Army-Navy game is 'college football at its purest form' amid NIL era, sponsor's CEO says

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NIL is running hotter and heavier than ever before - but there are two teams that are unable to participate.

Of course, those schools are Army and Navy - as USAA CEO Wayne Peacock puts it, it's a "one-way portal" into the academies.

We just saw Bryce Underwood flip his commitment from LSU to Michigan for seven figures - even the potential No. 1 pick of the 2026 NBA Draft in A.J. Dybantsa committed to BYU after reportedly receiving a $5 million offer in NIL money.

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A general view of the Army Black Knights and Navy Midshipmen helmets prior to the 122nd Army/Navy college football game between the Army Black Knights and the Navy Midshipmen on December 11, 2021 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.   (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Obviously, the players in the academies are unable to go that route if they go to either Army or Navy. But, with the 125th edition of the Army-Navy game set to kick off on Saturday afternoon just outside of the nation's capital, Peacock says that's what makes the annual event that much more special.

"The way I think about this, especially in this age of the portal and NIL, this is college football at its purest form. When these guys are out on the field, they are competing like they are in battle, and they're competing against each other like they're in battle.

FILE - The Navy Midshipmen and the Army Black Knights line up for the snap at the line of scrimmage during the first quarter of an NCAA football game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023, in Foxborough, Mass.  (AP Photo/Winslow Townson, File)

BILL BELICHICK SAID HE ALWAYS