Why Oklahoma GM Jim Nagy Thinks a Freshman Salary Cap Would be a Good Idea

The Sooners' general manager appeared on the University of Oklahoma president's podcast, where he opined about how to fix a major issue in the sport.

Oklahoma general manager Jim Nagy | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

The general manager role in college sports remains in its infancy. Oklahoma took a forward-thinking step by hiring Jim Nagy in early 2025 to model an NFL-style front office, but the evolving position still comes with its share of challenges.

"You don’t want to take a high school kid and pay them more than an All-American player/All-Conference player (on your roster)," Nagy said on the most recent episode of university president Joseph Harroz Jr.'s podcast, Conversations With the President.

On the episode, Nagy and Harroz addressed a number of topics but got into what the Sooner general manager hopes for the future — a freshman salary cap. That belief grew from something he learned early in the job.

"One blind spot I had coming into the job was I didn’t think the players would talk as much, and share the information as much," Nagy said.

Oklahoma general manager Jim Nagy | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

That leaves Nagy trying to balance retention, compensation and recruiting without creating friction in the locker room — concerns that make Nagy believe a freshman salary cap is necessary.

"If you wanted to, 'fix' isn’t the right word, but land in a good spot for the greater good of college football is some sort of freshman salary cap," Nagy said. "That’s one of my biggest challenges. The acquisition costs out of high school is so high."

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Nagy praised Oklahoma’s culture, noting that a key prerequisite for the job was ensuring he and his staff were in lockstep with Brent Venables’ vision for the program, something he said has come to fruition.

"You have to go after great players, you have to get the top talent," Nagy said. "But right now, it can be at the expense of your culture, which coach Venables and the coaching staff have worked so hard to develop. If we had some sort of rookie/freshman cap, that would alleviate that issue."

Despite these challenges, Nagy has integrated himself within Venables' program and helped accent football's mission of "adaptive and forward thinking." He mentioned that during prep for Alabama last December, the front office was busy at work in attempting to retain their roster for the following season — something made easier by Venables' leadership.

"Our ability to retain our starters, give our coaching staff a ton of credit, because our players want to be here."

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

But Nagy understands any changes will take time. Until then, Oklahoma’s front office is building the best Brent Venables-led program it can, with championship aspirations and a clear understanding of how the current landscape works.

Still, he feels that his desired change would benefit the "greater good of the sport." Oklahoma is prepared if that change comes sooner or later.

"A CBA model, there is a model in place," Nagy said. "At least for football, I’m not going to speak to the other sports, there is a model out there that has shown to work. We don’t have to completely copy and paste what the NFL does, but if we went to a similar structure, we could find a good spot."

When asked if that's where he felt the sport would land — collective bargaining agreements — Nagy said "yes" with confidence.