Oklahoma general manager Jim Nagy speaks to the media during the University of Oklahoma Sooners football spring press conference in Norman, Okla., Wednesday, March, 5, 2025.
Oklahoma general manager Jim Nagy speaks to the media during the University of Oklahoma Sooners football spring press conference in Norman, Okla., Wednesday, March, 5, 2025.
Jun 19, 2026, 10:30 AM CUT
Insider: Michigan tried to poach Oklahoma GM Jim Nagy before a $4.6m extension
Oklahoma Sooners General Manager Jim Nagy is one of the most talked-about names in college football right now. Oklahoma just made sure he is staying put for a long time after buzz picked up that the Michigan Wolverines were trying to poach him away.
The Sooners announced a new four-year deal for Nagy worth $4.6 million, approved by the OU Board of Regents on June 18. The contract runs through the 2029 season and makes him one of the highest-paid GMs in college football. Discussing Nagy's greatness, Locked On Sooners analyst Jay Smith dropped some information.
"I've actually heard of teams actually reaching out to try to poach him away from it, and one, notably, is Michigan," he noted on the June 17 episode of the Locked On Sooners podcast. "Michigan was going to make a big run for Nagy. One, he's from the state. Two, he's one of the best in the business."
The two reasons stated in the podcast are quite logical. Nagy is a Michigan native and spent nearly 20 years as an NFL scout before running the Reese's Senior Bowl for seven years. NFL teams were already knocking on his door before Oklahoma did, as he even interviewed for the New York Jets GM job in late 2024.
Oklahoma general manager of football Jim Nagy is pictured in the first half of the college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooner and the University of Michigan Wolverines at the Gaylord Family Ð Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.
Oklahoma general manager of football Jim Nagy is pictured in the first half of the college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooner and the University of Michigan Wolverines at the Gaylord Family Ð Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.
Nagy came to Oklahoma in February 2025. Before that, he spent nearly two decades as an NFL scout with the Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, and Washington Commanders. Oklahoma pulled him away with an original three-year deal worth $2.55 million.
Nagy helped the Sooners go from six wins in 2024 to ten wins and a College Football Playoff appearance in 2025. Under him, the Sooners put together a 2027 recruiting class that currently ranks fourth nationally with 25 recruits, the program's best in over two decades.
Nagy's new deal bumps his salary to $1.15 million in 2026, up from $850,000, with a $100,000 raise every year after that.
The extension comes after what he has built in Oklahoma.
Nagy has built one of college football’s most NFL-style front offices
Nagy stands out for being highly visible and taking a forward-facing role. He holds his own press conferences, does photo shoots with official recruiting visitors alongside coach Brent Venables, and runs the department like a real NFL front office.
"Nagy and the front office staff he's assembled have been able to take some of the pressure of talent acquisition off of Venables and his coaching staff, helping to free them up to do what they do best," Sooners Wire reported Thursday, June 18.
This attitude matters more because of the competitive enivironment because of the NIL and transfer portal era. Nagy oversees all of OU's roster management, contract negotiations, and portal strategy, the kind of work that used to fall entirely on the head coach.
Do you think Oklahoma made the right call by locking Nagy in long-term? Let us know in the comments.
Read more at Michigan Football Community.
Written by
Farheen Fathima
Edited by
Soheli Tarafdar