Bill Belichick arrived on a $10 million per year contract and brought with him his longtime NFL confidant, Michael Lombardi, as a GM. Of course, we had seen UNC hiring GMs before as NIL tides began to grapple every program. But Michael Lombardi? He was coming on a mission, with a $1.5 million per year contract and bringing with him 30 years of expertise in the NFL. To put things into perspective, consider previous GMs of the Tar Heels.

Patrick Suddes became the program’s GM in 2022, reportedly on a $219,000 per year contract, and has now been promoted to Athletic Department GM. Then there are GMs of other major programs, too, like Alabama’s Courtney Morgan, earning $775,000 per year. Even UNC’s chancellor makes a base salary of $600,000 per year, far less than what Michael Lombardi earns. So, truly, Lombardi’s arrival in CFB is a landmark change in how college football recruiting and management happen. And guess what?

Other programs are following suit, and one of those is the Louisville Cardinals. According to recent reports, Cardinals have snatched Vince Morrow from their arch rivals, Kentucky Wildcats, and he has become the GM to elevate Jeff Brohm’s recruiting. But this isn’t the big news. The major thing is that the new Cardinals GM is earning “well more” than $1 million annually, as per footballscoop, with a cumulative deal of $3.6 million spread over three years. And Marrow? The guy is out to change the scenery of the Cardinals’ national footprint.

The new Cardinals GM, in his first introductory conference, talked about how he doesn’t care which program he goes against, including the Kentucky Wildcats. So what does he care about? Winning in every field, from recruitment to on-field results. “I don’t care who I’m recruiting against. They can be anybody over there. I want to win and I want to win that battle. So, it can be Kentucky, it can be Michigan, it can be Miami. I don’t care,” said Marrow, and cautioned other programs to be “prepared to deal” with the Cardinals, now that he is the GM. As for Marrow’s track record? It’s quite illustrious.

Vince Marrow has been with Kentucky since 2013, where he joined as an associate head coach and tight ends coach. In his time at Kentucky, the program has gone big in recruiting with top-40 ranked classes each year since his arrival. Not just that, but Marrow also led the team to 6 consecutive top-35 classes since 2020, three of which were ranked under the top 25, and his best class came in 2022, finishing 17th nationally.

So, Marrow is bringing the national recruiting expertise with him, opening a country-wide recruiting base for the Cardinals. So, with his move, Marrow joined the elite club of GMs, with Lombardi showcasing the changing landscape of the CFB world. As for the Cardinals? The team is already good with Jeff Brohm, and with Marrow’s expertise, the team will look unstoppable.

Vince Marrow opens up on his ‘exit’ controversy as Michael Lombardi gets ACC competition

Marrow, before coming to the Cardinals, was about to earn $1.3 million this year in Kentucky and a base salary of $700,000 in year 1. Even after adding the incentives, which exceed $400,000 annually, the salary at the Cardinals does not edge out what he was going to get at Kentucky. Despite that salary promise, the new role of a GM and maybe rumblings within Kentucky might have led him to the exit door. But Why?

Marrow recently spoke about the “communication breakdown” between him and head coach Mark Stoops. And the exit was reported by ESPN even before Marrow communicated to Stoops. So the falling out with the head coach might have played a role. But looking back, Marrow doesn’t delve too much into the past and speaks of time at Kentucky with quiet fondness.

“People in Lex got to be like, man, either this dude will fall on his head, or somebody’s lying because they know I love Lexington. I’d had major schools come after me, and I didn’t leave. I usually tell people I’m going to retire. I’m going to keep a house in Lexington because I love the area, no,” said Marrow in a discussion with Aaron Torres on 16th June.

Looking at the bigger picture, it seems Marrow hasn’t burned that Kentucky bridge, and there might still be some love between the two parties. As for the Cardinals? The team is coming with two 9-plus wins under Brohm, with one coming last year as they finished 9-4. So, the program is gradually rising, and the addition of Marrow will give that added boost for sure. However, it’ll be interesting to watch the battle between Lombardi and Marrow as they fight for recruits in the ACC.