For Virgina's Tony Elliott, 'fit' matters as much as money in roster construction

Let's make something clear to start — no one who plays major-college football at a high level these days does it for free.

Overdue NCAA rules that allow NIL compensation as well as direct revenue sharing payment to athletes have turned college stars into millionaires. Texas quarterback Arch Manning once reportedly raked in $6.8 million per season, almost as much as some starting NFL signal-callers (although he reportedly took a big pay cut to $2.5 million this year to allow the Longhorns to attract better players around him).

One of the factors in Virginia's breakthrough 11-3 season in 2025 was increased financial support from alumni and boosters that allowed Coach Tony Elliott to attract veteran transfers to Charlottesville. And while the Cavaliers continue to invest in their roster, money isn't always the top consideration.

According to The Sideline website, which keeps track of NIL spending, Virginia ranks 60th among NCAA schools in payments to all its athletes, at $24.6 million. Of that total, $13.5 million (55 percent) is earmarked for football.

Compare that with Manning's Longhorns, who top The Sideline's survey with an estimated $65.4 million athlete payroll, with $45.9 (70 percent) focused on the gridiron. Or last year's national runner-up, Miami, which ranks third at $56.4 million ($37.9 million for football).

In fact, Virginia ranks 13th among the ACC's 17 schools in expected total athlete payment for this academic year, yet won the ACC regular-season football title last season and finished fifth in the 2025-26 Learfield Directors Cup all-sports standings.

For Elliott, like many other Virginia coaches, it comes down to finding the right athletes at the right price.

"I learned early on it's all about fit," Elliott said Monday at a preseason press conference. "And so there were guys that I wouldn't recruit, even though they were great players, because I knew they wouldn't fit. And that's what I've asked the staff to do is to find the guys that fit."

"Now, do we want the most talented guys? Absolutely. But it's no good to have a guy that's super talented that doesn't fit into your culture because then now that could beat you every single day. So I think for us, the margins is finding guys that want to be at Virginia that are looking for this type of environment."

Even as college sports becomes more professionalized — and academics for athletes are deemphasized — Elliott said his priorities remain old-school.

"We're still serious about school and academics and education here," Elliott said. "And that starts at the top. And I wholeheartedly believe in education. And so you're going to go to class. And my number one desire for you is for you to earn your degree from the University of Virginia."

"So that's part of the fit. And then, man, we're going to coach you hard, right? We're not going to be demeaning or disrespectful, but we're going to coach you hard. We're going to expect your best, and we're going to expect you to stay out of trouble, right? We're going to expect you to do things the right way. ... We want to be the model program. So that's what the scou ng staff and the coaches have done a really good job is finding those guys that are really good players, but they're also fit."

As expected, quarterback Beau Pribula is Virginia's highest-paid athlete at $1.5 million in NIL compensation, according to The Sideline, followed by defensive end Fisher Camac ($1.07 million) and offensive linemen McKale Boley ($1.05 million) and Monroe Mills ($850,000).

For comparison, Miami has five players making at least as much as Pribula, led by quarterback Darian Mensah at $6.5 million.

Despite a healthy alumni network, the Cavaliers likely will never be able to match the Hurricanes — or any of the nation's other perennial contenders — in spending. Elliott is counting on fit and chemistry to help close the gap.

"It's not fair to a young man to bring him into an environment that you know he's not looking for this ... all he wants is football," Elliott said. "And if that's the case, it's going to be hard here because of everything else we ask you to do."

"Do I want the players to get compensated? Do I support that? Absolutely, but it's still college football. They're 18 to 22. They need more development than just the game of football. And that's really the fit for us. And I believe the staff has done a good job of finding those guys."

"And there's been many guys I'm like, man, I'd love to have him, right? But it's probably not going to bode well for either one. And I don't want to do that to a young man, bring him into an environment he's not, doesn't fully understand what he's ge ng into, and it's not what he's looking for."

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