While discussing NIL at SEC Spring meetings, Nick Saban throws a jab toward Texas
Alabama head coach Nick Saban was his usual candid self during his media availability at SEC Spring Meetings. For better or worse, Saban is thought to be the leading voice and one of the faces of college football. Resultingly he was asked about a variety of topics in Destin.
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One of those topics was NIL. While at the podium, Saban harkened back to one of his signature ideas when discussing Name, Image, and Likeness: competitive balance. He mentioned he isn’t opposed to the idea of schools utilizing a portion of the media rights revenue and straight up paying players rather than funneling money through NIL collectives. That way, everyone is operating by the same rules as opposed to the rules of whatever state a school resides in.
“I have no problem with that,” Saban said Tuesday. “Unionize it. Make it like the NFL. If it’s going to be the same for everyone, I think that’s better than what we have now because what we have now is some states and some schools in some states that are investing a lot more money in terms of managing their roster than others. I think this is going to create a real competitive disadvantage for others in the future, and it’s also going to create an imbalance in (the) competitive nature of the sport. Which, that’s not good for the sport.”
He’d later say, “you think there’s disparity in college football right now? There’ll be a lot more in the future.”
Saban offered bold words but nothing that hasn’t been said before about NIL and its effect on college football. But according to multiple outlets, Saban mentioned several schools by name once he stepped away from the podium. Per Saturday Down South’s Matt Hayes, Saban mentioned the Longhorns in those brief remarks.
“You think (parity) is here?” Alabama coach Nick Saban said after stepping away from the press conference podium. “I think the way Southern Cal, Texas and Texas A&M are spending money … it hasn’t hit yet. What are you willing to spend?”
This isn’t the first time Saban has called out the Aggies. In May of last year, Saban quipped to a pro-Bama crowd that Texas A&M “bought every player on their team. Made a deal for name, image, and likeness.” He was referring to the Aggies’ 2022 signing class, ranked No. 1 in the On3 Industry Ranking Team Recruiting Rankings. This prompted an impromptu press conference in College Station in response featuring a fiery Jimbo Fisher defending his top-ranked group.
It’s also not the first time USC has been called out. After 2021 Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison transferred from Pitt to USC for the 2022 season, Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi has not been shy about calling out the Trojans after one of his program’s best players elected to head to the City of Angels.
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But to date, this is the first time Texas has been publicly called out in a similar manner. The Longhorns have not been afraid to utilize the portal in recent years, including four additions in the Steve Sarkisian era who left Tuscaloosa for Austin in Keilan Robinson, Ben Davis, Jahleel Billingsley, and Agiye Hall. Plus, Texas made waves in 2022 with the addition of Quinn Ewers from Ohio State, and again in 2023 with a portal class made up of Gavin Holmes, Jalen Catalon, Ryan Sanborn, Trill Carter, and AD Mitchell.
Saban never accused Texas, USC, or Texas A&M of rule-breaking, and no corroborated evidence of any impermissible contact or inducements have been brought forward against the Longhorns, Trojans, or Aggies.
Illicit activity isn’t where Saban’s complaint lies. His Tuesday statement, though a jab at Texas, is targeted at the system. Saban’s support of a salary cap is meant to accomplish the same things a similar restriction in a professional league would. He doesn’t want there to be an unregulated and ever-widening gap between haves and have nots.
Saban often speaks in what he thinks is in the best interests of the sport, but he of course also makes remarks with the best interests of Alabama in mind. The Crimson Tide, who a few minutes earlier he labeled as an iconic brand and referenced the number of times he was told ‘Roll Tide’ on his recent Italian vacation as evidence of his claim, are one of the haves of college football. NIL has helped his players, too. Bryce Young was a resident of Fansville, after all.
NIL is going to remain a hot topic at SEC Spring Meetings, along with the future of conference scheduling once Oklahoma and Texas join the league in 2024.
The Longhorns were already part of one of those topics. Saban made sure Texas became a part of both.
