During his Wednesday press conference following Alabama’s 10th practice of spring football, head coach Nick Saban took the time to clarify the university’s academic bonus payments following a report from ESPN’s Dan Murphy.
In the report, the Crimson Tide was not included in the list of 22 universities that reportedly had plans to provide academic bonus payments this year which stemmed from the Supreme Court’s decision in the NCAA vs. Alston case. ESPN reported that it had reached out to 130 athletic departments regarding the payments.
Murphy’s report stated that Alabama did not respond to multiple requests for information regarding the bonuses, and instead highlights Saban’s bonus he will receive as a result of the player’s performance.
Saban wasted no time during his opening statement, clarifying that Alabama does in fact give its players the bonus.
“The Alston money, we pay our players that,” Saban said. “We paid them last semester, we’re paying them this semester. I don’t know where some of those things come from.”
ESPN’s Pete Thamel later followed up, confirming Saban’s statement after speaking with Alabama Athletics Director Greg Byrne who retweeted his tweet.
Just spoke to Alabama AD Greg Byrne. Alabama is one of the schools doing this Alston payment to athletes and has been doing it from when it was first available. https://t.co/1mf2WeEvtS
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) April 6, 2022
The NCAA vs. Alston case from 2021 ended the association’s nationwide limits on education-related benefits which athletes can receive for playing sports. Athletes can now receive benefits from their schools that can reach as much as $5,980 each year based on academic achievement.
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Patrick Dowd is a Reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77
