James Franklin can sleep easy knowing his wish is about to get fulfilled. Back in December 2024, the Penn State HC voiced his desire for a drastic change in college football. The transfer portal and the NIL landscape are especially chaotic, and he wanted some order. A college football commissioner. And yeah, you can imagine he wanted the GOAT to oversee this important position. The one that’s been in the system for 28 years. The one who led Alabama to greatness through 17 seasons, for six national championship titles. 

There’s no rest for Nick Saban even in retirement. Seems like he’s going to be more than just an analyst for ESPN’s College GameDay. On May 7, frontofficesports made an interesting announcement on Instagram regarding Nick Saban and politics. In the photo, President Donald Trump held a Bama helmet while the legendary former Crimson Tide held up a Bama jersey flexing “Trump 17.” “Nick Saban to be co-chair of Trump’s commission on college sports,” the caption read. Although it’s not officialized yet, it’s already begun and it’ll just be a matter of time before the process is finalized. 

Let’s go back to December. At the time of James Franklin’s suggestion, Penn State was already in the CFP quarterfinals, preparing to meet Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. A huge contributing factor to this proposal was the transfer of his team’s backup QB, Beau Pribula, who transferred to Mizzou just weeks before the playoffs. The Nittany Lions faced a scare with their depth then. This incident only sheds light on the chaotic structure of college sports that gives players the leverage to use the portal to their advantage in dire situations. 

So, James Franklin let out his raw thoughts on how to handle the matter. “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,” he suggested. He also wanted a broad-minded leader who understands the system to bring unbiased change. “I think Nick Saban would be the obvious choice. I think if we made that decision — Nick will probably call me tonight and say, ‘Don’t do this’ — but I think he’s an obvious choice, right?” And yeah, Nick Saban actually spoke to him on a call regarding this particular matter. 

Nick Saban’s hesitation on James Franklin’s proposal

The following month, James Franklin gave folks a glimpse of what Nick Saban felt about the whole thing. “I think there’s just a ton of things that need to be discussed and looked at. And I think we need to do it with people that do not feel the pressure from their university or their conference,” the Nittany Lions HC said. “I was on a call the other day with Nick Saban and he wasn’t real happy with me promoting him for the commissioner of college football,” he said but then remained strong on his stance. “But I think we need that. We need somebody that is looking at it from a big picture perspective.” This rejection had him looking for other options too. 

When James Franklin was making that proposal, it sounded like a far-fetched scenario that couldn’t possibly happen. Who knew Nick Saban would be overseeing college sports four months ago? But things change fast, just as college sports are in the new wild west. Well, the 73-year-old is no longer tied to a particular school with a coaching role. So yeah, the situation’s looking great. 

James Franklin’s about to get his wish fulfilled. And perhaps, this bold move would bring the type of change everyone wishes to see in college sports.