Thanks to NIL deals, today’s top college football players are making some serious money. Under Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) agreements, players are now receiving multimillion-dollar contracts, while total team payouts are soaring past $40 million. While CFB players are raking in the cash, Dana White, for his part, believes that kind of fortune could bring nothing but catastrophe for the sport.\

On September 17, a day before the Texas Tech vs. Houston football game at Galaxy Stadium in Lubbock, Texas, Power Slap 23 will take place across campus at the United Supermarkets Arena. While talking about Power Slap’s next event ahead of the CFB game, the UFC CEO reflected on college football players landing astronomical deals and warned that all that money could ultimately “ruin” everything for them.

“It’s a problem,” Dana White told Spinning Backfist. “Let me tell you this: money ruins everything. When you start, when you’re spending $30 or $40 million on college football for players. Uh, you know, I don’t know. Only time will tell as this plays out. And yeah, my experience is money ruins everything.” 

The UFC CEO didn’t elaborate on why his experience has led him to believe that CFB players receiving big-money deals could derail the sport. However, Dana White has previously expressed similar sentiments about UFC fighters changing after millions of dollars suddenly hit their bank accounts.

“Money is the biggest detriment to the fight business,” White said in 2012. “Back in the old days when we were just getting going, dudes had to pay the f—ing rent. Once the money starts to pile up, you get some of these guys who have a few million in the bank. Getting punched in the face every day isn’t too f—ing cool.”

Based on his comments about UFC fighters, Dana White probably feels that players could become too occupied with living lavish lifestyles and lose focus on their sport. Despite the qualms many have about it, the CFB roster is continuing to bring in massive amounts of money through NIL deals.

According to a CBS Sports report, Ohio State and Oregon have spent over $40 million on players from their respective teams. Other programs like Michigan and Maryland have also spent similar amounts. Wisconsin, meanwhile, has spent around $30 million on its team, but for the first time, the program failed to draft a player, something that hadn’t happened since 1978.

In fact, subsequent reports suggest that Michigan quarterback Darian Mensah earned a $6.5 million NIL contract, an amount that many UFC champions don’t receive unless they are Ilia Topuria, Islam Makhachev, or Alex Pereira. But aside from these recent reports, earlier figures have already showcased the eye-popping amount of money flowing into College Football.

Some time ago, Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork revealed that the Ohio State Buckeyes’ football team had spent nearly $20 million on its roster through NIL and other deals after winning the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship.

Looking at those numbers, White rightly acknowledged that players are earning substantial amounts of money. However, it remains unclear whether this massive spending will ultimately affect the players and the sport at large.

Interestingly, Dana White has previously accused one of his biggest UFC stars of changing because of his wealth.

Dana White thinks Khabib Nurmagomedov’s wealth influenced his retirement decision

Dana White’s disdain for athletes earning too much money and losing motivation in the sport stems from his dealings with various fighters over the years. But that belief became particularly prominent when the UFC CEO talked about Khabib Nurmagomedov’s retirement.

 Time and again, White claimed ‘The Eagle’ retired too early and even tried his hardest to lure him back into the sport. However, after the Dagestani star laid his career to rest, the 57-year-old mogul became convinced that the money Khabib earned from Saudi Arabia ultimately kept him from returning.

“He hit Saudi, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and they rained money on him,” Dana told Prince St Pizza. “He made so much money that he didn’t have to fight anymore”    

The former lightweight champion eventually heard about his former boss’s statement, and he was clearly livid that White reduced his decision to walk away from the sport to nothing more than money. 

”Sometimes I read these headlines, and I am not a fan of giving my commentaries to every nonsense on the internet, but when Dana talks, the news spread fast,” Khabib wrote on his Instagram story. “I’ll say this: I swear by Allah this is an absolute lie. Nobody ever gave me those millions, and it’s also not true that I left the sport because I made a lot of money. The whole world already knows the real truth — I’ve spoken about it many times and there’s no need to repeat it.” 

The truth behind Khabib Nurmagomedov’s decision was his promise to his mother to walk away from fighting after his father, Abdulmanap, passed away, a promise he honored after defeating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254.

So, White may have gone a little overboard with his comments about Khabib, and now it will be interesting to see whether his concerns ultimately ring true for CFB players as NIL money continues to transform college football.