WATCH: Nick Saban Takes To Capitol Hill To Try & Save College Football … Did Miss Terry Convince Him To Leave Alabama??

Casey Kaye
By Casey Kaye

As if there were ever any doubt, it’s become clearer and clearer what exactly drove Nick Saban to his early and abrupt retirement.

He recently spoke about how unhappy he was with how his players acted in the immediate aftermath of their heartbreaking Rose Bowl playoff loss to Michigan.

Saban was originally looking forward to the 2024 season and knew the Tide were well on their way to reaching the mountain top once again.

However, it became clear to Saban that the new world of NIL and the transfer portal had permanently poisoned the system that he spent half a century building.

“I thought we could have a hell of a team next year, and then maybe 70 or 80 percent of the players you talk to, all they want to know is two things: What assurances do I have that I’m going to play because they’re thinking about transferring, and how much are you going to pay me?” Saban recently told ESPN.

“Our program here was always built on how much value can we create for your future and your personal development, academic success in graduating and developing an NFL career on the field.”

“So, I’m saying to myself, ‘Maybe this doesn’t work anymore, that the goals and aspirations are just different and that it’s all about how much money can I make as a college player?’ I’m not saying that’s bad. I’m not saying it’s wrong, I’m just saying that’s never been what we were all about, and it’s not why we had success through the years.”

His wife, the famous Miss Terry, echoed the same exact sentiments.

As everyone knows, there’s no one on earth who has Saban’s ear more than Miss Terry. So, when she openly questioned whether his “style” would still work in this new era of college football, he knew that was the nail in the coffin when it came to his decision.

“Nick Saban said his wife, Terry, came to him before his retirement and told him, ‘Why are we doing this?’ She told him that the players now only care about how much money they are making,” Ross Dellenger tweeted on X.

To be clear, Saban has always been in favor of players being able to be compensated for their hard work and all the revenue they help bring to their universities.

But like the sane voice in the room he always tends to be, Saban also knows that clear guardrails need to be put into place before the train completely goes off the track. (Maybe it already has.)

Saban spoke on Capitol Hill today about NIL and the current landscape in college sports. 

“All the things I believed in for all these years of coaching, 50 years of coaching, no longer exist in college athletics,” Saban said.

The criticism from Saban reflects a broader sentiment that exists among the majority of coaches throughout the country about the negative consequences of NIL and the transfer portal. 

Of course, there a whole other side to the debate as well. 

Supporters of the current “structure” of NIL argue that athletes are entitled to everything they have coming to them, especially considering all of the money they help make for their universities.

(Not to mention the fact that coaching contracts aren’t exactly taking a hit these days…)

Of course, Saban is speaking about the bigger picture. He believes NIL should be used to reward current players who deserve deals rather than a bribing tool. 

It’s when NIL is used as part of a bidding process to buy high school players, and even worse, lure (steal) players away from other programs – that’s when it gets really ugly. 

What do you think needs to be done to fix the current structure of NIL and the transfer portal?

Are we looking at the likely possibility that college football breaks away from the NCAA and forms its own “association?”

If so, would you want to see Saban be President of it???

 

[gs-fb-comments]

🔥 MORE BREAKING NEWS

🔥 MORE BREAKING NEWS

© Copyright FanRumor.com - All Rights Reserved