Cam Newton put together one of the greatest seasons a college football quarterback has ever had 14 years ago, winning the 2010 Heisman Trophy and leading Auburn to the BCS championship. That same year, he was also at the center of the year's biggest college football financial scandal.
Reports that Newton's father Cecil solicited a $180,000 payment for his son to go to Mississippi State—an offer ultimately passed up for Newton to head to Auburn—rocked the sport that year. In 2025, that might be the going rate for a quarterback at schools closer to the stature of Southern Miss or South Alabama, not SEC powers.
