Jimbo Fisher Slams Rumors Texas A&M Paid Large NIL Sums to Bolster Recruiting Class

Texas A&M landed one of the best recruiting classes in the country for the 2022 cycle, and head coach Jimbo Fisher didn't hesitate to rebut rumors suggesting the program paid players a hefty sum via name, image and likeness rules to commit. 

"That had nothing to do with this class. ... This was hard work by our staff," he said during an appearance on CBS Sports' national signing day show. "... It's insulting to the kids who come here that you insinuate that. And people insinuate that off things that were taken off a message board BroBible by a guy named Sliced Bread, whoever the heck that is, who has no clue about what goes on."

As for the rumor Fisher was addressing, BroBible published an article titled "Texas A&M Boosters Spent Unfathomable Amount of Money to Land No. 1 Recruiting Class, per Report."

The article included a rumor from the message board user SlicedBread suggesting the Aggies paid up to $30 million to secure their recruiting class:      

Regardless of such speculation, Texas A&M has impressed on the recruiting trail. In fact, it has the No. 1 overall class, per 247Sports' composite rankings, and finished ahead of traditional powerhouses such as Alabama and Ohio State, as well as the defending national champions in Georgia.

Brian Perroni of 247Sports noted Wednesday's commitment of defensive lineman Shemar Stewart clinched Texas A&M's spot as the highest-rated class ever based on the site's composite ranking system that goes back to 2010.

The Aggies have 328.59 points compared to Alabama's record of 327.76 set last year.

Insinuating rival schools are cheating to land recruits has long been a part of college football fandom, especially when it comes to message boards. The formation of the NIL rules will likely only fuel speculation that programs are paying head-turning amounts of money for players.

Rarely does it reach the level that a head coach addresses it, but Fisher did Wednesday while putting the finishing touches on his class.

Next up for the Aggies' fifth-year coach is parlaying this impressive recruiting class into a double-digit win season, which Texas A&M has done just once since the 1998 campaign.