Nick Saban Rips NIL Days After Alabama Opens State Of The Art Facility For NIL

Nick Saban left his coaches' show early a week ago Thursday night to attend the ribbon-cutting gala ceremony of "The Advantage Center." That is Alabama's brand new state of the art Name, Image & Likeness hub inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.

"It's the first of its kind," Saban said just before leaving his show.

Two days later, No. 13 Alabama reversed the trend of its season with a convincing, 24-10 win over No. 15 Ole Miss. That followed the Crimson Tide's home loss to Texas and a very poor showing in beating lowly South Florida, 17-3, in Tampa.

Alabama's NIL Hub Great Idea, If Nick Saban Likes It Or Not

Before the Ole Miss game, reporters toured the glimmering Advantage Center. There was no visible war chest of cash. But there was a posh game room with a large screen television in addition to computers, a studio for podcasts and commercials, and plenty of impressive meeting space for various company representatives to meet with Tide players on current or future NIL deals.

Alabama coach Nick Saban (center) celebrates grand opening of "The Advantage Center" NIL hub inside Bryant-Denny Stadium on Sept. 21 with athletic director Greg Byrne at his left and Cole Gahagan, Learfield media company president, at his right. (Alabama Athletic Department Photo).

"You're going to have the stage and the structure around you to support you at the highest levels from an NIL standpoint," Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said.

"It will facilitate our student-athletes and help them take advantage of NIL opportunities," Saban said on that radio show. "And it will help us in recruiting."

Whether Saban likes NIL or not.

Less than a week later at his usual Wednesday press conference, Saban took his usual shot at NIL and all that it has wreaked since it made paying college athletes legal in the summer of 2021.

NIL Getting Out Of Hand, Saban Says

Veteran Alabama reporter Kirk McNair asked Saban about Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith's testimony on Sept. 20 to the House Committee on Small Business in Washington D.C. concerning NIL and what needs to be done to possibly change it. Smith told the congressional committee that prospects have been asking for $5,000 just to visit a campus during recruiting.

"Not that I know of," Saban said when asked if a prospect ever approached him with such a demand. "I don't know of anybody that has asked us to do that. But look, NIL is not really NIL. I mean, I think we all understand what it has become and what we allowed it to become."

Nick Saban has never liked the NCAA's new Name, Image & Likeness rules that began in 2021, but he has tried to win at that anyway. (Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Saban was referencing the initial but vague plan for NIL, which was to reward student-athletes with payment for the use of their name, image and likeness, particularly with sports apparel. That was what the original lawsuits against the NCAA were about that the NCAA lost, resulting in NIL. It became much more than that as deep-pocketed boosters formed collectives paying players millions. It has become NFL free agency.

Nick Saban Doesn't Like Where College Football Is Going

"I said long ago, and got very criticized for it," Saban said. "Is this what we want college football to become? So, it's becoming what it's becoming, and that's OK."

Saban then made a comment somewhat similar to Malcolm X's famous "Whatever means necessary" quote in 1964 about he wanted to deal with race relations.

"We're just adapting to what we have to do to be able to compete - whatever the circumstances are," Saban said.

NIL's original rules from the NCAA said financial packages for athletes could not be arranged and started until after the student-athletes signed with a particular school. They could not be used during recruiting. Saban continuously reminded people of that during the early months of NIL in 2021. But that unclear rule has been universally broken by most.

Name, Image & Likeness Needs Boundaries

"So, do I think that it would be judicious to have some guardrails on some things?," Saban asked. "I think you can figure that one out just as well as anybody else."

Saban has historically reacted to rule changes slowly. A defensive coach for the entirety of his career, he fought the new NCAA rules nearly a decade ago concerning substitutions that helped offenses. But he failed. Then he finally decided that if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. And he hired the progressive Lane Kiffin to be his offensive coordinator in 2014. This dramatically changed Saban's and Alabama's approach to offense from power runs to finesse passing.

LANE KIFFIN'S USC FIRING ANNIVERSARY

Alabama won the national championship in 2015 largely due to Kiffin and again in '17 and '20 with Kiffin-type offenses, even though Kiffin left late in the 2016 season. Saban doesn't like NIL or the NCAA Transfer Portal, which also changed drastically in 2021 to allow players to switch schools without the usual, mandatory sit-out year.

Saban is adapting to NIL, even though he is not quoted in any of the stories produced by Alabama since the new NIL center was unveiled at Alabama.

Alabama's new, swank hub for NIL pursuits offers student-athletes spacious quarters to meet with present or prospective business partners. (University of Alabama athletic department photo).

Learfield Is The Driving Force At Alabama

"There really is this convergence of activity for our student-athletes, for our brand partners, and for the University of Alabama as well," said Cole Gahagan - president and CEO of Learfield that partnered with Alabama for "The Advantage Center." Learfield is a sports marketing and media conglomerate associated with the NCAA and many college athletic programs across the country.

"There will be a lot of opportunities just being able to network," Alabama women's basketball player Jessica Timmons says in a promotional video about The Advantage Center.

"The closer that these types of activities, that Learfield is a part of, can be to the University and to these sports, I think all the better," Gahagan said.

Do not look for Saban to be dropping by very much, though.