Nick Saban weighs in on the UNLV QB situation and the potential trend toward NIL controversy

College football is entering a turbulent new era where name, image and likeness (NIL) payments are commonplace. Players can now benefit from their athletic abilities while still in school, and decisions about which institution to attend are now based largely on where the biggest check will be written.

However, for some, that check appears larger than it actually is during the hiring process and doesn’t end up materializing the way they thought. At least that was the case according to UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka.

The senior passer claims an assistant coach reneged on a promise of a $100,000 check, which the football program said wasn’t even on the table. Sluka announced Wednesday that he would redshirt the remainder of the season because of the alleged misrepresentations.

On Friday’s “Pat McAfee Show,” seven-time college football national team coach Nick Saban weighed in on Sluka’s situation and the impact of a possible spread across the NCAA.

“What’s the way to be manageable?” [NIL] system in college football that I think is very possible,” he said. “Name, image, likeness have evolved into ‘pay-for-play’, so to speak. So if we’re going to do that, why don’t we just share revenue with the players, and they can still have their name, image and likeness.

Saban was optimistic about the future of college football in the NIL era, but felt the current environment was unsustainable.

“Everyone is a permanent free agent, you don’t have a contract, you don’t have any responsibility or obligation to your team,” Saban said.

Specifically regarding Sluka’s case, Saban questioned whether he made the right decision for his future.

“I don’t know how the player at UNLV who opts out is really adding value to his future because of what he’s doing,” Saban complained. “I don’t know if that’s really him, but how does that affect his teammates and what will everyone else on the country’s team think of what he’s doing?”

Saban feared that Sluka’s decision could impact other programs and that, if not handled properly, the consequences could permanently deteriorate college sports.

“There are many consequences to this behavior and the culture we have created in college athletics,” he continued. “We’re really not adding value to people’s futures, we’re trying to figure out how much money we can make now while we go to college, and that’s a huge shift in the development dynamic of college players.”

One solution that Saban felt was “worthy of repair” was to set standards for player agents, just like they did in the NFL.

“I think the players need to be protected,” he said.

“None of the players in college are protected from anyone,” he said. “Anyone can be an agent, anyone can be the third person on the street telling a man what to do.”

Coach Saban is right. If players want to be paid and treated like professionals, they should have professional representation and be properly informed about the important business decisions they so crave these days.