Jimbo Fisher claims only one early enrollee already has NIL deal
The ongoing drama between Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher that started last week is far from over, apparently. After both SEC head coaches made headlines over name, image and likeness, Saban has gone relatively quiet on the issue. Fisher, however, is taking a different approach.
In an interview released late on Sunday night, the Texas A&M coach sat down with KSAT 12’s Greg Simmons to address the recent controversy over NIL. During that interview, Fisher states that only one of the 11 early enrollees in College Station already has an NIL deal in place.
“Of the 11 guys we have in place that came early, one guy has an NIL deal,” Fisher told Simmons. “So all these stories you’re hearing are complete lies.”
When asked by Simmons if the situation surrounding NIL is part of a much bigger problem for college football, Fisher claims that “NIL wasn’t a problem.” Obviously, this is where Saban disagrees with him, as he stated last week when discussing the issue during a promotion for the World Games.
“I know the consequence is going to be difficult for the people who are spending tons of money to get players,” Saban said. “You read about it, you know who they are. We were second in recruiting last year, Texas A&M was first.
“A&M bought every player on their team. Made a deal for name, image and likeness. We didn’t buy one player. But I don’t know if we’re going to be able to sustain that in the future, because more and more people are doing it. It’s tough.”
During his interview with KSAT 12, Fisher seemed visably frustrated and even called out the reporter conducting the interview for being part of a media that’s sharing false narratives about his program.
“That’s all false,” Fisher stated, talking about Texas A&M being portrayed as some kind of NIL superpower. “It was written on social media so everyone believed it. And you got news channels believing it, big people believing it.
“.. You just assumed. That’s the way this world goes now. Something gets written on social media and you guys believe it. .. It’s because social media and media put it out. .. What’s the truth? Nobody wants the truth. You want a story and a click and a hit. .. I know the truth. I’ve always known the truth.”
I guess we’ll know the truth soon enough.
For the entire Fisher interview with KSAT 12, check it out below.
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