SCOTT LUDWIG: NIL: The NCAA’s runaway train

A prospective football recruit asked Nick Saban for $500,000 in NIL money and a guarantee that his girlfriend would get into law school at Alabama.

So how did the head coach of six national championship teams respond? Just as you might expect him to: “I showed him the door.”

Which is exactly what the NCAA should do with the entire concept of NIL.

NIL, which allows college athletes to earn money for the use of their Name, Image, and Likeness, is going to be the downfall of collegiate sports. Pay for play, in other words. Here’s what Saban had to say about NIL before last year’s college football season kicked off: “We were second in recruiting last year. (Texas) A&M was first. A&M bought every player on their deal. Made a deal for name, image and likeness. We didn’t buy one player. 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.”

Ironically (or perhaps poetically), Jimbo Fisher’s Texas A&M Aggies posted a 5-7 record in 2022. That, arguably, is what you get with the best team money could buy. It was Fisher’s worst season in 13 years as a head coach. If what Saban said is true, it serves him right. But I digress.

However, Saban didn’t stop there. He followed with a warning that the way NIL legislation was implemented — at least when it comes to college football — then the current model for the program isn’t sustainable.

“The concept of name, image and likeness was for players to be able to use their name, image and likeness to create opportunities for themselves,” he said. “That’s what it was. But that creates a situation where you can basically buy players. You can do it in recruiting. I mean, if that’s what we want college football, I don’t know. And you can also get players to get in the transfer portal to see if they can get more someplace else than they can get at your place.”

To expound on what Saban had to say, some of the deals — real or otherwise — border on being ludicrous. One example was pointed out by UL Monroe Coach Terry Bowden: “When a quarterback (Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud) is making six figures and driving a ($150,000) Bentley, he’s a professional athlete.”

Indeed.

Another example is the rumor that University of Kentucky basketball player Oscar Tshiebwe is possibly making more in NIL money playing for the Wildcats this season than he would playing in the NBA. (That is to say, assuming Tshiebwe had been a second-round draft pick, and potentially received a multimillion-dollar deal to stay in Lexington for another season.)

The third example is one I know of personally, because it concerns my alma mater, the University of Florida. It’s what transpired with high school player Jaden Rashada. Originally committed to the University of Miami, he flipped his commitment to the Gators after being offered a $13 million NIL deal. For whatever reason, the deal fell through. The latest report is that he’ll be taking snaps for Arizona State instead. Those lucky (Sun) Devils.

Incidentally, Rashada’s deal with Florida was offered through the Gator Collective, a booster group not affiliated with the University of Florida’s athletic department. I know about it from personal experience, as the rogue agency sent me an email asking for a monetary contribution. I was more than happy to oblige. (The last sentence is dripping with sarcasm.)

For some coaches, it’s hard to keep up with everyone else. Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin complained that the university can’t match the funding resources of other universities that are funneling money to recruits.

Ohio State coach Ryan Day, addressing business leaders in Columbus, warned that his Buckeye football program needed about $13 million in NIL funding to keep their roster intact. Otherwise, he went on to say, the team is at risk of losing players to other schools in the transfer portal. (The transfer portal is another thing that, in my opinion, should be shown the door. But that’s a story for another day.)

“One phone call and they’re out the door,” according to Day.

The bottom line appears to be this, accurately depicted by Notre Dame basketball head coach Mike Brey: “It’s not really name, image and likeness now. It’s really pay for play. And we were trying to stay away from that, and it got off the rails on us.”

Which just so happens to be what Kentucky football head coach Mark Stoops said as well: “I’m not sure this is exactly what we had in mind. This is a runaway train.”

And, as we all know, runaway trains usually end up in catastrophic wrecks.