Bill Belichick is reportedly mulling over an offer to become the next head coach at the University of North Carolina. While an official deal hasn’t been struck, with college football increasingly resembling pro football due to the Transfer Portal and NIL money, bringing in a legendary NFL coach might be the perfect move.
The college football transfer portal, an online database that tracks college players transferring to another school, opened on Monday. As of noon Tuesday, 1,287 had already entered, compared to 3,332 in all of last year. The portal is open through Dec 28.
The reasons for leaving a school can vary from seeking more playing time to conflicts with the previous coach or simply searching for a better environment. But a growing reason is searching for more NIL money and enhancing their chances of reaching the NFL.
Mr. Belichick, who won six Super Bowls as the head coach of the New England Patriots, said he can build a college program with a professional atmosphere.
“If I was in a college program that college program would be a pipeline to the NFL for the players who had the ability to play in the NFL,” Mr. Belichick said on The Pat McAfee Show. “It would be a professional program: training, nutrition, scheme, coaching, techniques that would transfer to the NFL. It would be an NFL program at a college level.”
Most college schools are trending in that direction. The portal is college football’s version of free agency, an opportunity for players to find a school that will give them the best opportunity to play more and make the most money. According to data from the NCAA, the average NIL revenue for a college football player across all positions is $39,944. Players at the Power 4 conferences — SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC — average $75,390. Power 4 defensive ends earned the highest average NIL deals at $167,687 with quarterbacks ranking second with an average of $151,275 and cornerbacks at $124,080.
Top players can make more than NFL players. Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders is the top NIL earner with a $5.1 million valuation, while teammates and Heisman Trophy candidate Travis Hunter earns $3.1 million. Arch Manning’s valuation is $3.1 million and he’s the backup quarterback at Texas to Quinn Ewers who earns $2.2 million.
The portal opened the day after 12 teams were selected to compete in the newly expanded College Football Playoffs. Coaches for those teams must deal with watching the portal and recruiting players while preparing for a chance to win the national championship.
Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham encouraged his players to enter the portal as soon as possible and stay on the team through the College Football Playoffs. The Sun Devils (11-2) won the Big 12 Conference and earned a first-round bye. They will play the winner between Texas (11-2) and Clemson (10-3). Mr. Dillingham told his players it wouldn’t be fair for them to wait until the end of their season to enter the portal.
“I want you to have the best opportunity to find a spot,” Mr. Dillingham told his players. “You can go in day one right now. We’ll help you find a spot. Stay on our football team if you want to stay and let’s go on this ride together the rest of the way.”
Colorado State coach Jay Norvell said the portal, launched in 2018 and revised in 2021, has gotten more sinister with “independent agents” calling players and telling them how much NIL money the agent can get them by entering the portal. “These kids are not thinking about getting into the portal,” Mr. Norvell said. “But they have these people call them and say ‘If you get in the portal, I’ll get you $200,000 and by the way I’m going to take 15-20% of that. These guys are just stealing from these kids. That’s criminal. But that’s what’s going on in college football.”
NIL is also impacting the recruiting of high school prospects. Education opportunities are becoming secondary to how much can be made through NIL. Consequently, the tradition of high school players choosing colleges has lost its luster, knowing the commitment might be for only one or two years.
After 24 seasons coaching the Patriots, Mr. Belichick, 72, spent this year doing media commentary and enjoying a budding romance with Jordon Hudson, 24. He appears ready to coach again. With his long history in the NFL, he is accustomed to players driven by money, which is why running a college program in a professional manner makes sense even though he figures to be a top candidate for an NFL opening this offseason.