Phillip's Saturday afternoon musings

[aubiefifty 18,248]

Phillip's Saturday afternoon musings

Phillip Marshall

4-5 minutes

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--One facet of the name, image and likeness debate in college football has been largely overlooked. It’s not all about boosters and collectives. The fortunate few will attract and have attracted interest and big dollars from businesses unrelated to where they play. Who would those players be? Those who have become household names. Quarterback Arch Manning is said to be worth $3 million per year, and he has yet to take a snap in college. Any Heisman Trophy winner and, to a lesser extent All-American performer, could be in that group. The large majority of college players will not be.

--I miss covering bowl games bowl games that excited players and fans.

--I get a bit confused by people who constantly harp that bowl games no longer matter but want to use losing them as reasons to fire a coach.

--I believe bowl games do matter, the same as any other games matter. They are part of the final record. Statistics count on that season. Why would they not matter? The only reason is the recent phenomenon of players choosing not to play.

--In 1993, Auburn had lost its legendary coach, had been through two straight non-winning seasons and was facing severe NCAA sanctions. Alabama had just won a national championship. The program, it seemed, was in a nosedive. Terry Bowden took over and won 20 straight games. Alabama football was in a bad place when Nick Saban took over. That certainly did not last. Regardless of what happens this season, Auburn football will come back. Count on it.

--Thirteen of 14 SEC football teams – all but Vanderbilt – have valid reasons for optimism going into the 2022 season. Six SEC teams have won national championships in the past 24 seasons. Those things are what sets the SEC apart.

--The competition Auburn’s basketball team will face on its trip to Israel is not likely to be all that challenging. The real basketball benefit of such a trip is extra practice time and playing games, regardless of the competition.

--I don’t know what Auburn baseball star Sonny DiChiara is thinking or where he will be drafted, but it has to be tempting for him to come back for another season. In just one season, he became the most popular Auburn baseball player I have covered. Depending on where he is drafted, NIL could make it possible for him to return.

--Most programs and players are keeping terms of NIL deals to themselves, and that is wise. Going to school and playing big-time football provides enough pressure without adding the pressure to live up to a large NIL payday.

--Considering the forces working against him – no lottery scholarships, facilities near the bottom of the SEC, Auburn’s refusal to waive out-of-state tuition – look at what Butch Thompson has accomplished. His teams have been to two of the last three College World Series. His teams have made three of the four super regional appearances in program history and have won two of them, both on the road. His teams have won a remarkable nine consecutive regional games.

--I have often wondered why universities require athletic departments to pay for scholarships. Why not just say athletes on full scholarships are allowed to go to school for free. Why does money have to change hands? Does anyone believe that scholarship money paid from athletic funds really has a significant impact on the bottom line?

15COMMENTS

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work.--Colin Powell

[NoALtiger 3,963]

He made good points on the bowl situation and about our baseball facilities needing upgrades. Every once in a while he can still have a solid take lol. 

[aubiefifty 18,248]

16 hours ago, NoALtiger said:

He made good points on the bowl situation and about our baseball facilities needing upgrades. Every once in a while he can still have a solid take lol. 

well i am proud you gave him some love. i mean he is so senile he cannot comb is hair from what i have seen.

[HAPvsOA 421]

Sure I get why some teams would want to keep NILs deals private, but when you look at lists like this one of NIL deals on ON3...

https://www.on3.com/nil/deals/

....you notice Bo Nix has a deal at Oregon, Shaun Shivers has a deal at Indiana, lots of players at other SEC schools with deals, and even deals for players at JSU and UAB, then it feels like Auburn is not a place to go to get paid.

It may not make sense to make the numbers public, but there should be marketing reasons to let future players know that you can get NIL at AU. I do admit that I am not on social media for the most part, so I may be missing some announcements, but this seems like something that could be handled better.