He is playing hardball with the rest of the collegiate game to get the best recruits and develop athletes, but Alabama head football coach Nick Saban is not one for this NIL culture.
Coach Saban is fine with players getting compensated for their name, image, and likeness, but he wants it done where the perception of the college game is not changed. In an interview with Sports Illustrated, he explained the biggest problem with NIL for today’s athletes and why regulation is necessary. Saban said players nowadays are not going to school to create the most value for themselves; however, they are going to school to get the most money. He sees this as an issue in the sport.
RELATED: Nick Saban gives an opinion on college football play reviews, potential clock changes
“The issue is, when you create those [collectives] for people, are you establishing a pay-for-play type of environment that can be used in recruiting? So now, all of a sudden, guys are not going to a school where they can create the most value for their future. Guys are going to a school where they can make the most money. I don’t think that’s even the best thing for a player,” Saban said via Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated.
He recently turned away a potential recruit for the 2023 class and a transfer that wanted massive NIL funds. Teams want to win championships at the highest cost. They will do whatever is necessary to get the best players, and we have seen some of the craziest numbers that collectives are giving players for compensation. Saban is for players getting paid, but he believes the optics behind it have created a distraction. Student-athletes are starting to forget why they chose to attend college.
Saban wants the main thing, regarding doing right by these athletes, at the forefront.
He does not have a perfect solution, but the 71-year-old does feel more boundaries need to be in place.
“I don’t know that I completely have the answer to that,” he said. “I think one of the things is everybody having a different state law. A lot of people blame the NCAA for a lot of this, but the NCAA sometimes gets caught. … Because of the changes we’ve had in what’s legal and not, they can’t enforce their own rules and they’re in a little bit of a dilemma, too. Maybe it needs to be changed at the federal level so you don’t have different state laws and there are guidelines for what you can and can’t do. Players should create their opportunities, and what we’ve done now is some schools are creating opportunities for them. I don’t think that was the intent.”
He has always been one to speak out on certain issues in college football.
Saban wants common ground in this NIL culture, but we will see if he’s heard.
Click here to follow the Bama Elite Podcast
*Get the BEST Alabama football insider information, message board access, and recruiting coverage today! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our subscriber-only content!*
Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
