NIL has changed recruiting so much that unofficial visits are now part of the money conversation. Now, the fight is just to get recruits on campus. Why? Because everyone now expects to get paid, even for unofficial visits, and one Power Four GM has raised his voice against it.

NCAA rules state that schools can’t pay for recruits’ transportation, lodging, meals, or other travel expenses during an unofficial visit. But even with that rule, many coaches, agents, and GMs are still finding ways to pay for those visits.

“You see all these guys making multi-day unofficial visits that are basically official visits,” the GM, whose identity has been concealed, said to CBS Sports. “These schools are paying for them under the table. Kids are like, ‘Well, are you paying for me to come? … ‘No. It’s an unofficial visit.’ “I just get frustrated. Everybody b—–s about, ‘Let there be enforcement, let there be rules.’ Then the first thing we do when rules come out is how can we skirt by them?”

It’s not just the players asking for money; even schools are still making sure recruits get money, just through different methods. This spring, birthday cards were reportedly stuffed with cash, and top recruits were sent on a cruise trip to a school so that they wouldn’t visit anywhere else.

“The schools want to get players on campus by any means necessary,” a high school coach at a prominent school in the Northeast said. “The financial incentive is clearly there if you can persuade the parents to come and make it as easy as possible on them.”

This isn’t the first time this has happened. Back in 2023, multiple Tennessee staffers, including head coach Jeremy Pruitt, got multi-year show-cause penalties for a “paid unofficial visit scheme.” Schools want to bring players to campus at any cost. And one official visit isn’t going to help them recruit, so this is the only way left for them.

This new trend is now creating a problem for both players and schools. On one side, to get recruits in campus schools have to pay, and even recruits have to show up for an unofficial visit, otherwise they might not seem serious about the school.

To do that, they have to spend dollars for two or three days. The travel will include flight tickets for parents and the player, a hotel room, food, and transportation.

“For good players, the money these kids are paying to visit is asinine,” a source said. “My quarterback spent $2,000 just to go visit an SEC school.”

Schools are constantly making sure recruits don’t have to pay. The most common way is through boosters paying for 7-on-7 football teams. During the offseason 7-on-7 tournaments, boosters rent buses and book hotels under staff names. They then invited the entire 7-on-7 team to visit the campus. So it may seem like a team trip, but in reality, it’s their way to get one or two of them onto the campus.

But is there any legal way to bring the players onto campus without directly paying for their unofficial visit?

NIL giving way to pay for recruits’ unofficial visit

NIL has given schools a legal way to help recruits pay for unofficial visits. Instead of directly paying for flights, hotels, or meals, schools or third-party groups can offer recruits NIL deals for promotional work.

For example, one recruit received $10,000 for attending a game, posting on social media, and signing autographs. The recruit was technically being paid for marketing activities, not for the visit itself. College sports attorney Mit Winter explained that top recruits often receive third-party NIL opportunities that help “defray costs and pay for travel.”

But doesn’t this mean recruits are still being paid? The unofficial visit expenses on schools can be pretty high, and if the player decides not to commit, then all the money goes straight down the drain. NIL deals may bring recruits to campus, but offer no guarantee they will commit. The line between NIL and recruiting payments has blurred beyond recognition.