Georgia's status in the NIL world to this day is not where fans want it to be. The Bulldogs sometimes appear to have a decent amount of NIL that they can be competitve with, but it feels like they are still lagging behind other top programs throughout the country.
The 2026 Transfer Portal cycle began about a week ago, and so far it has been the perfect representation as to the potential issues Georgia is facing in the NIL era of college football.
Georgia, Kirby Smart may need to rethink their NIL philosophy
Georgia so far has been hit very hard since the Transfer Portal opened. They have just three transfers committed to the program while a whopping 10 players have opted to enter the portal themeselves and leave Athens. Georgia has also lost a handful of players to the NFL Draft who could've returned for another season as well.
So why is Georgia struggling so much to add transfers when there are some programs out there who have already added over 20 players?
It all boils down to Kirby Smart's recruiting philosophy he shared last summer when he said Georgia "sells relationships over transactions." That sounds great on paper, but in reality it may not be enough. Georgia clearly is not a top location players are looking to transfer to, and NFL ready Bulldogs are all choosing to go pro when some schools across the country are able to keep their best players for another season.
Georgia should still remain focused on building relationships instead of just trying to be the highest bidder, but why can't they do both? Why can't Smart and his staff build amazing relationships and offer more competitve NIL deals?
There's no reason to hit the panic button at this point because Georgia has won back-to-back SEC Championships, but if things don't change soon then it might be awhile before they win another conference championship.