Carson Beck opens up on NIL discussions and his return to Georgia

Georgia received massive news earlier this month when star quarterback Carson Beck announced that he would be returning for the 2024 season with the Bulldogs.

Instantly, the Georgia offense looks to be electric again next season. But how much did NIL play a factor in Beck’s decision to stay in school, rather than enter the NFL Draft?

“There was a lot of numbers thrown around before,” Beck said. “I want to say it was like a month before the SEC Championship Game or so. And I’m sitting there and I’m seeing it on Twitter. Coach (Kirby) Smart‘s like, ‘Where is this coming from?’ Like we haven’t even talked about it. I haven’t said anything, we haven’t talked about a decision.”

In other words, a lot of what you see discussed on social media when it comes to NIL offers is completely made-up. That’s not to say that Beck wouldn’t be in line for a big payday.

A quarterback of a potential College Football Playoff team is going to command a reasonable amount of NIL money.

“But that was not one of the biggest factors in coming back,” Beck said. “Obviously as the quarterback at Georgia there’s going to be plenty of opportunities outside of Georgia for me to make NIL and things like that.

“But for now, coming back and trying to win a championship with these guys and this team was so important to me. And I know that’s like so cliche and what I’m supposed to say, but I truly believe that.”

Georgia narrowly missed out on the chance to compete for a national title this season, going 12-0 in the regular season but tripping up in the SEC Championship Game against Alabama.

As a result, Georgia fell from No. 1 in the College Football Playoff rankings to No. 6. The consolation prize will be an Orange Bowl matchup against Florida State, which Beck will play in.

Though that will be the official end of the 2023 season, it can serve as a launching platform of sorts for the 2024 season. Carson Beck and company have the chance to head into the offseason with some momentum.

Maybe even up the ante on those NIL deals just a touch, however unimportant they were to Beck’s ultimate decision to return to school.