Recruiting, especially in college football, is already a fickle practice.
In a battle to secure the nation’s elite prospects, programs go as far as they can to cement themselves as the premier entity to suit up for, including continually updating facilities after only a few years of use.
But one thing programs, in theory, could not sell a recruit on was how much a full scholarship would afford them outside of tuition, books, room, board and fees — until now.
Starting Aug. 1, NCAA schools in the Power Five conferences, which include the Southeastern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 12, Big 10, and Pac-12, will now offer an additional stipend to a full athletic scholarship, accounting for the full cost of attendance at any particular university. Essentially, a full cost of attendance scholarship is worth what living expenses would cost, including transportation, personal supplies and groceries.
While SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey indicated this concept has been around for quite some time, it is something SEC coaches such as Alabama coach Nick Saban are embracing.
“I think this is an outstanding thing that we’ve done to improve a scholarship for a young man, student-athletes in general, to be able to have a little better benefit as a league and as a coach,” Saban said at SEC Media Days. “We’ve always advocated a little better quality of life for the players relative to what they do for their institutions, and I’m glad to see this.”
The full cost of attendance, though, differs at each school, which rely on federal restrictions to come up with its number. For example, a school like Tennessee, which has the highest cost of attendance value of any Power Five school at $5,666, can offer roughly $2,500 more than a school like LSU, according to a breakdown by the Chronicle of Higher Education.
When the vote was passed in January, the only school to vote down full cost of attendance was Boston College, which was wary of how it would affect recruiting. But Tennessee coach Butch Jones doesn’t believe it will be a factor.
“At the end of the day, a young man, I believe, is going to pick a school because that’s where he wants to go to school,” Jones said. “He wants to be a part of that institution. He likes the academics there, and he has a rapport and a great relationship with the coaches, and he wants to be a part of something special. So as coaches, we have no input. We have no say in any cost of attendance issues or formulas that they have.”
As many of the SEC coaches acknowledged, they have not used the cost of attendance scholarship as a selling point for their program. Arkansas coach Bret Bielema, while excited for what his players will be receiving, brought up potential consequences with the extra money.
“What I’m happy for is young men get to have a little money in their pocket to do some great things,” Bielema said. “But I’m going to also share with this room, you give a young man, 18, 19, 20, 21, with a little bit of pocket change, with a lot of money to make bad decisions, things can go sideways in a New York minute.
“So you got a kid that’s never had $1,000 in his pocket, and all of a sudden he’s got $2,000, that’s dangerous. That leads to dumb decisions. I think we have to monitor that as coaches and be aware of that.”
This issue will certainly be monitored as a greater sample size of recruits weigh their options, potentially factoring in the new scholarship. But for players already on campuses, such as LSU senior offensive lineman Vadal Alexander, the additional stipend is something they are taking in stride, planning to put it to its best use.
“My mother and father raised me to appreciate what I have and be grateful,” Alexander said. “It’s a blessing just to have a scholarship. I know a lot of my friends are paying loans right now. It’s just crazy. But whether we get paid or not, I’m happy about it. Whether we get paid, I’m happy. Whether we get paid less, I’m happy too because it’s a platform to do bigger and better things with my life. Regardless, I’m grateful. I’m definitely not going to say no to more money. So, I like that.”
You can reach James Bewers on Twitter @JamesBewers_TDR.

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Emily Brauner

LSU sophomore running back, Leonard Fournette (27), sits before the media during a Q&A for SEC Media Days on Thursday, July 16, 2015 in Hoover, Alabama.