Former football coach Sen. Tommy Tuberville rips growing influence of money in college sports, wants changes

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., a former college football coach, is taking aim at the growing influence of money in college sports amid the rise of name, image and likeness (NIL) compensation for student athletes and the conference realignment.

EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., a former college football coach, is taking aim at the growing influence of money in college sports amid the rise of name, image and likeness (NIL) compensation for student athletes and the conference realignment between some of the nation's top college athletic programs for better TV deals.

Speaking with Fox News Digital as a new college football season kicks off, Tuberville touted a bill he and West Virginia Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin recently introduced that would overhaul collegiate athletics and create a national standard for NIL. But Tuberville warned that continuing down the path of molding the industry around maximizing profits for programs and individuals could ultimately "ruin" college sports.

"I'm fine with it. I think it's good that players make money off their name, but it's gotten out of hand," Tuberville told Fox. "Right now it's a Wild West. It's out of control. Money is flying everywhere. Some players are getting their money, some players aren't. There's no oversight. So we're trying to put some oversight into this."

Tuberville, who served as head football coach at multiple schools, including Auburn University, and Manchin, a former West Virginia University football player, introduced the Protecting Athletes, Schools and Sports Act, or PASS Act, in July, two years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the NCAA had illegally restricted education-based benefits that could be used as compensation to student athletes.

OLE MISS'