Don’t all changes yield these kinds of results one way or the other? Sports or politics or financial markets or whatever, its hard to imagine a policy that legislates out success.

If a businessman or team or coach has worked hard to create an advantage through the mastery of an existing system, it’s hard to imagine a new system not being similarly mastered. Right?

That’s pretty much an underlying principle in life but let’s isolate on the world of college football.

Will an NIL system designed to reward individual players for their accomplishment and visibility suddenly work against the teams and programs already at the top? Practically by definition wouldn’t such a rule simply retrench the powers that be. The programs already getting the most media coverage, already winning the most games, and already dominating the platform, is there reason to believe the players within those programs would not have a built-in advantage? Does it not appear to hand those programs a newly stacked deck?

Exactly which rule installed over the last decade intended to slow Nick Saban and Alabama has had the intended effect?

Or expressed more pleasantly, this serves development should serve the Tide quite nicely.

Water Finds its Level

$1 million endorsement deals for players that have barely played seems a risky investment. While I’m certainly not rooting for Bryce to struggle or fail, he’s a risky bet. What if he’s just really good but not much else? Will sponsors continue to line up for otherwise unproven players? Probably not.

What we appear to have is a new market where the values are not yet defined or fully understood.

Malichi Moore hocking sweet tea seems a more reasonable toe dip in the sponsorship pool, does it not?

Point being the market rules will evolve as the initial energy and land grab nature of the last few months wears off.

More Cheesecake

Hard not to sound like either a pervy old man or old brimstone evangelist when making this point so let’s just acknowledge it and move on. Some college athletes will make money as influencers by growing and capitalizing on the scale of their social media following. Some of these athletes are easier to look at than others. As they compete for likes and looks… well, you connect the dots.

Danger Afoot

Answer honestly. How many among us would trust our 19-year-old selves with a bank roll stacked 5 or 6 digits deep? How many adults can handle such a sudden windfall? Lottery statistics sing a siren’s song and NFL’s own history is horrific with tales of broke and broken former players.

This is not a rant against wealth and opportunity, but a legitimate concern for what lies ahead for many college athletes.

Given the type of player Saban tends to recruit, Alabama will have some insulation in this area but its not bullet proof.

Net Positive

I tend to favor a free market and allowing people – players even – to capitalize on their talent and fame. I suspect the initial wild west element of the new rules will have negative unintended consequences for marketers and marketees alike, but over time it’ll settle down and provide a mostly healthy opportunity for all parties. That’s a good thing.

For programs, it’ll widen the gap between the haves and have nots.

2021 Team Leaders

Question presented in a recent support team email thread that deemed worthy of a public response and short pod.

Wayne asked a question that I’ll paraphrase here.

Lots of talk about the talent on this squad, but where’s the leadership going to come from? When the Tide has struggled or under performed in the past, its been largely due to a lack of leadership.

Great question. For me it rouses memories of the 2010 team and even the 2014 team. Both squads were incredibly talented but fell down at critical spots.

So where does the leadership emerge in 2021?

My immediate response within the thread included the following thoughts.

Josh Jobe is a guy that will bring it. Couple articles last year about him getting mad at making a good play instead of a great play.

Phil Mathis is another guy. Maybe Jordan Battle. He talked last year about being a quiet guy and needing to step up.

Evan Neal is likely doesn't say much but the line will hang on his words and example.

From there, it's a young team and some of those guys will need to step up. Bryce Young, Malichi Moore, and Jase McClellan may share some of that load.

Henry To’o To’o is one to watch. He knows what the bottom looks like and may take charge to get to the top.

I stand by all those responses and upon review, I’d add a couple more names and notes to the mix.

Chris Owens and Brian Robinson are both super seniors who have waited their turns and are poised to claim starting roles this season.

Mathis could have left early but elected to stay and create more value for himself. In interviews he presents as fun loving and serious. I don’t expect any of these elder statesmen to shy away from an opportunity to speak wisdom into the team.

Evan Neal is already contributing to the development of freshman OL JC Latham, who may emerge as a starting candidate in the second half of camp.

To’o To’o is getting rave reviews for his acclamation and mastery of the playbook. Of course, playing at Tennessee under Pruitt helps but let’s not discount his hard work. We know its not lost on his teammates.

I continue to believe a faction of younger players will emerge impacting the team’s personality. I’ve mentioned some above but add Brian Branch, Tim Smith, and Will Anderson to the list.

Important to note. This is all conjecture on my part. I’m not in the hallways, meeting halls, or practice fields. But listen to the player interviews and the snippets shared during camp and from Saban and you start to notice trends or patterns. Its too early to call any of this conclusive, but its fun to watch and speculate.

Early returns appear positive. There are candidates across nearly every position group emerging and I suspect the trend will continue.

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