The college football world is the Wild Wild West, and in the era of NIL, anyone can go anywhere. Which is why the story of Alabama athlete Jaylen Mbakwe is so fascinating.
Jaylen Mbakwe did everything Alabama asked of him in his freshman season. Then he asked for something in return.
His murky situation at the University of Alabama highlights a dilemma in Tuscaloosa that has gone unspoken for the most of the 2025 season.
Let’s backtrack a little bit so we can get the 30,000-foot point of view, because there are a ton of wrinkles in Mbakwe’s story.
The Pinson, AL native has been wearing crimson through and through, ever since Nick Saban recruited him. When Saban retired, and Alabama hired Kalen DeBoer as its head coach, Mbakwe stayed committed.
He was able to form a tight-knit bond with wide receiver Ryan Williams, and managed to rope him back into the fold after Williams de-committed following Saban’s retirement.
From the looks of it, Alabama football was going to be firmly on the backs of both Mbakwe and Williams, the two then-freshman who had become the unofficial faces of the program.
Mbakwe’s freshman year didn’t include the highlights that his buddy created throughout the season, but instead, it seemed like he was on the right path.
At the time, he was simply a cornerback, what Saban had wanted him to be when he brought him on. It was clear he could play a number of different positions, which is why he was classified as an “athlete” rather than a single position.
He may have taken a backseat for the most part, but Mbakwe was still very much a part of the solution. He registered 15 total tackles, a tackle for loss, a pair of pass breakups, and even his first collegiate interception.
But then, something changed.
With aspirations to make Mbakwe a premier option in the secondary, one SEC school was poaching him, and making an offer that he couldn’t refuse. Shortly after, he found himself on the transfer portal.
Yet one day later, the stud athlete revoked his name off the portal, and affirmed he was staying with the Tide.
There was one condition though.
He had to play wide receiver.
Apparently the school that was trying to poach him was making him promises not just to make a boatload of money, but to play the position he wanted to initially.
DeBoer obliged.
Herein lay the problem though. This wasn’t going to get handed to him. DeBoer and his staff have preached that this is a “results based business,” so if Mbakwe wanted to be ‘that guy,’ he needed to show it.
Yet, just 28 offensive snaps, and only three receptions later, the question everyone’s asking now is, “did Mbakwe make the right choice?”
So here we are. As the Tide prepares for the Rose Bowl against the Indiana Hoosiers, there are already questions looming as to what the future holds for certain players. Heck, even the coach.
Mbakwe was asked after a practice this past weekend if he’s considering entering the transfer portal, and the stance was clear.
“Definitely not.”
DeBoer has built a culture in Tuscaloosa that evidently players don’t want to stray away from. Previously, Alabama general manager, Courtney Morgan had discussed prioritizing retaining players rather than always looking for the shiny new toy, but that’s what has made Alabama such a special place for aspiring athletes.
It invests in its players, and the players pay it forward.
So for Mbakwe to turn away an offer that likely guaranteed him at least a shot to start at receiver, and a hefty payday, so he can essentially ride pine, can only say so much about what’s being built in between those walls at Mal Moore.
We may not see Mbakwe have a major role on this playoff run, but next year? In an era where college football players evoke impatience, Mbakwe chose to bet on himself.