It's not easy to turn down some of the amazing deals that are reportedly available to college students.
Colorado State head coach Jay Norvell said Wednesday that quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi and wide receiver Tory Horton approached him and told him about the NIL offers they received, some of them exorbitant.
“It's so important… that you have an open line of communication with your players, and Tory just tells me, 'Hey, this kid called me last night and asked me this and offered me this,' and I just laugh. I just thank God we have Tory Horton because he's an amazing kid. A lot of guys wouldn't do that,” Norvell said, according to On3.
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Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi of the Colorado State Rams steps out of the pocket against the Utah State Aggies at Maverik Stadium on Oct. 7, 2023, in Logan, Utah. (Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
“Same thing with Brayden. Brayden got the same kind of offers. If you have enough evidence, you can prove it. But smoking gun is smoking gun. He said a guy from Kansas State called him and offered him $600,000 because they would lose their quarterback if he went through the portal.”
Norvell doesn't blame Kansas State for the offer because he understands that's how college football works now.
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Tory Horton of the Colorado State Rams goes up for the ball over Will Johnson of the Wolverines at Michigan Stadium on Sept. 3, 2022, in Ann Arbor. (Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
“And I'm not accusing Kansas State of anything. I'm just telling you what the kid told me. If they don't want their name mentioned, I think they should set their people straight. But there's a lot of that stuff in college football and that's the way it is right now.”
Kansas State did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
As for why he stayed, Fowler-Nicolosi says it's not all about money for him right now.
“That's the way I was raised. I didn't come here to make money. I came here to win games and play for the Rams,” the quarterback told CBS Colorado. “I think if we play here, do our job, do what we're supposed to do, win championships, make the playoffs, shock the world, I think the money will come sooner or later.”
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Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi of the Colorado State Rams warms up before the Utah State Aggies game on Oct. 7, 2023, in Logan, Utah. (Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
“There's a lot of opportunity, but at the end of the day, I'm a 20-year-old kid with bigger goals in life than making money in college. As much as that would be a blessing and would set me up for a long time, I think if I do my job here, and we do it and perform the way we know we should, I think there are several people on this team that will be taken care of for life after college.”
For Horton, it was his familiarity with the system and the relationships he has with the coaches that kept him in Colorado.
“The money in college is fine with the new NIL stuff, but that's not my ultimate goal. My ultimate goal is not NIL in college. It's the next level, and the coaching here and the style of play that works for us. There's no reason for me to go to another college to start over. To try to go to another system that I don't really know. I know what the system is like here, and I know what the coaching staff is like here, and their ultimate goal for us to be better men than just football players.
“How they want us to leave college, to have those kind of coaches here, to have that amount of passion for the game, but also your mindset and your life, that helps a lot.”
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Colorado State Rams wide receiver Tory Horton carries the ball at Folsom Field on Sept. 17, 2023, in Boulder, Colorado. (Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
Last season, the Rams went 5-7. Fowler-Nicolosi threw for 3,460 yards, 22 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
Last season, Horton had 96 receptions for 1,136 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging 94.7 yards per game. The wide receiver led the Mountain West in receptions per game with eight.
Colorado State opens its season against the Texas Longhorns on August 31 at 1:30 pm MT.
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