College Sports in Crisis: Trump’s Shocking Plan Revealed

The Trump Commission: A Potential Earthquake for College Sports

This is not your typical Washington lobbying blitz. President Trump’s interest in college sports, culminating in a potential presidential commission, signals a seismic shift in the power dynamics of the industry.

The President’s Playbook: What to Expect

Trump’s history suggests a swift and decisive approach. Expect a presidential executive order establishing the commission, mirroring his recent move with the Religious Liberty Commission.

Stakeholder Powerhouse:

The commission is expected to be a powerhouse of diverse voices, including influential college sports figures, prominent business leaders deeply connected to college football, and potentially a former coach and administrator.

The Commission’s Mission: Addressing College Sports’ Ailing Ecosystem

The commission is expected to deeply examine the unwieldy landscape of college sports, including the frequency of player movement in the transfer portal, the unregulated booster compensation paid to athletes, the debate of college athlete employment, preserving the Olympic sport structure, the application of Title IX to school revenue-share payments and, even, conference membership makeup and conference television contracts, those with knowledge of the commission told Morningpicker.

Trump’s involvement was expected. Last month, during a trip where more than 100 college sports leaders traveled to DC to lobby on the Hill, they were informed of the White House’s interest and potential action, as reported in this Morningpicker story. Last week, Sen. Tommy Tuberville suggested that Trump was contemplating an executive order, news confirmed in reporting by Morningpicker.

Trump could announce a commission through an executive order, as the president did just this week when he established the Religious Liberty Commission. President Donald Trump shakes hands with former football coach Nick Saban as Trump takes the stage to address graduating students at the University of Alabama on May 1. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban, a central figure in the fight for college sports legislation, is expected to be integral to the commission’s work. During Trump’s visit to Tuscaloosa last week to give a graduation address at the University of Alabama, Trump and Saban met about college sports legislation — a meeting that’s now transformed into plans for this executive group to be formed.

College athletics is at a seminal moment in its history. The industry sits in a sort-of purgatory, stuck between its old facade of amateurism and full-blown professionalism. Amid a decade-long athletes’ rights movement, the NCAA’s rules regulating player movement, compensation and other aspects have crumbled at the hands of local and federal judges.

The latest tipping point came nearly four years ago, when state lawmakers passed legislation to usher in the era of name, image and likeness (NIL), forcing the NCAA to, at last, end its prohibition on athletes earning compensation from endorsement and commercial deals. The association has since, voluntarily, provided athletes with more benefits, such as postgraduate healthcare, guaranteed scholarships and more.

However, with the four power conferences earning billions in television revenue, the NCAA and its conferences recently agreed to a landmark settlement of three antitrust cases (House) over athlete compensation, agreeing to permit schools to directly pay athletes revenue starting July 1 under a capped system. The settlement, a year-long effort, is in the final stages. It’s not often that Nick Saban is the second-most-powerful man in the room.

But last Thursday night in Tuscaloosa, the seven-time national championship-winning coach warmed up a crowd of graduating seniors at the University of Alabama for the President of the United States. Since Bear Bryant is no longer with us, Donald Trump is literally the only person who could upstage — if only briefly — the G.O.A.T. in Alabama, and Saban acknowledged the pecking order, laughing that he felt like he was the opening act for the Rolling Stones.

Look a little closer, though, and it sure seems like Saban is actually the man behind the curtain, whispering in the ears of the powerful and guiding them toward his own ends. Saban may not be winning games any more, but he’s only shifted the playing field into boardrooms, courtrooms, hearing rooms … and it turns out he’s a formidable force there, too.

The Power Broker

There’s an old line in the Yellowhammer State that the five best-known people in Alabama are, in order, the head coach at Alabama, the head coach at Auburn, the starting quarterbacks for Alabama and Auburn … and the governor of the state.

In his day, Bryant danced around the demagogue that was Gov. George Wallace — Wallace’s 1963 “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door” happened just steps away from Bryant’s office — and the Bear even flirted briefly with a run for public office. Although former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville rode his six-game winning streak over Alabama all the way to Congress, Saban has kept his political views largely under wraps.

He’s close friends with former West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, but that’s not necessarily a sign; normal people have friends on both sides of the aisle. Saban actively and vocally supported his players who protested during the Black Lives Matter movements, and advocated for vaccination during the pandemic.

U.S. President Donald Trump is planning on forming a White House committee on college sports just days after discussions with former Alabama coach Nick Saban. (Saul Loeb/Getty)

Publicly, at least, Saban employs politics with an eye toward execution rather than party loyalty — as in, he’ll appeal to whoever has the power to enact actual change, regardless of whether there’s a (R) or a (D) after their name. And when Trump — who loves football, and has a tendency to act quickly when he hears an idea he likes — is in the process of forming a presidential commission within days of talking to Saban, it’s clear Saban still knows exactly how to get things done.

The Saban Effect

Midway through his tenure at Alabama, Saban — who had already won three national championships at the time — pivoted his entire philosophy from a run-first defensive suffocation to an air-it-out swarm. The result? Another three championships, Heismans for quarterback Bryce Young and wide receiver DeVonta Smith, and four — and counting — starting quarterbacks in the NFL. In other words, the man knows how to seize opportunity when it presents itself.

Thundering from a Saturday-morning pulpit fires up the choir, but whispering in the ear of the president of the United States … now that’s how you get the whole congregation to pay attention. The idea of Saban running the famously headless, leaderless sport of college football isn’t a new one. No less than the Oracle of the SEC has advocated for Saban to claim the throne.

“I think the solution to college football is you need to quit wasting time being on TV and you need to be what everybody in my business has suggested,” Paul Finebaum told Saban at an event last May. “You need to be the czar of college football. If you agree to that right now, we can solve a lot of problems.”

Saban demurred at the time, but it’s clear he’s keeping a close eye on the direction of the sport. At a public forum last May with Sen. Ted Cruz, Saban called for “rules that create a more level playing field.”