One concern at the forefront of offseason discussions regarding college sports is reform in the current era of name, image and likeness — or NIL — deals. President Donald Trump recently met with retired University of Alabama football coach Nick Saban, who is currently an analyst on ESPN’s “College GameDay.” Saban was thought to be Trump’s choice to head a proposed commission on college sports. The rumors surrounding Saban taking a job that would assist the NCAA in its governance of college athletics gained more traction after he introduced Trump as commencement speaker for UA’s graduation ceremony. Saban has expressed that he believes athletes should be paid, and a Sports Illustrated online article published earlier this month included some of his remarks: “(Players) should make money. But they should have a contract and a responsibility to fulfill, just like a coach does, and there’s some penalty if you leave a team and you have a contract.”

NIL contract obligations were at the center of former University of Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s controversial departure from the Vols in April. Social media chatter was flooded with opinions, as it was alleged that Iamaleava and his camp sought to renegotiate and double the $2 million annual contract he signed in high school. While only those in Iamaleava’s inner circle know what happened, it is clear that the talks broke down, and Iamaleava decided to transfer to the University of California, Los Angeles, where he will be getting considerably less money, according to various sports outlets, and leading a squad predicted to be less than mid-tier in the Big Ten.

Potential breach-of-contract lawsuits could be the next phase of NIL, but the forthcoming House v. NCAA settlement ruling will usher in significant changes in how college athletes are paid. One of these changes would be revenue sharing, in which major conferences would allocate part of their athletic department profits to athletes over the next decade. Payments would be determined based on television revenue designated as NIL from players’ appearances on network broadcasts of games.

NIL has forever changed the college landscape that Saban ruled during the prime of his coaching career, and he has put to rest speculations about him heading a commission on college sports, even though Trump is moving forward to launch it. Many are skeptical about the government stepping in when Division I schools and the NCAA are still figuring out how to establish consistent rules for university collectives, boosters and the transfer portal. However, a presidential commission could only provide recommendations to the NCAA. It would not have the authority to legislate changes.

Much of the commission’s work would be focused on suggested NIL regulations, but another area I think should be addressed is the culture of big-time college programs. Culture is essential in this period of what college football fans call “bag chasing” — that is, star athletes in the top D1 revenue-producing sports of football and men’s and women’s basketball going after the highest bidders during their recruitment or in the transfer portal. Suppose money is the sole motivation for an athlete. In that case, they are most likely not locked into the other benefits they receive from playing sports at the highest college level, such as the opportunity to professionally network, excel in the classroom and build lifelong friendships with their teammates. Ohio State University stresses these principles in its football program, with “the brotherhood” being a key recruiting pitch. As a Buckeye alumna and faculty member, I am most proud of these team values. In addition to winning the 2024 national championship, the OSU football program earned a perfect Academic Progress Rate score of 1000. The APR tracks schools’ ability to retain student-athletes and keep them eligible. OSU also did not lose any scholarship football players with NIL contracts to the spring transfer portal window, and over the past two years, Coach Ryan Day has provided space for players to share their Christian faith. Former star running back TreVeyon Henderson recently released a documentary detailing his testimony of overcoming suicidal thoughts and other personal struggles by turning to God. OSU has shown that a character-building culture is essential while pursuing national titles and overseeing NIL deals.

As Trump continues to outline plans for a college sports commission, I hope the necessity of a supporting culture for college athletes will be included as NIL and revenue issues are tackled. NIL needs to be better regulated, but athletes also need to be in settings where they can thrive academically and socially.

Ever since President Donald Trump announced his intent to form a presidential commission on college sports, the consensus has tried to figure out what that would actually entail.

As Yahoo! Sports insider Ross Dellenger has reported on the endeavor, the commission is expected to examine player movement in the transfer portal, NIL, and revenue sharing, among several other facets.

The commission is expected to have Nick Saban in a key role—though he isn’t entirely sure what he’d be co-chairing.

Saban’s inclusion at least makes sense, given his impact on the sport and the fact that he’s no longer a player in college football.

The same can’t be said for West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Rich Rodriguez, who recently expressed interest in joining the commission.

Rich Rodriguez Pitches Role on Presidential NIL Commission With Nick Saban

Rodriguez recently did a radio interview on Sirius XM, where Nick Kosko with On3 Sports reports he shared his desire to team up with who he called the greatest college football coach of all time in this unknown endeavor.

“I will give him my cell number,” Rodriguez said. “If they want an active coach to be on a deal, I’ll be on that sucker. And you know, I’ve got some experience. I could help from a current standpoint. I don’t know if they need me, though, but having Coach Saban on there … he doesn’t have an interest to help his team or whatever … He’s truly about college football.”

According to Rodriguez, someone who has spoken of the importance of culture in the age of NIL and the transfer portal, the state of the sport is one he doesn’t see a pathway to screw up.

“And college football is such a great entity, it’s hard to screw it up, you know?” Rodriguez continued. “I mean, you can do whatever you want; it’s still going to be that passion for your school and for that level of athletes. So we’ve done enough things to screw it up in the last couple of years. I think we’re … going to start trending the other way and get it right, and Coach will help that for sure.”

Rodriguez is likely correct in stating that fan passion and interest will never completely disappear, even if the sport is in disarray.

He accurately assesses that sufficient actions, or the absence of them, have led to the current state of college football.

However, would it be a good idea to include active coaches on this vague commission, the purpose of which Saban is still uncertain about?

There’s no way to guarantee the opinions of active coaches would be without bias, resentment, or hurt feelings on player movement or players being paid, and that those views wouldn’t taint their opinions on a commission.

The first point of order has to be a clear definition of this presidential commission on college sports. That would illuminate whether it’s even remotely appropriate to discuss a panel with current leaders in the sport.

AJ Dybantsa will get paid a lot of money through NIL to play college basketball at BYU. The No. 1 prospect in the recruiting Class of 2025 is expected to make no less than $4 million for what equates to less than 10 months of work.

The financial payments do not involve the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!

Dybantsa, the top-ranked recruit in college basketball, received scholarship offers from 29 programs. Kansas, USC, Texas, Ole Miss, Illinois, Baylor, Houston and others were in the mix but his decision ultimately came down to BYU, Alabama and UNC. He chose the Cougars over the Tide and the Tar Heels even though his father finessed the lattermost school into some pretty sweet tickets for a huge game.

Money might not be the only reason Dybantsa landed in Provo but it was perhaps the biggest reason. Members of the Utah Jazz brass stepped up financially to help secure the commitment, which cost anywhere between $4-7 million. The 6-foot-9 small forward denied the $7 million price tag so the deal likely hovers closer to $4.5 or $5 million for one single season.

Regardless of the exact numbers that are out there, BYU boosters once vowed to never lose a bidding war even though the school itself says otherwise. AJ Dybantsa is just one of many recent examples!

BYU and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints want to be very clear about the root of the money, no matter how much is being spent. Not one single dollar comes from tithing, which is explained as:

The Bible indicates that God’s people followed the law of tithing anciently; through modern prophets, God restored this law once again to bless His children. To fulfill this commandment, Church members give one-tenth of their income to the Lord through His Church. These funds are used to build up the Church and further the work of the Lord throughout the world […]

Church members give their tithing donations to local leaders. These local leaders transmit tithing funds directly to the headquarters of the Church, where a council determines specific ways to use the sacred funds […]

Tithing funds are always used for the Lord’s purposes—to build and maintain temples and meetinghouses, to sustain missionary work, to educate Church members, and to carry on the work of the Lord throughout the world.

— The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Recruiting does not fall into the category of “the Lord’s purpose.” The Church is not paying AJ Dybantsa. However, he was encouraged by the community to attend a Mormon service and did so on Sunday!