College football GMs warn against paying for Rivals evaluation: ‘They’re just trying to make money’

The college football recruiting site Rivals has rolled out a new program that allows high school athletes to pay hundreds of dollars “to get evaluated by a Rivals Scout.” Rivals claims the program will “create more opportunities” for high school athletes hoping to reach the next level, but college football general managers seem skeptical.

This week, Rivals rolled out its new program, Rivals Recruits, which lets athletes pay for a scouting report, an evaluation grade, and ranking consideration from Rivals Scouts. The service is priced at $499, though a current 20% off promotion makes it $399.

Rivals, which was acquired by On3 last year, claims that this program will allow more players to be rated and evaluated by Rivals Scouts, leading to more opportunities for those players – especially those who are not FBS-caliber prospects.

“1.04M kids played HS football last season. About 6,600 held a Rivals star rating… roughly 0.6%. That’s not a talent gap. It’s a capacity gap. Our scouts have always focused on FBS prospects, and FCS, D-II, NAIA, and D-III kids rarely get their film watched,” On3 founder Shannon Terry wrote in a post on X. “Rivals Recruits puts the same scouts, held to the same standards, on more of that film.

“You can pay for an evaluation. You can’t pay for the result,” Terry added. “Great resource and link for all college coaches and scouts. More opportunities for athletes.”

However, despite Terry and Rivals claiming this resource will help high school athletes get exposed to college programs, it sounds like college general managers are skeptical at best.

Shortly after news of Rivals’ plan began to circulate, longtime college football recruiting analyst Matt Freeman shared some quotes from three unnamed college football general managers, all of whom warned against anyone paying for such an evaluation.

Plenty of people have expressed their opinions on this, but what do actual college decision-makers think? Here are 3 quotes from current general managers in college football.

P4 GM: “Exposure has never been easier. College summer camps, summer combines/camps, increased… https://t.co/dARhAu4aOt

— Matt Freeman (@mattfreeman05_) September 24, 2026

“Exposure has never been easier,” one Power 4 general manager told Freeman. “College summer camps, summer combines/camps, increased unofficial visits, larger game day visits, easy access to putting your film online (HUDL). Most kids that aren’t being recruited by the schools they want to be isn’t a visibility issue; it’s a talent issue. High School families don’t need to be paying to get evaluated. They should start with their HS coaches and find out how to become a better football player.”

A second Power 4 GM saw it as a simple cash grab from Rivals.

“They’re just trying to make money on the dreams of the players who wouldn’t get recruited anyway,” the unnamed GM told Freeman. “Are there now more spots for FBS teams to take players? No. They’ll just rank more players who paid for it, but the opportunities don’t expand. The number of scholarships given out by programs remains the same. Excited for the meltdown because On3 is a market driver for NIL, and this opens the door for families to pay them to rank them higher for more NIL.”

A third general manager – this one from a Group of 5 program – said that players should simply work on becoming the best high school football player they can be.

“To me, it’s all stupid. Anybody who’s paying for these rankings or evaluations is already in the wrong. The priority should just be to be a really good high school football player, and you’re going to be recruited, and you’re going to get ranked,” the GM told Freeman. “Are these parents even going to listen when they get a rating back that says they’re an FCS-level player? Probably not. They’ll probably just spend more money trying to change what they are. They’ll keep spending money on things until they get the answer they want to hear, but the film isn’t going to change from Friday nights.”

For what it’s worth, Rivals insists that paying for an evaluation does not guarantee a favorable rating, stating, “ratings, rankings and stars are earned, never bought.”

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