Just last week, Georgia football missed on the No. 1 tight end in the country. That player is Mark Bowman, and he made his commitment to USC official over the Bulldogs and many other elite programs.
This news shocked the college football world because many believed Georgia was the team to beat in his recruitment. Experts also didn't even think USC was in second place in Bowman's recruitment either. But experts sometimes get it wrong, and that appears to be the case here.
So what led Bowman to spurn Georgia and pick USC? Sure Bowman is from California, so staying home to play for a program like the Trojans is pretty enticing. But On3's Scott Schrader detailed the large NIL package USC offered Bowman that likely played a huge role in his decision as well.
"We are told the NIL opportunity could provide Bowman an opportunity to earn $8-10 million in a three-year deal at USC."
Mark Bowman choosing USC over Georgia makes a lot more sense now
The NIL news surrounding Bowman's recruitment to USC didn't stop there as later in this video it was reported that Bowman will receive his first NIL payment at the end of June before receiving another payment if he signs with USC on signing day. And it is rumored that these two payments total more than the average college football player makes during their four-year career.
This is an amount of money that Kirby Smart would never offer to any recruit in the country, especially at a position like tight end. Smart has explained in great detail how he believes players out of high school shouldn't make more money than the veteran guys on the team, so Georgia's offer to Bowman likely was nowhere near this amount.
This loss for Georgia at the end of the day isn't so bad because they do have four-star tight end Lincoln Keyes already in their class. They also appear to be the leader for five-star tight end Kaiden Prothro as well, so if Georgia can finish this cycle with those two tight ends, then no one will remember missing on Bowman.