Prediction: Saban Says CFP, NIL and Transfer Portal Will Drastically Change College Football
As the College Football Playoff gets underway, starting with Michigan and Alabama, it's worth delving into Nick Saban's comments.
Saban has historically been vocal about the state of the game, the path forward and what the sport will look like in the coming years.
As the CFP expands, NIL changes the economic landscape and the transfer portal creates a pseudo free agency, college football will soon look drastically different. That's not lost on Saban.
“We’re moving in the sort of semi-pro direction in terms of, there’s pay-for-play now. We call it name, image and likeness, but that’s pay-for-play, basically — and I’m all for the players sharing in what’s happening,” Saban said earlier this week. “You’ve got guys transferring from one team to the next at will with very little guidelines as to how to control any of these things, and we’re gonna have a playoff very similar to the NFL.
“And I’m not saying any of those things are bad. I’m just saying they’re all completely changes from what we had five years ago, 10 years ago, whatever.”
Over 1900 athletes have entered the transfer portal so far with another window still to go. NIL deals have made young players independently wealthy and so much to lose is on the table. That doesn't even include the incredible economics behind conference re-alignments and the expansion of the CFP to 12 teams.
The game which has historically been known for its bowl games has now made many irrelevant. The expansion of the CFP only exacerbates that, something Saban also acknowledged.
How any of this will affect the sport is still unknown but the effects of NIL and the transfer portal are already being felt. The future may be bright but it may also be unrecognizable.
As Saban said, NCAA football may be moving towards a semi-pro type of situation. An interesting prediction that may not be that far off.
