Tommy Tuberville Says NIL In Dire Need Of Restructure, As Donald Trump Steps In

While we wait for Judge Claudia Wilken to decide whether the House settlement will be approved, there continues to be movement toward Donald Trump announcing a federal commission to ‘fix’ the landscape of college athletics in this era of NIL. 

One of those proponents of the commission group is Senator Tommy Tuberville, who continues to be a lightning rod regarding the conversations around what is wrong with the current NIL system. 

As we reported last week, Nick Saban and Texas billionaire Cody Campbell are expected to be the co-chairs of the commission study that will look at setting up guardrails around NIL in college athletics. 

Right now, Senator Tuberville is looking for answers. While commissioners and athletic directors across the country have tried to lobby Congress to get involved, having the federal government step in is bound to cause further chaos in some form or fashion. 

There will be lawyers, and billable hours are undefeated when it comes to the NCAA. 

President Donald Trump Is Looking To Make College Sports Great Again With Commission, Along With Nick Saban

But, that hasn’t stopped Tuberville from maintaining that this is the best way to get rules passed that will help alleviate some of the pressure on the NCAA, who are fighting for more protection from antitrust lawsuits stemming from differing perspectives on the current rules in place. 

“He’s got a commission that he’s putting together, I’ve recommended some people to go on it, of course,” Tuberville told CNN on Sunday. “I’ve been working on it for four years. Nick Saban is gonna be involved. I think the NIL is in dire need of restructuring.”

Will Donald Trump Appointed Commission Accomplish Anything Substantial? 

Speaking last week with WVNN, Tommy Tuberville also pointed to President Donald Trump signing an executive order that could put this entire commission into motion, or give them some clearance to work with. 

“Nick Saban is going to be a big part of this,” Senator Tommy Tuberville said. “President Trump wants to make sure the players are represented and the schools are represented, and the institutions are represented. It’s hard to do that. Trump is gonna have to step in and do an executive order if he thinks he can get it to a position where it will help, he doesn’t want to hurt…what Coach Saban is for and several other people he’s gonna put on this committee.”

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA – AUGUST 4: Former U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) before speaking during the Alabama Republican Party’s 2023 Summer meeting at the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel on August 4, 2023 in Montgomery, Alabama. Trump’s appearance in Alabama comes one day after he was arraigned on federal charges in Washington, D.C. for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. (Photo by Julie Bennett/Getty Images)

Will any of this work? That’s to be determined, especially if the commission group advocates to take money off the table from athletes, in the form of NIL. While Tuberville wants everyone working on a level playing field, that’s just not reality. 

The chances of having a bill signed is still 50-50 at best, given that there are certainly more important things to worry about right now. Also, getting both sides of the aisle to agree on something like this will be a task on its own. 

But, here we are, waiting for the federal government to solve a problem for the NCAA that they actually started when NIL was first introduced some five years ago.