Alabama AD Greg Byrne reacts to President Donald Trump executive order on college sports

Following President Donald Trump’s executive order on college sports, Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne reacted. He released a statement endorsing Trump’s decision.

Byrne praised the executive order, which he said is a step toward sustainability in the current landscape in college athletics. Trump visited Alabama’s campus in May and met with former Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban. After that meeting, the Wall Street Journal reported the President was considering a college sports executive order.

Trump signed the order Thursday, which called for “guardrails” on pay-for-play NIL payments and directed the National Labor Relations Board and Secretary of Labor to clarify athletes are not employees. Byrne supported it and the impact it can have on the current space.

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— Greg Byrne (@Greg_Byrne) July 25, 2025

“The University of Alabama applauds this executive order from President Trump to help ensure a long-term, sustainable model of intercollegiate athletics,” Byrne said. “We are proud of our broad-based athletics programs and strongly support future regulatory and Congressional action that will preserve these opportunities for student-athletes.”

The executive order prohibits third-party, pay-for-play payments but “does not apply to legitimate, fair-market-value compensation that a third party provides to an athlete, such as for a brand endorsement,” according to the White House’s release. It is unknown what entity will have the authority to enforce the prohibition of third-party, pay-for-play payments included in Trump’s executive order.

NCAA president Charlie Baker and other officials have been pushing for federal help in the college athletics space for the last few years. Baker and the Autonomous 5 conferences – who are playing central roles in the implementation of the House v. NCAA settlement – also addressed Trump’s decision to sign the executive order.

Additionally, the SCORE Act is on track to be introduced on the floor of the House of Representatives. That adds to the pushes for federal help with regard to college athletics.

“We appreciate President Trump’s commitment to protecting the future of college athletics,” the A5 conferences said in a joint statement. “This executive order builds on the momentum created by the bipartisan SCORE Act, which will provide long-term stability to college sports and expand resources to support the overall well-being of student-athletes.

“With the House settlement now in effect, student-athletes have more financial and academic support than ever before. Now, attention turns to preserving these monumental gains by passing a federal law with national standards for student-athletes’ NIL rights. We hope Congress sends federal legislation to President Trump’s desk as soon as possible.”

Pete Nakos contributed.