Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy Excited to Finally Focus on Football Amid NIL Season

College football coaches are excited to not have to worry about NIL during the year.

Head coach Mike Gundy walks on the field during an Oklahoma State football practice in Stillwater, Okla., on Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024. / NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

The college football season is just days away, an exciting time as teams search for a national championship. For coaches, however, it's an exciting time for more reasons than one.

Recruiting in the NIL days makes things tough for many reasons, but the stress that comes with it might be the worst part about it. Players are always negotiating, looking to transfer, and more.

Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy told reporters this week that he's excited for that to finally be over with.

“That’s what I told the players. There’s no negotiating now,” Gundy told reporters. “The portal’s over. All the negotiation’s history. Now, we’re playing football. Just coaching and playing football.”

Oklahoma State, who came in at No. 17 in the preseason AP Poll, has big expectations this season. Led by superstar Ollie Gordon, the Cowboys have an opportunity to make the College Football Playoffs if things go as planned.

Gordon, who likely cost a ton in terms of NIL money due to how elite of a player he is, decided to stay at Oklahoma State and not leave in the portal. While that isn't the biggest surprise, a player of his caliber could've entered the portal and created a bidding war, something many players have done.

That's all done for now, and Gundy made sure his players understood that.

“The business side of what we do now is we have to have those conversations with them. ‘Tell your agent to quit calling us and asking for more money. It’s non-negotiable now. We’ll start again in December,'” Gundy said.

“Now, we’re able to direct ourselves just at football. And that part is fun because there’s been so much other stuff going on, it’s been hard to really focus on football.”

Gundy, 57, has been around the college football game for a very long time. If there's a coach in college football who understands just how much the game has changed, it's the Oklahoma native.

Still, despite those changes, he either has to leave or get with the times. He's done what he's needed to do in the portal, but from his comments, it doesn't sound like it's something he enjoys.

Rightfully so, too, as the NIL and transfer portal can be a very tough experience for all parties involved.

Oklahoma State will start their season on August 31, hosting South Dakota State before playing two ranked teams in the following four weeks.