FSU football: Finally, clarity on why Rodney Hill entered the transfer portal

Former FSU football running back Rodney Hill has had a wild 2024. The former three-star recruit should have been one of the major pieces returning to the FSU backfield in 2024, but that changed when he entered the transfer portal on December 13th. At the time, there were conflicting reports regarding what happened, but we knew it was NIL-related. Hill committed to FAMU in Tallahassee, before head coach Willie Simmons left for a job at Duke. Hill backed off that commitment and committed to Miami, where it looked like he would play as a preferred walk-on before he ultimately found a home with the Arkansas Razorbacks in April. Hill spoke with the media after an Arkansas practice on Friday and finally gave details on his exit from FSU football:

"Not many people know, but my parents were running my money and stuff like that. My parents got a bad agent and he was texting other schools like he was me, so when that got back to the head coach, I had to leave Florida State," Hill said. "During that time when I had to leave, I wasn’t trying to leave, I didn’t want to leave, so I just had to and the portal was closing up. Florida A&M was next door, so I just had to go there for a month, find a new place."

It sounds like Hill has better representation and wants others to learn from his situation

"I know it's your parents and stuff like that, but sometimes you've got to handle it on your own," Hill said. "Sometimes, like with my parents, I know they were trying to do the best thing for me, but sometimes you've got to take that on your own and gotta do it yourself. But to other kids, I'd just say you don't have to get an agent right now. Just wait."

Some of the NIL numbers we heard folks were asking FSU(or The Battles End Collective) for were astronomical for a player who was little more than a reserve behind Trey Benson. It makes so much more sense now that it was the agent doing nasty work and likely getting the parents to go along with it(since they hired him). However, I wonder if Rodney Hill doesn't have a legal case since the agent was impersonating him while talking to other schools. It sounds like Hill has better representation and wants others to learn from his situation:

That situation provides insight into how the NIL game and transfer portal have changed college football. Hill is fortunate he's incredibly talented and found a home at another major school. There are many stories about players entering the transfer portal to fade into oblivion and never receiving a degree, much less playing football again. Kudos to him for setting the record straight and trying to help other young players avoid a situation like his. It'll be interesting to see if he can become an impact player in his third season in college.