Trent Seaborn, Cam Pritchett reflect on turning down NIL deals to stay at Thompson (Ala.)

Thompson football is one of the top high school programs in the nation and continues to make its case as the top program in Alabama. The Warriors boast an impressive roster, but two juniors continue to grab the headlines.

Both quarterback Trent Seaborn and defensive lineman Cam Pritchett have already made an impact at the program in Alabaster. They haven’t wavered in their commitment to the program, even though the allure of moving elsewhere for NIL has reared its head.

Last July, WVTM’s Ryan Hennessy reported that Seaborn had turned down a seven-figure deal offered by a trading card company. With NIL still prohibited for high schoolers in Alabama, accepting that deal would’ve meant that Seaborn would’ve had to transfer out-of-state and continue his prep career elsewhere. He turned it down and returned to Thompson for his sophomore season.

This April, a report from ‘5 Star Football Recruiting’ on X stated that Pritchett turned down a $750K offer from a “high-profile collective” in another state where NIL is allowed at the high school level.

This week, CBS 42 in Alabama spoke with Thompson head coach Mark Freeman, as well as both players to reflect on their decisions to turn down the lucrative offers and stay with the Warriors.

“Yeah it’s real, but that’s not the first time that Cam and his father’s been approached by out-of-state schools. Obviously Trent, that was a different deal, through a trading card company,” Freeman told CBS’ Scott Griffin. “I think what people are trying to do with the high school kids is get their hands on them early and then try to capitalize on them when they do go to college if there’s NIL.”

“I thought it was some kind of bogus deal or whatever, but he told me it was real, $1.2 million, and I thought ‘wow, that’s a lot of money,'” Seaborn said.

For the blue-chip QB, he’s already gone through the process of moving and isn’t interested in doing it again. Growing up in Oahu, Hawaii, Seaborn eventually moved and landed in Alabama at Thompson, the former home of Taulia Tagovailoa, whom Seaborn has trained with in the past.

“The amount of stress, the amount of things my family went through just to move out here and play at Thompson — because of how special a place it is here, the place that coach Freeman has built here, honestly I wouldn’t trade it for any amount of money,” Seaborn said.

Seaborn led Thompson to a state title as an 8th grader, then did it again last season as a sophomore. So far as a junior, the Warriors are 4-2 and rank as the No. 36 team in the nation, per the Massey Ratings. He and Pritchett, an Oregon commit, are both four-star prospects and rank as top-20 players at their respective positions in the 2027 cycle.

“It was difficult at all,” Pritchett said when asked about turning down a high six-figure deal. “The culture here is different. All the people around you; it’s just the little things, the culture, the people. The foundation’s built off faith, built off God. We built that strong foundation, you don’t find that everywhere. It’s very special at Thompson.”

Freeman, who’s in his 11th season as head coach of the Yellowhammer State power, has coached the Warriors to five 7A state titles in the last six seasons. Thompson is currently the No. 2 team in Alabama, per the Massey Ratings, but it has a chance to return to No. 1 this week as it takes on top-ranked Hewitt-Trussville.

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