Name, image and likeness (NIL) has changed college football forever. There are a lot of obvious positives that come with NIL, especially at Georgia where they have a large amount of resources that attract recruits from all over the country. But at the same time, there are a lot of downsides to NIL as well.
One of those downsides is players caring more about the money they're making then performing well and winning on the field.
This is something new that Kirby Smart and his staff have had to mange over the last few years, and according to Smart it is quite simple how they deal with players who care too much about the money they make.
"Kids that want to be coached don't care what they make," Smart shared via 247sports.com. "I mean the guys in the National Football League make more than these guys and they still want to be coached. So it's not a relatively new thing. I think it's more prevalent than it's been. It's just not, it's not new. Guys have always maybe not been used to being coached and being corrected, especially at the volume and level of which we do things, but I think they'll get there. If they won't, then somebody else will be in their spot."
No loyalty to high NIL earners
One of the struggles some programs have had is feeling like they are required to play the players who make the most NIL money. Even if that player is struggling and there are others on the team better than them, coaches feel pressure to continue to play them because of all of the resources devoted to adding that player to their team in the first place.
But that is not what happens at Georgia. Smart very clearly stated that the best players will play no matter what. And if someone who makes a lot of money starts struggling on the field, then Georgia will just simply play someone else.
This strategy clearly has been working for Georgia, because they have won multiple National Championships and SEC titles during the NIL era.
Smart would be the first person to tell you that he wants his players to make as much money as they can, but at the end of the day all he cares about is winning. So Smart and his staff will play whichever player gives them the best chance at winning, regardless of how deep their pockets are.