest one I’ve heard so far...As a 17-year-old, bro, I ain’t seen that much money in my life. It was crazy.”

Sneed didn't name the school, so it's unclear if it was a Power-4 program. But either way, that's an insane offer to make to a kid that doesn't even have a driver's license yet. Sneed, who is rated in 247Sports' composite rankings as the No. 14 tight end in the nation, obviously has the potential and talent to be a great player. But he (like every recruit) also still has quite a bit of developing to do to get to that point. 

This offer to Sneed -- and I'm sure there are many, many more just like it -- shows how desperate some programs are to buy elite talent in the current era of college football.