Nick Saban and Alabama have signed another top-ranked recruiting class for the 2023 cycle according to 247Sports, and NIL — along with its effect on the talent acquisition — continues to be an oft-criticized topic surrounding the nation’s elite programs. Saban’s not interested in enhancing Alabama’s recruiting hauls through heightened NIL deals, however, after reportedly telling coaches at the Alabama Football Coaches Association Convention on Friday in Montgomery, Ala., that he turned down two recruits’ request for lucrative NFL opportunities in this class, per Fox Sports and a respected user from BamaOnLine.
“Someone with one of the best corners in the nation came to me and asked if we’d pay them $800,000 for the player to sign here,” Saban said, according to Baker High School (Mobile, Ala.) coach Steve Normand, who attended the event. “I told him he can find another place to play. “I’m not paying a kid a bunch of NIL money before he earns it.”
Fox Sports later reached out to several coaches and other attendees to confirm Saban’s takes on NIL. He mentioned the transfer portal’s effect on Alabama’s program as well according to ALFCA president Terry Curtis, who said Saban relayed that one player “wanted $500,000 and for us to get his girlfriend into law school at Alabama and pay for it. I showed him the door.”
Saban did not mention specific recruits or players at the coaches convention, per reports. Prior to the 2022 season, Saban called out Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher, who signed the No. 1 class in the 2022 recruiting cycle for using NIL to the Aggies’ advantage. Saban said Texas A&M bought its signing class and after those comments — and reaction that went viral in the ensuing hours — Fisher called a press conference to respond, refusing to hold back.
Saban also mentioned how Jackson State seemingly paid No. 1 recruit Travis Hunter “a million dollars” to go play at the HBCU. Then-Tigers coach Deion Sanders was not pleased at those comments either. Hunter also responded.
Both of those remarks led to an apology from Saban, but the damage was done. Saban was asked about NIL’s effects on recruiting during the Early Signing Period last month and didn’t mince words.
“I do think that it did have an impact on recruiting with some players,” Saban said, via BamaOnLine. “And I don’t know how you make comments about things that really is kind of a crazy, a little bit of a crazy situation right now, and there’s not really a sensible response to it, so I don’t know how to really respond to it other than the fact that we do a great job of trying to sell what we can do to create value for players and what they can create for themselves here because our players have done a really good job of creating value for themselves in name, image and likeness by what they do after they get here.”
College football’s top 25 recruiting classes entering National Signing Day this week includes several SEC teams inside the top 15, including Alabama at the top.