College football’s transfer portal has evolved into something far bigger than a player movement mechanism-it’s now a full-blown marketplace, and the price of doing business is skyrocketing.
We’re seeing a new era unfold where top quarterbacks aren’t just switching schools for opportunity-they’re commanding NFL-level money. And in the Big 12, that trend is hitting hard.
According to recent reports, top signal-callers in the portal are being valued in the $4 to $6 million range. Yes, million.
That’s the going rate now for proven talent at the most important position in the game.
Two names drawing serious attention this cycle are Brendan Sorsby, formerly of Cincinnati, and Sam Leavitt, who played last season at Arizona State. They’ve emerged as two of the most coveted players in the portal, alongside Nebraska’s Dylan Raiola. All three are reportedly in the mix for deals that could rival or even surpass what last year’s top quarterbacks pulled in.
To put that into perspective, last year’s market leaders-Carson Beck (who ultimately landed at Miami) and Darian Mensah (who transferred to Duke)-each secured packages north of $3 million, not even counting performance bonuses and incentives. This year, that baseline number has jumped significantly. One agent, a general manager, and a collective leader all confirmed that the starting price for a high-level quarterback is now closer to $4 million, with some deals pushing toward the $6 million mark.
This isn’t just about NIL anymore. It’s about how NIL has reshaped the competitive landscape of college football.
The portal, once a place for second chances and fresh starts, has become a high-stakes auction for elite talent. And the programs with the deepest pockets are the ones setting the pace.
Now, let’s be clear-players deserve to be compensated. They generate massive revenue, put their bodies on the line, and carry the weight of entire programs.
But the lack of structure in this system is creating a power imbalance that’s hard to ignore. If a booster collective can drop a multi-million dollar bag, their school instantly becomes a contender.
That’s the new math.
This reality is especially brutal for programs like Arizona State and Cincinnati. Both schools developed promising quarterbacks in Leavitt and Sorsby, only to watch them hit the open market for bigger paydays elsewhere.
And that’s the cycle now: develop a star, watch him shine, and then brace for the inevitable bidding war. Unless your school can match the top-dollar offers, you’re likely to lose your best player just as he’s hitting his stride.
It’s a tough pill to swallow for fans, especially those who’ve grown attached to young stars and rooted for their development. But in today’s game, emotional investment might not be enough. If your program can’t compete financially, it’s not just about wins and losses anymore-it’s about survival.
So where does this go from here? That’s the million-dollar-or maybe six-million-dollar-question.
For now, the portal remains wide open, the money keeps flowing, and the race for talent is more cutthroat than ever. The only certainty is that the stakes have never been higher.