Ancient Rome had a functioning democracy for centuries. It was chaotic, it was corrupt, and it was hardly a democracy by modern standards, for that matter. But, despite its flaws, it worked more or less. But then came Julius Caesar, promising to take power from the senate for only some time and transform it into an ‘efficient’ one. And we all know how that panned out. College football right now is probably going through a similar ordeal.

There’s chaos everywhere, no functioning organization to take responsibility, and with NIL in the picture, the conferences want someone to rectify all that. And who better than Nick Saban to do that by becoming the commissioner of college football? Who better than Nick Saban to become the ‘Caesar’ of colleges and ‘rectify’ all problems? At least in theory, it looks promising as it did in ancient Rome.

It all started when James Franklin, the Penn State head coach, suggested the idea of a college football commissioner. “Let’s get a commissioner of college football that is waking up every single morning and going to bed every single night making decisions that’s in the best interest of college football,” said Franklin after the Fiesta Bowl against Boise State. Other coaches like Kirby Smart and Marcus Freeman quickly jumped in on the whole conversation. The prospect of a college football commissioner became a serious issue. But then came the criticisms.

Pat McAfee endorsed the idea of a college football commissioner with Nick Saban at the helm before the Rose Bowl. But some people came with its potential problems. “Knowing all of the top 25 head coaches that I know over the course of the last 20 years, Boise State and them kinds of schools will never get in the CFP again if one of them was a commissioner… If you think it was SEC bias without Nick Saban being the chair, oh man. If Saban was in the chair, South Carolina, Alabama [and] Ole Miss all would have been in the 12. Trust me,” said Shaun King on The Coach JB Show with Big Smitty. The criticism is hardly an unfair one, too, since Nick Saban, at the end of the day, is human. And humans have a tendency to be biased. Spencer McLaughlin of ‘Locked on College Football’ on YouTube explored the potential problems.

“The problem is that any person who is going to run into this particular role is going to face accusations of bias once a controversial decision is made. For Saban, that would be anything regarding the SEC. And every single person that would be considered for this role. I’m sorry to break this to you: any person as commissioner is going to be college educated and will have an affiliation or a bias somewhere at some point.” The statement is not a hollow one. Saban, although considered the epitome of greatness, will still have a bias for SEC or affiliate teams. Kirby Smart also didn’t buy the idea in an interview.

“I don’t know that it’s as simple as saying, ‘let’s name a commissioner,’ and it solves all our problems.” He is right. There’s no magic wand that Saban can just use, and poof; the problems go away. So, what can colleges do in such a situation where no one makes the decision? And everyone wants college football to become better. Well, here’s the thing.

Nick Saban favoring the SEC?

Nick Saban had recently been accused of favoring SEC teams like Georgia with a major decision involving NIL. Georgia State Senator Brandon Beach recounted a conversation with Nick Saban when he joined him for dinner. The senator said that Saban spoke very highly of Kirby Smart and how much he admires him like a son. He added on the NIL issue. “If you want to help Kirby until they figure out all this NIL stuff, one thing you could do is eliminate the income tax on NIL athletes.’ So I actually got the idea from Nick Saban.” But what difference does a senator’s statement make, right?

Well, Senate Bill 71, which was filed on Feb 4, came into existence after that. The bill allows exemption on taxes on NIL income for schools like Georgia and Georgia Tech. The whole conundrum was created because Nick Saban was still the advisor of the athletic department at Crimson Tide. And was speculated to favor Georgia. That’s a conflict of interest right there. But many will say that’s just pure speculation. And yes, it is pure speculation. But when it happens to someone as legendary as Saban. Stories will come out. The verdict?

Well, Nick Saban’s legacy and integrity are something no one is questioning. There’s hardly a comparison between him and Caesar. He is a nice guy and a better human being, for that matter. But one thing is clear: college football needs an urgent revamp. A commissioner will hardly do the job.