Should I stay in school or go pro?

The 30-second answer

It is a money decision wearing a sports jersey. Compare the guaranteed after-tax money of going now against your written NIL floor plus your realistic draft range next year, then price the injury risk of staying. Most athletes get this wrong because they compare dreams to dreams. Compare numbers to numbers.

The framework

Stay: The case for one more year

NIL floor you already have, draft stock trajectory, degree progress, and injury exposure.

Go pro: The case for going now

Guaranteed money on the table, the career clock, peak draft position, and the cost of staying.

The questions that actually matter

1. What is the guaranteed money difference, after taxes, between going now and my realistic draft range next year?
2. What does my NIL actually pay this coming year, in writing, not in talk?
3. What would disability insurance for one more college season cost, and what would it cover?
4. If I never play a pro snap after this decision, which path leaves me better off at 30?
5. Whose advice am I hearing, and what do they gain from each answer?

Pam's take

Nobody can tell you where you'll be drafted. What a fiduciary can do is put a real number on each path, price the risk of staying, and take the loudest voices out of the room while you decide.