College Football World Reacts To David Shaw’s Comments

Stanford head coach David Shaw is the talk of Pac-12 Media Day so far in Hollywood. Shaw spoke to the press on Tuesday about the NCAA’s new name, image and likeness (NIL) policy.

Specifically, he addressed Nick Saban’s recent hint that quarterback Bryce Young has been courted for staggeringly lucrative brand deals.

“A kid gets a seven figure deal before he even starts a game,” Shaw said. “That’s fair market value? I don’t think that’s fair market value. That’s Alabama value.”

Talking at the Texas High School Coaches Association convention a week ago, Saban disclosed that one Alabama player in particular has fielded massive name, image and likeness offers.

“Our quarterback has already approached ungodly numbers, and he hasn’t even played yet,” Saban said. “If I told you what it is … it’s almost seven figures.”

Fans have taken to social media to react to Shaw’s comments.

“Whatever people are willing to pay is the fair market value. That’s kinda how it works. Alabama has a bigger brand than Stanford so their market value will be higher. He just sounds mad,” one fan wrote.

“It is what it is. Being the starting quarterback for the defending National Champions ought to be worth something right?” another fan added.

Saban did not name the sophomore Young, who is pegged to start at QB this year. While Young has thrown just 22 passes in college, the former five-star recruit has the fourth-best Heisman odds on VegasInsider. Young worked behind first-team All-American and Heisman finalist Mac Jones during his first year in Tuscaloosa.

Understandably, Shaw was taken aback by Young’s apparent NIL opportunities. Shaw knows that his players at Stanford––where he’s coached for a decade––can’t compete with Alabama for the biggest brand deals. Shaw’s comments reflect a nationwide fear that the latest NIL policy will exacerbate college football’s already-huge power imbalance.

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