Brian Kelly put his money where his mouth is, and the Tigers’ NIL efforts are already reaping significant benefits from the LSU head football coach’s million-dollar game thus far.

A gift to the Tiger Athletic Foundation’s ADs Excellence Fund, the program’s foundation, would match up to $1 million in NIL donations, according to a plan unveiled two weeks ago by Kelly and his wife, Paqui.

Kelly and the LSU administration made the commitment, known as the “Kelly Family Million Dollar Match Fund,” as part of a larger initiative to persuade regular, everyday LSU supporters to make donations to the school’s NIL collective, Babu Traditions.

Additionally, the initial support has been more than encouraging, even if Kelly’s pledge is valid for all donations made between December 13, 2024, and February 5, 2025.

“We were hoping for that response,” Kelly stated at a press conference on Saturday. Though our donors have also stepped up, I believe from a fan perspective—by fan, I mean our grassroots support, not our large funders. But whether it’s $5, $50, or $500, our supporters—those who attend the games and follow LSU football—are making the types of gifts that we hadn’t previously seen.

Kelly thinks the early returns have been encouraging and have made it possible for the Tigers to once again be competitive in college football’s fiercely competitive NIL market, even though LSU has not yet disclosed any data.

We are now in a position where we can act aggressively toward anyone who enters the gateway. And previously, that just wasn’t the case,” Kelly added. I’m not claiming that this specific game accomplished that, but I believe it made it clear to everyone that this is where we are at the moment. And we all need to step up if we want to be where we all want to be when it comes to creating our roster. I initiated it, and I believe our fan base reacted in kind.

The Tigers are presently ranked sixth on the transfer portal after being active this offseason.

With all of the pledges and agreements occurring in the past week, LSU has officially reached double-digit portal acquisitions thus far in this transfer cycle, with a commitment from Texas defensive lineman Sydir Mitchell on Friday. Together with tight end Bauer Sharp (Oklahoma), cornerbacks Ja’Keem Jackson (Florida) and Mansoor Delane (Virginia Tech), defensive ends Jack Pyburn (Florida) and Jimi Butler (Nebraska), quarterback Michael Van Buren (Mississippi State), punter Grant Chadwick (MTSU), and three wide receivers in Bayi Brown (Kentucky), Destinyn Hill (Florida State), and Nic Anderson (Oklahoma), Mitchell totals eleven. Currently, eight of those are in the Top 200 for On3.

Regarding NIL in recruiting, Brian Kelly said, “It’s about the most money I can get.”

A week ago, Brian Kelly gave an assessment of the current state of college football during National Signing Day. According to the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Ranking, LSU currently has the seventh-ranked class in the country. The group’s star is Five Star Plus+ cornerback DJ Pickett, who ranks 10th overall in the 2025 cycle based on the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that takes into account the output of all four main recruitment media organizations.

However, the Tigers made some noteworthy trades prior to the early signing window, most notably the acquisition of quarterback Bryce Underwood, who was ranked first. In the end, he committed to Michigan and is getting ready to accept a sizable NIL package.

Kelly described how recruiting has evolved in his press conference. He added that as NIL becomes increasingly involved in hiring, it is necessary to adjust to the changes.

As I stated in my introductory remarks, Kelly stated, “I would be remiss if I did not mention that this is a new landscape that we are in in terms of recruiting.” “It’s not just about finding the right academic fit,” I remarked.

Finding the ideal fit where you can grow holistically, graduate, and compete for a championship isn’t enough. Unfortunately, it’s all about how much money I can get. However, you must be able to adjust, realign, and be ready since that is the world we live in.