Some highlights...
If you had a son who was a five-star prospect, how big of a check would a middle-tier program need to write for him to turn his back on what Nick Saban is offering? That answer may be different for everyone, but it should, logically, be somewhere in the hundreds of thousands — if not millions — of dollars. You could logically make the argument that playing for Saban, without NIL deals or financial promises, is worth 500 grand.
That’s what Saban has organically built at Alabama. That’s his life’s work. That’s his legacy. That’s what makes him the GOAT.
Yes, we all view Alabama as a football dynasty in a sport starving for parity. We all know about Saban’s six national championships at Alabama and the fact that every prospect who signed with him and stayed for four years has won a national title. That is mind-boggling.
But to a recruit, Alabama is offering something no other school can, at least at the same level: the promise of accumulating generational wealth through the NFL Draft for those who stay. Alabama has
developed five-star prospects into high NFL Draft picks at a much more impressive clip than any other program in America. If you’re a kid with NFL dreams — and the wealth that comes along with realizing those dreams — you play for Saban. That’s worth a lot of money.
Go ahead and complain, Nick. People may laugh, but you’ve earned the right to say what’s on your mind.
This will make you feel better: You’re still going to win in the end even if Alabama never participates in facilitating NIL deals to high school athletes. Why? Because what you have built is infallibly attractive. NIL is the bird in the hand, and some prospects will take it. But playing for Alabama is an investment. Smart people invest.
This is an evolutionary time in this sport. Reformed transfer rules and the introduction of NIL have created some turbulence.
But don’t worry, Nick, your life’s work is still intact.
If I had a five-star prospect for a son, I’d view your sales pitch as more attractive than a lump of cash to play somewhere worse for someone worse. And I’m not alone in that.