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HOOVER, Ala. – If you wanted the last answer to an old question – Does Nick Saban still have his fastball? – The 69-year-old Alabama coach installed a 98 mph radiator under everyone’s chin this week.
His proclamation on Tuesday that quarterback Bryce Young has made “almost seven digits” so far in name, image and likeness compensation was brilliant. Genius, really. The statement raised eyebrows as well as the temperature in each recruiting office.
See, it doesn’t even have to be true that Young is making $ 1 million in NIL cash. In fact, three people directly involved in the development of NIL rights told me that figure was probably unlikely at this point. Young’s father, Craig, made no comment when contacted by CBS Sports.
But it sends the message that it is possible in Alabama. In fact, it sends the message that anything is possible.
“… it’s because of our brand,” Saban told the Texas High School Coaches Association at their convention.
The brand, if you haven’t noticed, is the best in college sport. The brand has landed first class recruiting in nine of the past 11 years, according to 247Sports. The mark may only be matched by teams like the New York Yankees and New England Patriots. He shouts: Come here and win.
Now it’s screaming cold, loud, it could be you, completely legal money.
In the three weeks that NIL benefits were authorized, Saban scanned the country and recognized the competition.
The owner of a series of mixed martial arts gyms has promised every Miami stock player, Saban’s Week 1 opponent, $ 6,000 a year for endorsements if they opt. hurricanes.
So with a NIL general scrum in effect, it’s up to coaches like Saban to respond. Other programs located in major cities feature oceans, resort-level weather, and Fortune 500 companies. Tuscaloosa, Alabama, has plenty of championship gear thanks to Saban, but T-Town has none of it. these other amenities.
The big equalizer is this script A. The logo. The dream of a symbolized championship. It’s no surprise that Alabama’s in-house NIL platform is called “The Advantage”.
This is why Tuesday’s statement must be interpreted as the opening salvo from a gunman with an extension that will take him to 77.
I’m not going anywhere.
Saban won’t say that, but he didn’t reach his high position with just an iron will. It takes a skillful touch of a savvy marketer. Few of us have ever seen Saban in a salon recruiting, but after Tuesday it’s easy to understand his success.
When asked Wednesday during SEC Media Days 2021 to expand on Young’s comments, he became a philosopher.
The players were always able to work, he said, but couldn’t win much. Summer school arrived and was covered by the scholarship. That pretty much ended the job. College football has grown into a 12-month-a-year endeavor.
Then NIL arrived, and three weeks later, anything seems possible. That includes Young, a five-star quarterback from Southern California, having enough cash to open a 401 (K) before throwing his first pass as a starter.
“That number blew me away,” Miss Ole coach Lane Kiffin said on Tuesday when he heard the news. “You haven’t prepared me for this. It’s amazing. He won $ 1 million and hasn’t started a game yet? Wow.”
Young has only threw 22 career passes, but that’s American, isn’t it? You are worth what someone will pay you. Saban was asked about a possible locker room problem when his quarterback makes seven figures. But this question in the new world of NIL has yet to find a complete answer.
“All we have done is create an opportunity for our players to work,” said Saban. “The only thing is, it doesn’t equal.”
This is certainly not the case. In fact, college football has arguably never been so lopsided. Along with NIL, Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and their ilk have another tool at their disposal. If Young is truly in the seven-figure range, this is an indicator that there really is no immediate cap on NIL earnings. There may never be if Congress does not intervene.
Judging from the early results, it might be OK. Again, this is America where crazy work can make a living stuffing hot dogs down your throat. How about a Georgian lineman or a Texas running back or… the Alabama quarterback?
We know from reports that Young signed with mega-talent representation firm CAA for his NIL deals. We also know that Saban is portrayed by CAA mega-talent agent Jimmy Sexton.
This is not surprising nor necessarily a recruiting advantage. It’s the way of the world now. Several top college quarterbacks have signed with entities that will likely represent them in the NFL. Oklahoma QB Spencer Rattler is with Chris Cabott of Steinberg Sports. Clemson QB DJ Uiagalelei is with VaynerSports. North Carolina QB Sam Howell is with ESM.
It’s not just what Saban said, it’s who he said it to – those 5,000 Texas coaches. Texas has become (more) a hotbed of SEC recruiting since Texas A&M joined the league in 2012. The Aggies just finished with their best ranking (No.4) in 82 years.
In a nutshell, Saban has wooed Texas High School Talent Supervisors more than any Texas Longhorns coach since Mack Brown left in 2013. And if you’ve got Texas High School Coaches in your pocket, you stand a chance. to do. some good stuff.
Alabama, of course, is already here. Saban currently has 10 native Texans on the roster, including brothers James and Tommy Brockermeyer – five star stallions on the offensive line. Not only did he attract those prospects, Texas A&M and Texas didn’t. Brockermeyers’ father Blake was an All-American attacking tackle in Texas.
It’s becoming one of Saban’s biggest recruiting stunts, and he didn’t have to walk into a single lounge to do it.
“There is no precedent for this,” Saban said. who added that it is best to leave the context on the subject for next year, when we know more about NIL.
For now, if so, what hope is there for Kiffin, who sends the SEC’s first returning passer back to Corral?
“I’m still blown away by this Bryce Young,” Kiffin said. “The guy’s already made millions of dollars? He doesn’t need to play against us next year then.”
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