The debate over the future of college sports is a tangled web, but one question cuts through the noise with startling clarity: Would this be legal if applied to any other aspect of American life or business? It’s a simple yet powerful litmus test, and it’s one that even the legendary Nick Saban seems to stumble over. Personally, I think this question exposes the core hypocrisy in how we treat collegiate athletes—a hypocrisy that’s becoming harder to ignore as the stakes grow higher.
Let’s take a step back. College sports is a billion-dollar industry, yet the athletes who generate the revenue are often treated as anything but professionals. Transfer rules, revenue sharing caps, and NIL scrutiny—these aren’t just bureaucratic hurdles; they’re shackles. What makes this particularly fascinating is how these restrictions would be unthinkable in any other industry. Imagine if all employees were locked into their jobs with no freedom to move, or if their earnings were arbitrarily capped. It’s absurd, yet we accept it as normal in college sports. Why? Because tradition? Because it’s always been this way? That’s not an answer—it’s an excuse.
When Saban appeared on Fox & Friends to discuss Trump’s executive order aimed at ‘saving college sports,’ his response to a variation of this question was telling. He argued that without regulations, there would be chaos. But here’s the thing: the chaos isn’t coming from the athletes; it’s coming from the system’s refusal to evolve. The NCAA had decades to adapt to the realities of a billion-dollar industry, but they got caught flat-footed. Now, they’re scrambling to regulate, not to protect the sport, but to protect their control.
What many people don’t realize is that this isn’t just about money—it’s about power. The push to reinstate restrictive transfer rules or cap NIL earnings isn’t about fairness; it’s about maintaining the status quo. If you take a step back and think about it, the real question isn’t how to regulate athletes, but why we’re so resistant to treating them like the professionals they are. After all, coaches and administrators aren’t subject to these kinds of restrictions. Saban himself has benefited from the system’s generosity, with salaries skyrocketing over the years. Yet, when it comes to athletes, suddenly we’re worried about ‘fairness’ and ‘integrity.’
This raises a deeper question: What does this say about our values? Are we truly committed to fairness, or are we just committed to preserving a system that benefits the few at the expense of the many? From my perspective, the answer is clear. The kings are working to keep the crown, and they’re using every tool at their disposal to do it. But the genie is out of the bottle, and there’s no stuffing it back in.
The Free-Market Paradox
One thing that immediately stands out is the irony of college sports leaders railing against free-market principles. They’ve built an empire on capitalism, yet they’re terrified of letting athletes participate fully in that system. The 2021 Supreme Court ruling in NCAA v. Alston made it clear: the NCAA’s business model would be illegal in almost any other industry. Yet, instead of embracing change, they’re doubling down on control. This isn’t just shortsighted—it’s self-defeating. Athletes now have leverage, and they’re using it. The attempts to regulate them only highlight how unsustainable the old model has become.
The Human Cost
A detail that I find especially interesting is how often we forget that these are young people, not just commodities. The emotional toll of being treated as property—of having your future dictated by rules that don’t apply to anyone else—is immense. What this really suggests is that the fight over college sports isn’t just about money or regulations; it’s about dignity. Athletes are demanding to be treated as humans, not as cogs in a machine. And yet, the system continues to resist, clinging to outdated notions of amateurism that never truly existed.
The Way Forward
If we’re serious about fixing college sports, we need to start by asking the right questions. Why are we so afraid of letting athletes control their own destinies? What are we really trying to protect? In my opinion, the path forward isn’t more regulation—it’s more freedom. Let athletes transfer without penalty. Let them earn what they’re worth. And while we’re at it, let’s apply the same scrutiny to coaches and administrators. After all, fairness should be a two-way street.
The future of college sports isn’t about saving the old system—it’s about building a new one. One that values people over profits, and dignity over control. The question is, are we ready for that? Personally, I think we have no choice.
