"Robbing these kids of personal development": Saints legend Drew Brees on college culture of athletes jumping programs in pursuit of NIL-money

New Orleans Saints legendary quarterback Drew Brees touted Purdue’s culture as the Boilermakers took on the NC State Wolfpack in the Final Four.

Breese spoke about how, in the changing landscape of college sports in the NIL era, Purdue values personal growth, development and education above everything else while talking to analyst Andy Katz during the game on Saturday.

"I think we do it unlike anybody else," Brees said. "I mean, look, we value education. We value developing players. We value keeping them around for a long period of time so that we can get the best out of them. I think we live in a atmosphere now with college sports where it's just like, 'hey I'm gonna take the best offer, I'm gonna jump ship when it gets too difficult.'

"I think we're robbing these kids of their personal development and character and leadership development. So I just love that we have a program that values the education and wants to develop these kids."

Drew Brees was also asked about how it felt to see Purdue make it to the Final Four for the first time since 1980.

Brees said that after last season's disappointing loss in the first round, it's exciting to see his alma mater embark on a successful run in this year's March Madness tournament.

"It means a lot," he said. "It means a lot to the Purdue faithful. It means a lot to our great coach Matt Painter, all the players that have invested so much to get to this point. I think we prided ourselves on being one of the most consistent programs in college basketball but haven't quite been able to get to that Final Four, obviously an early exit last year.

"Honestly the moment that it happened, as disappointing as it was, I felt like, 'hey we're gonna learn a lot about out team going into the next season as a result of that.' And I think you're seeing that right now which is that dedication that work ethic, those guys just trusting and believing in the system and one another."

The Purdue Boilermakers cruised to a 63-50 victory over NC State to qualify for their first national championship game since 1969. Zach Edey led the scoring for the Boilermakers, putting up 20 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.

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Drew Brees' Purdue career stats

Drew Brees began his collegiate journey with Purdue as a freshman in 1997. During his debut campaign, the former QB recorded 232 passing yards with no touchdown passes.

He became a starter during his sophomore year, when he led the Boilermakers to a 9-4 overall season, recording 3,983 passing yards and recorded 20 TD passes. Drew Brees also led Purdue to its first Rose Bowl appearance since 1967 during the 2000 season.

During his four-year collegiate stint, the 45-year-old recorded 10,909 passing yards and 81 TD passes.