Nick Saban Has A Message For College Sports Reform Critics
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Nick Saban for President?
Freedom Is Back
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The greatest football coach of all time has received write-in votes in Alabama for years, but the retired legend doesn’t sound interested in a run for the White House.
“Why would I want to get thrown in that briar patch?” Saban said at the 2026 Nick Saban Legacy Award Presentation in August. “I like what I’m doing now. I speak, I got businesses, I love being on ESPN. I have a great group of guys to be around every Saturday.”
But Saban does have something he wants Washington to tackle: the problems facing college sports.
The seven-time national championship coach is pushing for the Protect College Sports Act, arguing that the legislation, like democracy, is imperfect but better than the alternatives.
Saban has been a prominent advocate for the bill in Washington. The legislation would set rules for college athletes’ name, image, and likeness deals, prohibit pay-for-play arrangements, establish a five-year eligibility limit, restrict transfers, and protect Olympic sports.
“I think a lot of the issues that we have right now could be resolved in this bill if people would get on board with it,” Saban said.
The ESPN College GameDay analyst acknowledged that the legislation would not fix everything, but said it would improve the current system.
“The thing about it is democracy is not perfect, but it’s better than everything else,” Saban said in August. “Tell me something better.”
“This bill is not perfect, but it’s better than everything else and it’s certainly better than what we have now and probably solves 80% of the problems.”
Saban argued that opponents should focus on the problems the legislation would solve rather than those it would leave unresolved. The bill has faced opposition from both Democrats and Republicans.
Saban said the bill would be successful if it solves the transfer chaos and controls NIL to some degree.
The bill passed the Senate in late September and now awaits a House vote. Lawmakers remain divided over issues like conference realignment and whether the federal government should intervene to fix the NCAA’s problems.
The legislative calendar presents another hurdle: The House has only 20 legislative days remaining this year.
Saban could have an opportunity to make his case directly to President Donald Trump this weekend in Tuscaloosa. Saban most recently introduced Trump at the University of Alabama’s graduation ceremony in May 2025.
Trump said he plans to attend Alabama’s game against Georgia on Saturday, but weather could complicate his plans. He said Wednesday that Hurricane Isaias will decide whether he goes. The National Weather Service expects the hurricane to bring rain and gusty winds to Tuscaloosa.
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I am just an average American. My teen years were in the late 70s and I participated in all that that decade offered. Started working young, too young. Then I joined the Army before I graduated High School. I spent 25 years in, mostly in Infantry units. Since then I've worked in information technology positions all at small family owned companies. At this rate I'll never be a tech millionaire. When I was young I rode horses as much as I could. I do believe I should have been a cowboy. I'm getting in the saddle again by taking riding lessons and see where it goes.
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