Nowhere in the NLI does it say the TOTAL $$$ you have to pay....... It BINDS you to the school financially without revealing the TOTAL COST of your bind..... It tells you how much they will kick in. Your on the hook for the UNKNOWN amount.... Get the numbers well before NLI day
Tester
Nov 15, 2019
Discussion
First of all, in my opinion/experience, if they don’t give you a full scholarship it means that they don’t believe in you. They give other positions scholarships and the guys end up sitting and not playing. Why don’t they tell all the QB’s to prove themselves and then maybe they will give some money next year, not happening. Somehow it is OK to crap on the specialists. That is just my opinion. Back to the meat of this topic, when to say NO to a scholarship. Before I get to the answer let it be known that not all kids have the same financial situation or geographical situation which play into decisions families make. If Pop’s has $$$ then a lot of what I have to say may not apply. Ok, with the new transfer rules, if you get ANY amount of $$$$ (read $1.00) scholarship from a school you can not play for another team in the same division (ex D1 to D1) without sitting out a year. So if the new coach says that you’re the greatest thing since sliced bread and gives you 0$ scholarship [PWO] , you can leave and immediately play for another team next fall (once you find out that you ain’t his guy next fall). If the coach gave your family ANY amount of $$$, your screwed and HAVE to STAY and PAY. If you feel you were lied to or 100% know that you are not getting a full ride scholarship (be realistic, if you not good no one will give you a full ride in D1), put yourself into the portal ASAP after the season is over. D2 schools do give full rides. In the world of specialists, you are treated like dirt (scholarship wise) so keep your options OPEN. Don’t put yourself into a position to miss playing a year because a coach verbally said “you’re my guy, next year”. Means nothing without the $$$ paperwork. NOTHING. There are exceptions to this and some coaches keep their word but they are far and few. The higher the division, D1 especially, the more you need to protect yourself. Just to repeat myself, not every specialist has the same circumstances and/or goals so if the above doesn’t fit your unique situation, do what fits your requirements. Good Luck
What level football are you referring to? You are not required to sign an NLI. In most cases, you can sign a financial aid scholarship agreement instead. The difficulty with FCS, etc. is that you may be offered a scholarship, but you may not know the exact amount until pretty late in the process. I would not recommend signing an NLI unless the financial aid package is crystal clear.
The ones I personally seen are FCS, and YES...... Will not sign until what I have to pay is spelled out....... I also was talking to a FBS school and they are doing the PWO route too..... As of yesterday (day before NLI day) they would not disclose the total costs until we registered/applied to the school.