Building A Team in the New Era

The idea college football is starting to look like its professional counterpart has some merit. Name, Image and Likeness changed the game's course. Revenue sharing added another fork in the road.

It's not entirely true – an NFL team can draft a player and know how long they'll have them, and with a consistent cap hit, too. The NFL has contracted free agency; college has a yearly free-for-all.

Alex Collins, hired to be Colorado State's general manager after learning and deciphering the upcoming changes in his previous stops, is still learning as the rules change. To help him, the athletic department worked with Altius Sports Properties, which linked Collins to Kevin Colbert for advice and assistance, working independently as Colbert Sports Consultants.

Colbert spent a career in player personnel at the professional level. He was hired in 2010 to be the Pittsburgh Steelers' first general manager, a standing he held until 2022 when he retired from the role after the organization won two additional Super Bowls.

"He's incredibly valuable. I mean, this is my first time in this role," Collins said. "I think that's where a lot of colleges had was a lot of people. It's your first time in this role, so I don't think there's a situation that we have faced or can face that Kevin hasn't faced numerous times.

"Having him here in person, when he got here on Monday, I think we spent two and a half hours talking before we got a single clip of game film up. It was just going back and forth. He would ask a question of how we're doing things, or I would go, 'hey, I'm having this issue. How have you dealt with it?' I think it's really valuable because there's so much. It's a new role for everybody."

Even, Colbert admits, for him. There are variables Collins has to deal with aiding Colorado State he didn't have to factor in at Pittsburgh. But the basics are the same – roster management through character and culture as well as talent.

And understanding is always key.

"Parts of this is new, and I'm learning from Alex also because he's teaching me about how they go about things," Colbert said. "And then when he's telling me things, then I can strike a, 'oh, yeah, this is similar, too.' Like when I look at his staff and the different people, I said, 'OK, that's your cap guy.

"My job was to just put a team on the field, so I'm learning about that because it's all interrelated because CSU is probably going to spend different than the other competition and so on and so forth. So, I'm constantly learning, too."

Colbert remembers the time when general managers really came into play professionally, hats previously worn by the head coach. Some are reluctant to give up the role, but Jay Norvell is not one of them. He's worked in the NFL when GMs were the norm preferring the fact there are some conversations he should not have with players while coaching them.

"We're just in a different era where there's a lot of conversations that need to be had, and all those conversations don't need to be had by the head coach. The big part of Alex's job is he's an educator, and things have changed so fast with NIL and rev share, contracts, all the different things that are happening in college --the transfer portal -- somebody has to be the voice of reason that can talk to players about both sides," Norvell said. "It's not always rosy; the grass isn't always greener, there's a lot of things that happen to kids with these NIL contracts that aren't good, and Alex has a great perspective.

"Kevin's great because he's worked with rosters over the years, and he also understands the value of character, of hard work, and dependability. Those are qualities that matter. Every team is looking for that."

Collins has worked tirelessly to build relationships with the players and the staff. He has to know what both sides value as he helps them put together a roster. He must be the source of knowledge for the players and the person who can point out the reality in any situation presented.

Not all information is equal. Not all offers are real, even if disguised as such. Relationships are key, which Colbert knows. What he worked professionally was a cap where player contracts were public knowledge. College football is a wide-open landscape where not all the cards are on the table and some players have twice the buy-in.

It can be maddening at times, but Colbert is enjoying being back at the table.

"It's fun to be back around a team, to be involved, and to try to give them some thoughts. Ultimately, we want to see how we did in the results," he said. "Did I give them an idea that may help them win a game with a player? But like what Alex was saying, the one thing, when he's describing all that, I'm listening, and I'm saying, to simplify it, you're not going to know all that information. So, push, come to shove, just do what's right for Colorado State in 2025.

"That's all you got. And over time, that will build. But sometimes you've just got to pull back. This is what I know. This is what I can do. If it works for me, great. If it's good for our program, awesome. Let's move forward."

Regardless of the level, the goal is to put the best team on the field. Each team will look different depending on the desires of the football staff. To get there requires the right information and being able to share it when the time comes.

Collins is confident in the lessons he's learned along the way, but having another voice of experience helps him attain his goals, and in turn, Norvell's and Colorado State's football program.

"The more information we can provide them, the better the information we can provide them, the better decisions they'll make. And that's the thing is that there's always somebody in their ear," Collins said. "They're always listening to somebody. And at CSU, if it's one of the two of us, I feel really good about that."

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Building A Team in the New Era

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