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Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban retired in January 2024 for a variety of reasons, but the then-72-year-old's most brought-up cause was due to the massive takeover of NIL. The NCAA created a system in 2021 where college athletes can profit off their name, image and likeness, and while Saban hasn't necessarily been an enemy of that, he has not been in favor of the current state of it. For the past year or so, a big reason why many college athletes and recruits have committed or transferred to schools has been based on how much they will be paid and which programs offer the most NIL money.
It's gotten to the point where some athletes are making millions of dollars per year. Saban has been a strong advocate for developing players both on and off the field, and this large sum of money on the table somewhat eliminates that. The University of Alabama hosted Saban and President of the United States Donald Trump during Thursday night's commencement where they both spoke to the graduates.
But according to Josh Dawsey, Rachel Bachman and Laine Higgins of The Wall Street Journal, Saban spoke to Trump about the issues of NIL on that same night. "The Trump administration is considering an executive order that could increase scrutiny of the explosion in payments to college athletes since 2021, after the president met with former Alabama coach Nick Saban, White House officials said, per The Wall Street Journal . "Trump said he agreed with Saban and would look at crafting an executive order, people familiar with the meeting said.
Trump told aides to begin studying what an order could say, the people said. Saban didn’t propose ending NIL but “reforming” it, according to a person with direct knowledge of the meeting. He described how it was causing an uneven playing field, the people said, with an arms race among powerhouse schools.
" The Wall Street Journal explained that the relaxation of transfer rules has created nearly 4,300 Division I football players switched schools in 2024 and an estimated $1.67 billion changed hands in 2024-25, according to Opendorse, a platform that facilitates NIL deals. The NCAA declined to comment on a potential executive order following the meeting between Saban and Trump but NCAA spokesperson Tim Buckley told WSJ that “there are some threats to college sports that federal legislation can effectively address and the Association is advocating with student-athletes and their schools for a bipartisan solution.
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