Georgia’s place in the NIL money chase is being read all wrong, and Kirby Smart is a big reason why.
A recent Athletic report ranked the spending habits of major college football programs and put Georgia 19th. On the surface, that sounds like a warning sign in a sport where cash now drives so much roster building.
But the story around Georgia isn’t that Smart is falling behind. It’s that he’s getting more out of less than a lot of the schools spending ahead of him.
That point gets sharper when Texas enters the conversation. The Athletic reported that Steve Sarkisian is spending roughly $10-15 million more than Georgia this year, yet Georgia has beaten Texas three straight times during the NIL era. Georgia is ranked higher than 17 of the 18 teams spending more money, with Texas the lone exception.
That’s the real edge Smart has built: Georgia’s brand carries value beyond the paycheck. A player weighing similar offers can look at NFL development, the chance to play for Smart, the opportunity to compete for SEC and national championships, and the possibility of individual honors. Georgia is still spending heavily, but it does not have to be the biggest spender in the room to land a roster built to win.
Smart’s approach also means Georgia doesn’t have to chase every expensive name on the market. Could the Bulldogs have outbid Michigan for quarterback Bryce Underwood?
Probably. But the return on that kind of investment is part of the question, and Smart has made it clear what he wants.
He has said on multiple occasions that he wants players who want to play for Georgia and want to win championships, not players who want to add some extra zeros and commas to their bank balance.
The broader criticism of Georgia’s recent results doesn’t really hold up either. Since winning the 2022 national championship, Georgia has missed the playoff once and has been knocked out in its first playoff game in each of the last two seasons. That has led some to say the program has slipped as NIL has taken over the sport.
But that argument is thin. Georgia was, in the source’s view, unfairly left out of the 2023 four-team playoff after dropping from No. 1 to No. 6 with a loss to ranked Alabama in the conference championship game.
In 2024, Georgia lost its starting quarterback in the SEC Championship Game and then had to throw Gunner Stockton into his first career start against Notre Dame. In 2025, Georgia’s playoff game was a tightly contested rematch with Ole Miss, one that either team could have won.
When you zoom out, the picture looks different. Georgia’s success is measured in five-year dominance, not one narrow stretch. The Bulldogs have won more games than any other program in the country over that span, captured three conference championships in the last five years, and kept beating teams that are spending more than they are.
What NIL has done, in this view, is narrow the gap across the sport. The rest of the field has caught up some to the Georgia-Alabama tier. That does not mean Georgia has lost its footing.
If anything, Kirby Smart has shown that Georgia can keep winning without acting like a program desperate for a quick fix. And that may be the biggest advantage Georgia has in the NIL era.
In Other News...
South Carolinas NIL Spending Picture Just Got Much Clearer
The latest look at college footballs money race offers another reminder of just how steep the climb has become in the SEC. An Athletic analysis estimated roster budgets for every Power 5 team for the 2026 season, and the conference again sits near the center of the spending conversation, with three of the top five most expensive rosters. Texas leads the way at an estimated $45 million to $55 million, underscoring how aggressively the biggest programs are investing in roster construction.
For Georgia, the broader picture is just as relevant as the headline number at the top. The report lays out budget ranges and national rankings for each SEC team using available financial data, giving a clearer sense of where the leagues heavyweights stand in the emerging NIL arms race. In a conference where roster-building increasingly follows the money, those estimates will only add more context to how teams like Georgia are navigating the next wave of competition. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Fans Suddenly Have One Clear Case For A Home Night Game
Georgias 2026 home slate is already taking shape, and so far the SEC has penciled in all of those games for afternoon kickoffs, including the visit from Oklahoma. That leaves the Bulldogs without a home night game on the schedule at the moment, even as the calendar starts to build toward one of the more interesting home dates in Athens.
One game now has a little extra intrigue attached to it. Vanderbilts Jared Curtis, who flipped his commitment from Georgia to Vanderbilt, has been named the Commodores starting quarterback, giving the Georgia-Vanderbilt matchup a storyline that could travel well in a prime-time window. The league could decide that matchup deserves the spotlight if it wants to lean into the drama, but for now there has been no official move to change the kickoff time. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Is Suddenly Part Of A Crowded SEC Quarterback Race
CBS Sports latest weekly quarterback power rankings offered a quick reminder of just how loaded the SEC has become at the position, with five league passers landing in the top 10. Georgias Gunner Stockton was among them, joining a group that also included Trinidad Chambliss at No. 2 overall and first in the conference, along with Arch Manning at No. 3. For a league that already treats quarterback play as its own weekly referendum, the Bulldogs are right in the middle of a crowded pack.
Gunner Stocktons placement puts Georgia in familiar territory, with the Bulldogs again part of the conversation whenever the SECs best quarterbacks are sorted out. Kamario Taylor and Austin Simmons also cracked the top 10, underscoring how quickly the race around the league is tightening as the season moves along. For Georgia, the ranking is less about one list and more about where Stockton fits in a conference where every week seems to bring a new argument about who really belongs at the top. [Read more 🡒]