According to multiple reports, the White House plans to establish a commission to examine the state of college athletics, including NIL deals. Multiple outlets have reported that the commission is set to be led by former Alabama head coach Nick Saban and Texas Tech-affiliated billionaire Cody Campbell.
West Virginia HC Rich Rodriguez likes Nick Saban’s proposal to lead a college sports commission under President Donald Trump. He’s even willing to support and work with Saban on the commission.

Rich Rodriguez Wants Seat Next To Nick Saban On Pres. Trump’s Proposed College Football Commission
West Virginia HC Rick Rodriguez has acknowledged Nick Saban as the greatest coach of all time, mentioning how Saban has college football’s best interests in mind. He believes Saban isn’t going to sabotage the interests of colleges; rather, he’ll advocate for it.
“I’m gonna give them my cell number if they want an active coach on that deal, I’ll be on that sucker.”@RealCoachRod tells @DustyDvoracek & @dannykanell that he would love to be part of a college football commission and thinks Nick Saban is the perfect person to lead it. pic.twitter.com/muAvRDP2a2
— College Sports on SiriusXM (@SXMCollege) May 14, 2025
“I think he’s the greatest college football coach of all time. Not only that — he also has a great grasp of the game in general. My phone, I will give him my cell number,” Rodriguez said.
“If they want an active coach to be on a deal, I’ll be on that sucker. And you know, I’ve got some experience. I could help from a current standpoint. I don’t know if they need me, though, but having Coach Saban on there… he doesn’t have an interest to help his team or whatever… He’s truly about college football,” Rodriguez said, alluding that Saban is now retired from coaching.
“And college football is such a great entity, it’s hard to screw it up, you know? I mean, you can do whatever you want, it’s still going to be that passion for your school and for that level of athletes,” he continued.
“So we’ve done enough things to screw it up in the last couple years. I think we’re… going to start trending the other way and get it right, and Coach [Saban] will help that for sure.”
While it’s yet to be determined if the commission would need Rodriguez’s help, he does have a lot of work to do with West Virginia this year.
The Mountaineers are ranked near the bottom of post-spring Big 12 Power Rankings, and they have a lot to prove this season after the massive turnover they’ve had since Rodriguez’s appointment.
West Virginia kicks off their season against FCS Robert Morris on August 30. They’ll also host Pittsburgh in the Backyard Brawl and take on Kansas, Utah, BYU, TCU, Colorado, Arizona State, and Texas Tech.
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