BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – College football is now essentially pro football. Not that you needed me to confirm that. For that, you need to look no further than the recent comments made by NFL coaching legend Bill Belichick on the Pat McAfee show.
The eight-time Super Bowl Champion is now the head coach at the University of North Carolina. He was asked about making the transition to building a college roster as opposed to an NFL roster. What he said next was both matter of fact and sobering. Paraphrasing, he said he and his staff are already familiar with a lot of the agents representing college players because many are the same agents who represent NFL players.
College players now have agents who act as the “go-between” in connecting players with prospective college programs to gauge mutual transfer interest and of course, money. This is the way college staff can circumvent the rules against tampering. In other words, it is a free agency run amok. What was once illegal is not only unregulated, but now the norm. And you’d better have boosters who write big checks, or your school will get left behind.
There are ongoing discussions and efforts to fix the current system of the ‘Wild, Wild West.’ Former Alabama coaching legend Nick Saban has been endorsed to be a “commissioner” of college football (although no such commission exists yet and he’s found a new home doing TV).
The Coaches Association has also drafted a recommendation to limit the transfer portal to a brief period in early January. But the current issues facing college football are more complex and far reaching. For example, if schools move to binding contracts, now you’re talking about contracted workers who could essentially be allowed to unionize. Spending caps would need more engaged oversight staff to ensure compliance. More pointedly, the NCAA or some governing body would have to install safeguards that should’ve been started years ago when lawsuits warned this current environment was inevitable. Until then, college football will continue this path of no resistance. The question is, how will this impact fan interest, if at all?
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