College Football Players This Season Projected To Bank $1.9B

The 2025 college football season marks a significant shift as schools begin directly sharing revenue with athletes, projected to reach $1.9 billion this year. This includes $1.4 billion from revenue sharing, $213.4 million from collectives, and $290 million from commercial NIL deals. A report from Opendorse highlights the growing financial landscape, noting that most players earn less than $10,000 annually, despite high-profile million-dollar deals.

Power 4 and Group of 6 schools are distributing similar revenue percentages to athletes, with Power 4 athletes receiving 13.1% and Group of 6 athletes receiving 13.3% of generated revenue. The Big 12 allocates the most to quarterbacks at 23.1%, while the SEC prioritizes linebackers. The transfer portal remains lucrative, with transferred athletes seeing earnings increase by 61.5% during the December window.

Social media also plays a crucial role, with athletes like Oregon's Evan Stewart and Ole