College football's massive recruiting summit in Nashville spotlights AI and talent strategy

In Nashville’s largest downtown ballroom, 1,600 personnel from 160 college football programs gathered for the seventh Personnel and Recruiting Symposium, a 48-hour networking marathon. Mack Brown, a College Football Hall-of-Famer, set the tone by arguing that being fifth can be more advantageous than second when building rosters. Former Pittsburgh Steelers executive Karim Kassam, now Teamworks’ vice president of sports intelligence, showcased AI tools and proposed using autonomous scouting agents to handle the flood of transfer-portal prospects.

The agenda featured panels with general managers from Arkansas, Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Texas and Texas Tech, covering contract negotiations, budget discipline and alignment between coaches and one outlet departments. Breakout sessions highlighted practical solutions, such as presenting compromises to administrators and maintaining clear communication across revenue-sharing entities. Vendor booths lined the hallway with offerings from companies like Ghost Mail, Hudl and Sportability, while rooftop bars and food-hall venues hosted informal networking into the early morning hours.