Nick Saban Lobbying for ‘National Legislation’ Regarding NIL

The NIL era is here and it’s here to stay.

However, while players having a way to make some money while in school was long overdue, there have been some unintended consequences. The NCAA spent two years working on NIL legislation, only to scrap it all just before the new rules went into effect.

Now, instead of every school playing by the same guidelines, the NCAA has thrown their hands up, leaving it to the schools to govern themselves. An even bigger problem is the fact that NIL laws differ from one state to the next.

With no oversight, NIL has already become a huge part of some schools recruiting pitch. That was not how the NIL rules were supposed to work and Alabama head coach Nick Saban recently pointed that out.

“Name, image & likeness is a positive thing for players,” Saban said. “They’ve got the opportunity to earn money. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. What is concerning is how that’s used to get players to decide where they’re going to school. I don’t think that was the intention.”

By now most have seen the news that Texas A&M boosters spent a reported $30M on their 2022 recruiting class and there aren’t many alumni bases that can afford to throw that kind of money around.

Saban is concerned that if every school isn’t forced to play by the same rules, the consequences could be dire.

“We need some kind of national legislation to control that,” Saban said. “There will be an imbalance as to who dominates college football if it isn’t regulated.”