David Pollack reacts to President Donald Trump creating commission on college sports

Donald Trump, Nick Saban and Cody Campbell walk into a room. David Pollack, setting the scene in his most recent podcast episode, See Ball Get Ball, discussed his opinions on the recent college sports commission expected to be created by the president.

The commission would be spearheaded by Saban, a seven-time national championship-winning coach, and Campbell, a billionaire booster for Texas Tech. Pollack explained his belief in the need for this type of commission, but pushed back regarding how it may be created.

“The president has a lot more important things to worry about,” Pollack said. “But somebody needs to get involved at a high level, and this needs to get working. It ain’t the NCAA. We know that, but I’m just saying there’s a lot going on in our country that needs a lot of attention. I just don’t know that I want President Trump’s attention in that realm.”

Aside from its potential origins, Pollack appears on board with the creation of some type of governing entity. More than just Saban, Pollack named Mack Brown, who recently retired from coaching, as someone who could help lead the commission alongside him and Campbell.

However, Pollack believes Saban is someone that couldn’t be left off the commission no matter how it’s created. Saban was at the top of college football when NIL began, and was able to see how quickly his approach to just about everything had to adapt regarding roster building and retention.

Pollack recalled standing with Saban on the field ahead of the national championship game in 2023 between Georgia and TCU. Saban opened up to Pollack about his concerns regarding NIL and its hold over college athletics.

“I remember, before the game, being on the field with Nick (Saban) and just talking to him about it,” Pollack said. “About how kids are coming in his office and being like, ‘I need a raise or I’m leaving,’ and just the climate and how bad it was, how hard it was to be a coach, and how many things that were going on.

“To have somebody like him, who has been involved in multi-generational football. … So I think Nick’s always been the guy because he’s not in it anymore. Like, he’s not getting paid by a university now. He has an opportunity to go make change and talk about this system in a way that people would be surprised about.”

Saban reportedly met with Campbell earlier this month to discuss the idea of the commission. While the conversation reportedly was a positive one, he’s also recently stated that he doesn’t see the need for something like this to be created, but is on board for trying to help find solutions to these issues moving forward.