If name, image and likeness benefits were directly tied to wins, Miami could just about punch its ticket to the College Football Playoff. Texas A&M would be close, at least according to Nick Saban's offseason estimation. Texas would truly be back.

But reality being reality, performance on the field still counts for something. In these strange days where the sport walks the line — and sometimes step over it — toward pay-for-play, maybe we've forgotten a key ingredient.

Money might be able to buy players, but it won't necessarily buy wins.

Armed with an $80 million coach (Mario Cristobal) and a billionaire NIL supporter (John Ruiz), Miami still turned it over eight times in a depressing home loss to Duke. With its own multimillion-dollar coach (Jimbo Fisher), Texas A&M fell below .500 for the first time in five years. And with the best of seemingly everything, Texas still struggles in areas it should not 13 years after its last championship appearance. The Longhorns committed 14 penalties Saturday at Oklahoma State.

"I'll go back to when I walk out of the building," Cowboys defensive coordinator Derek Mason told The Oklahoman after the game. "I don't see Ferraris and Lamborghinis. I see Ford F-150s. I see Chevys. I see blue-collar stuff. And ours are immersed in the idea of toughness — all day long."

Sixteen months into the NIL era, football has endured as the main attraction. To date, no one has called out Alabama quarterback Bryce Young for any of his incompletions despite his $2 million NIL valuation. A Heisman Trophy and national championship sort balances things out.

On Saturdays, fans aren't gathering to argue the amount of scholarship checks. Only a small percentage of players will get any significant NIL. All of them will play for Good Ol' State U. Upset alert: There is still some innocence left.

Those who trumpet the new age of NIL and financial freedom may have forgotten a key piece of the math: These are 18- to 22-year-olds whose bodies, brains and talent are still being formed. That brings a significant measure of unpredictability. They decide what happens on the field.

It's another reason to scoff in the general direction of NIL as either a savior or a Satan. NIL simply is part of the game. Players have been making money in an NCAA-legal way for years. It's up to those who manage the game to figure it out. Again, it's the football that still matters most.

Despite its all-in philosophy after years of irrelevance, Miami is 3-4 for the third time in four years with a loss already on the docket to Middle Tennessee.