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The 2025 College Football Playoff is down to eight teams after a first round that saw No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 8 Oklahoma, No. 11 Tulane, and No. 12 James Madison eliminated.
With just Indiana, Ohio State, Texas Tech, Alabama, Ole Miss, Oregon, Miami, and Georgia remaining, let's take a look at what each team has spent on NIL in recent years.
We'll use a recent CBS Sports article that broke down NIL spending by team, ranking them in tiers. For this breakdown, we'll follow that 1–8 ranking.
While exact NIL spending by each team isn't always publicly available, some figures have been previously reported.
NIL money by school
| Rank | School | Money spent on roster* |
| 1 | Ohio State | $35 million |
| 2 | Oregon | N/A |
| 3 | Texas Tech | $28 million** |
| 4 | Miami | $15 million |
| 5 | Ole Miss | $10 million (in 2024) |
| 6 | Alabama | N/A |
| 7 | Georgia | N/A |
| 8 | Indiana | N/A |
*Based off of reported figures, if applicable.
**Only transfer portal class
1. Ohio State
The Buckeyes famously spent $20 million on its roster from last year, which included big names like quarterback Will Howard, running back Quinshon Judkins, defensive end Jack Sawyer and several others.
This year's roster is just as loaded, including blue-chip recruits such as quarterback Julian Sayin, receiver Jeremiah Smith and running back Bo Jackson. The Wall Street Journal previously reported that the Buckeyes spent around $35 million for its current roster. That puts Ohio State at the top of the list for roster spenders in this year's playoff.
MORE: How Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith signed with adidas despite attending a Nike school
2. Oregon
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning is no stranger to assembling talented rosters. He has delivered top recruiting classes every season at Oregon, including the nation’s No. 3 overall class in 2024 and again for 2026.
The roster features both high-profile recruits and transfer players. Quarterback Dante Moore and leading receiver Malik Benson both transferred from UCLA this offseason. Star true freshmen Jordon Davidson and Dakorien Moore have also seen significant playing time this season. While specific dollar amounts for the Ducks’ 2025 roster aren’t listed, it’s expected to rank near the top, alongside Ohio State.
3. Texas Tech
Texas Tech is having a huge 2025 season so far. The Red Raiders won the Big 12 for the first time in school history. It's also spent a big chunk of change on NIL and roster-building in recent years. The Red Raiders brought in the nation's No. 2 ranked transfer-portal class for 2025. On3Sports estimated that doing so cost Texas Tech $28 million alone. It included big names such as EDGE rushers David Bailey and Romello Height, as well as receiver Michah Hudson.
A big reason for Tech's new financial resources is Red Raiders booster Cody Campbell, who is a billionaire who made his money in oil. He donated $25 million to the school in 2021 to start its stadium renovation, and is a key figure in Tech's non-profit NIL collective, called The Matador Club.
4. Miami
This is Mario Cristobal’s most talented roster. It was built through both the transfer portal and the nation’s No. 4 overall recruiting class in 2024. Key players include quarterback Carson Beck, who reportedly received a $4 million NIL deal to join the Canes, and running back CharMar Brown. Transfer additions like Rueben Bain and Mohamed Toure have become leaders and playmakers on defense.
5. Ole Miss
Despite having far fewer resources than some of the bigger SEC schools, Ole Miss has been able to recruit and retain talent quite well in recent years. It's a big reason why Lane Kiffin enjoyed so much success, and landed one of the nation's top jobs at LSU.
Dubbing himself the "transfer portal king," he successfully landed star playmakers from the portal like quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, running back Kewan Lacy and receiver Harrison Wallace III.
A 2024 estimate had Ole Miss' roster from last season costing $10 million. You can guesstimate the 2025 figure is close to that, if not a bit more.
6. Alabama
You may be surprised to see Alabama so low on this list. But as CBS reports, the Tide appears to be playing catch-up, no longer having the greatest coach of all time on its sidelines:
Alabama players at the start of the NIL era in many cases were willing to take a discount to play for Nick Saban. While that allowed the Crimson Tide to spread its wealth and build deep, immensely talented rosters, it also meant the program would have to play catch-up after Saban's retirement.
7. Georgia
Citing the Saban effect he had at Alabama, CBS describes a similar one at Georgia with Kirby Smart. It adds that Georgia can afford to be "a bit more selective" with how it spends its NIL dollars. Federal financial records from 2024 showed $6 million spent on just recruiting efforts.
8. Indiana
Indiana is listed as the last of the Power Five schools, but there’s no question the Hoosiers have successfully utilized the transfer portal—most notably landing Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza. Indiana has also added portal players like former Maryland running back Roman Hemby and JMU transfer Kaelon Black.
When Curt Cignetti first arrived at Indiana in 2024, he brought in several former JMU players, including receiver Elijah Sarrat, linebacker Aiden Fisher, and defensive back D’Angelo Ponds. Indiana recently made Cignetti one of the five highest-paid head coaches in the country earlier this season with his new contract extension. It's also earned NIL contributions from the likes of Mark Cuban, and its football spending has increased every year. As Indiana's success continues, you can bet its NIL budget will get even bigger.
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