Alabama’s former Head Coach and College Gameday host Nick Saban recently met with President Donald Trump regarding a mainstream issue with college football – NIL. College football is in chaos after the supreme court allowed players to get paid, leading to much more player movement in the portal and financial “deals.” Many football fans want Trump to step in and set things straight, however many experts warn his involvement could make things a lot more complicated.
A thing to worry about is if Trump tries to step in and tries to fix things, he could potentially cause more confusion and legal problems. Many people worry that if Trump steps in, his new laws could conflict with existing laws and agreements, making it all more complicated rather than fixing it. This could lead to more confusion and cause even more chaos in college football.
When Trump and Saban met, there wasn’t a clear solution proposed, but Saban clearly stated his concern with NIL and how it’s damaging the sport. Their conversation more covered the need for a change rather than offering a specific fix. Which is a step in the right direction.
“Everyone’s got mixed opinions about NIL because depending on the team they like, it helps them a lot or it hurts them a lot. Personally, I don’t like it. Big-name teams like Ohio State and Texas can sort of monopolize recruiting and take away the chances small market teams have of competing. I think the best way to regulate NIL is to put a cap on each team. That way, the big name teams don’t have unlimited money to throw at top recruits,” senior Matthew Chabraja said.
“NIL makes it really hard for the small schools to compete. If they get a good player and develop him, he will leave for a big school to get money,” Michael Bousis said.
I couldn’t agree more with what they’re saying. All NIL is doing is it’s giving the big market teams a huge advantage and giving the small market teams no chance. The sport is losing its competitive balance. College football used to be about heart and loyalty, now it’s just about money. In 2021, 786 players entered the portal. This year, there were over 3,000, making it the most active portal in college football history. Players don’t care about where they play and where they graduate from now, all they care about is how much money they can make. It’s taking away what made college football so amazing and different from the NFL.
While the meeting with Trump and Saban showed clear concern over the NIL’s impact on college football, it’s clear there is no easy fix. While it’s important for players to earn what they deserve, this system undoubtedly seems to favor the richest programs and leave the smaller programs behind. Until fair guidelines are put in place, the chaos will most likely continue. Whether or not Trump and Saban can come up with a solution, one thing is clear – college football needs a solution.
