There's always been more to recruiting than the simplicity it is in theory.
Relationships between coaches and player, quality of facilities, relativity to hometown and playing time all — and still — matter. Money is the game changer.
Whether when it was handing a high schooler a bag of money under the table or an NIL collective doing the same but legally, getting paid in college sports often decides what program gets the recruit.
At programs like Oklahoma State, money from donors is a finite material rather than a resource, and building a team to win games is as much about luck and timing than skill.