Nick Saban believes NIL is hell to deal with.
Name, Image and Likeness has taken the college sports world by storm and changed the way many view amateurism, but it hasn't shaped up exactly the way the Alabama coach had envisioned it.
Speaking at an event promoting the World Games 2022 on Wednesday, Saban spent seven minutes addressing and critiquing NIL, its enforcement and the spirit of the rule, while also taking aim at Texas A&M and Jackson State as two programs perhaps abusing the spirit of NIL:
"We were second in recruiting last year, A&M was first," Saban said. "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."
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Saban said he knows Alabama is going to lose recruits because "someone will be willing to pay them more."
"Jackson State paid a guy a million dollars last year that was a really good Division I player to come to school," he said. "It was in the paper. They bragged about it. Nobody did anything about it."
Saban was likely referencing defensive back Travis Hunter, who flipped his commitment from Florida State to Jackson State in a Signing Day stunner. There was speculation that Barstool Sports had paid Hunter $1 million to sign with coach Deion Sanders' program; Sanders had a previous working relationship with Barstool.
Sanders didn't take the accusation lightly:
You best believe I will address that LIE Coach SABAN told tomorrow. I was & awakened by my son @ShedeurSanders that sent me the article stating that WE PAYED @TravisHunterJr a Million to play at @GoJSUTigersFB ! We as a PEOPLE don’t have to pay our PEOPLE to play with our PEOPLE.
— COACH PRIME (@DeionSanders) May 19, 2022
"You best believe I will address that LIE Coach SABAN told tomorrow. I was & awakened by my son @ShedeurSanders that sent me the article stating that WE PAYED @TravisHunterJr a Million to play at @GoJSUTigersFB ! Wee as a PEOPLE don't have to pay our PEOPLE to play with our PEOPLE," Sanders tweeted.
Hunter also caught wind of Saban's comments and issued an amusing response:
I got A mil?😂But my mom still stay in a 3 bed room house with five kids 🤣
— Travis Hunter (@TravisHunterJr) May 19, 2022
"I got A mil? But my mom still stay in a 3 bed room house with five kids," he tweeteed.
Alabama players made $3 million across 25 athletes on the football team, Saban said.
