Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rules in college football have taken center stage over the last couple of years, but the last month or so in particular it seems things have been scaled up a notch.
The presence of President Donald Trump in potential action being taken by lawmakers to bring order to a chaotic system has ramped up the rhetoric and kept NIL in the news cycle.
With potential involvement in said action by former Alabama head coach Nick Saban, it’s become a complete firestorm.
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) has long been at the forefront of the fight to fix a system that is clearly broken, or at the very least in need of some tuning up.
RELATED: Tuberville: Trump and Saban could join forces to tackle NIL reform – hopes to talk tonight at UA
From the potential elimination of non-revenue sports to other schools gaining a competitive advantage solely based off the size of their wallet, Tuberville has been one of the most powerful voices in politics on the topic.
Over the weekend, he put things in terms that residents in the Yellowhammer State understand better than anything else: by name dropping a hated rival and warning their seemingly endless supply of money tips the scales too much.
Referencing the Texas Longhorns, Tuberville issued a stern warning that if the system keeps progressing — or rather devolving — in the way it has, they will become unbeatable.
RELATED: Sen. Tuberville: ‘NIL has turned collegiate sports into the Wild West’
“You’re going to eliminate 90 percent of schools because they don’t have the money,” Tuberville stated via CBS Sports. “Look at Texas. Nobody’s ever going to beat them again if we allow them to keep going the way they’re going. Again, I’ve got nothing against Texas; they’re going by the rules, but we’ve got to hopefully make it work out.”
The Longhorns becoming a superteam who no other program can beat is probably unlikely, but the point remains.
NIL was pitched — obviously in addition to players profiting — as a way to balance the scales and bring to an end to power disparity in college football.
In reality it’s done the opposite and the rich have only gotten richer.
If something does not change, it will only get worse from here.
Michael Brauner is a Senior Sports Analyst and Contributing Writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP and hear him every weekday morning from 6 to 9 a.m. on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5, available free online.
