Recruit picks Georgia over $3M
After a recruitment that took twists and turns down the stretch, K.J. Bolden decided to stay in-state and flip to Georgia. The decision to commit to Georgia was made, he said, despite a huge NIL offer from another program that was recruiting him prior to his commitment.
The offer has been previously reported by 247sports.com at $3 million annually.
In college football, name, image and likeness (NIL) is the new name of the game. While NIL was supposed to allow players to capitalize on their images and skill sets, it instead has turned into free agency, with collectives allowing donors to pool money to essentially purchase players.
And for Bolden, one of the top high school recruits in the nation, a huge offer came in that certainly raises some eyebrows.
A five-star safety for Buford (Georgia) High, Bolden is a consensus topfive player in the nation. Committed to Florida State since this past August, he flipped to Georgia on the first day of the early signing period in December. Bolden is an elite player who participated Jan. 6 in the All-American Bowl at the Alamodome in San Antonio.
A late push saw him flip from Florida State to Georgia, despite the offer from another program that would have netted him multimillion dollars.
“This school just mentioned all the bread they had,” Bolden told USA TODAY High School Sports following practice for the All-American Bowl.
“It wasn’t one of those top schools. It was definitely a good school, a good program. But it was just crazy how they just threw that out like ‘Hey, man, like, I know some quarterbacks who aren’t getting that so you are telling me I’m getting that?’ That’s crazy.”
The school and the reported $3 million offer did give Bolden some pause. The standout safety won’t reveal the name of the school.
He said that the offer came in three weeks before he signed for Georgia. It underscores the dilemma for these young players.
No longer is the college choice simply about best fit in a program and pursuing an education. NIL allows elite, blue-chip players to rival or exceed what they could potentially make in the NFL someday.
“I mean, at first, when you first hear, you’re going be like, ‘Oh, that’s a lot of money.’ And then you got to think about like, ‘All right, cool, does this place fit me? Like how do I like being up there?’ But you got to think about the other stuff,” Bolden said.
“(There were) a couple of schools that had me down to the wire, but to me, it was just about being where you feel the most comfortable. The money is good to have because the money is good. But at the end of the day, it is short-term money. The big money is in the NFL.”
At the time of his decision, his final three schools were, he said, Auburn, Florida State and Georgia.
He said that the relationship built with head coach Kirby Smart helped land him in-state.
“Just being from Georgia, being 30 minutes from Athens. Coach Kirby, he came and talked with my family,” Bolden said.
“The home visit went great. I feel like
that’s what did it. He just came out there and interacted with my mom in the home visit, my dad – was so good. I feel like that’s what did it for sure.”
Saying that “iron definitely sharpens iron,” Bolden said that the week of practice leading up to All-American Bowl has pushed him.
The bowl game had a loaded roster and featured a traditional East-West format this year.
“It’s been a great experience; just can’t get coached by the best. The best … and (been) going against the best this week,” Bolden said. “So it’s really a great experience. I was, every kid, every football player could experience experience (this) because it’s just great. It’s just a great – great vibes.”
Alumni of the All-American Bowl, first played in 1996, include Odell Beckham Jr., Brock Bowers, Sharrif Floyd, Andrew Luck, Nick Mangold, DeMarco Murray, Adrian Peterson, Tim Tebow, Joe Thomas and Chase Young among others.