Texas A&M made history Wednesday when it finished National Signing Day with the highest-graded recruiting class of all time in 247Sports' Composite ranking. But coach Jimbo Fisher wasn't content to celebrate the feat and revel in the moment.
Instead, he spent nearly 3 1/2 minutes justifying his recruiting process while taking aim at how some of his SEC counterparts recruit, the role of name, image and likeness (NIL) in the sport, and how the media do their job.
That's our coach. 😤#GigEm pic.twitter.com/xF8HeMHnSV
— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) February 2, 2022
Fisher's comments stemmed from an article that cited a message board poster on 247Sports' Oklahoma site, screen name Sliced Bread, who alleged that Aggies boosters were starting LLCs (limited liability companies) to fund NIL deals for top players to sign with A&M. According to the poster, the deals were in excess of $25 million to $30 million.
— - (@Spicoli_____) January 5, 2022
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Fisher vehemently refuted the claims.
"It's insulting to the players that we recruited, that that's why they would come here. You ever been to a game game here, ever come to school here and see the education? You ever talked about the 12th Man and the Aggie Network when you're done? There ain't a better university in this country," Fisher said.
In recent days, Alabama coach Nick Saban and Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin have been critical of NIL and its possible misuse in recruiting. Kiffin likened the spending to a salary cap and said he is at a disadvantage in Oxford. Saban said it was where he "draws the line."
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"We don't have the same funding resources as some of these schools do for these NIL deals," Kiffin said during a news conference Tuesday. "It's basically dealing with different salary caps. Now we have a sport that has completely different salary caps and some of these schools have, whatever, five to 10 times more than everybody else in what they can pay the players. . . . . They're going to go where they're paid the most."
Kiffin then called out the Aggies, making a joke about them possibly incurring a luxury tax for all the supposed NIL money they're tossing around.
Saban was similarly clear in his rebuke of NIL to attract players.
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Fisher worked under Saban as an assistant at LSU and has been coaching at the FBS level since 1993. He seemed to imply Wednesday that he had seen far more egregious improprieties during his almost 30 years in the business than what he has been accused of, though he didn't name names.
"I know how some of those guys recruit — go dig into that. I know the history, I know the tradition, and I know things. Trust me. You don't want to go down that avenue," he said. "It's irresponsible. It's unbelievable, and I ain't just talking about one. Multiple people got NIL issues."
Fisher also made reference to the lucrative NIL deal signed by Alabama quarterback Bryce Young. He said that deal was universally praised while Aggies players signing agreements has been met with scorn.
"It's funny, when Nick Saban said his quarterback got an $800,000 deal, it was wonderful. Now it ain't wonderful no more with ours [NIL deals]," Fisher said. "We ain't going out and getting big deals. Ain't none going on in our place that we know of. But it's fine when you [Saban] do it."
Fisher also accused many of his colleagues of hypocrisy when it comes to the transfer portal. Saban in particular voiced concerns about the portal, only to use it to his great advantage.
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"It's great that players have the freedom to do what they can do, but I also don't think we should create circumstances where they don't have to make the commitment and see things through," Saban said. The seven-time national champion has used the portal to recruit wide receiver Jameson Williams, defensive back Eli Ricks and running back Jahmyr Gibbs from Georgia Tech.
And while Fisher loses some credibility as a moral arbiter because of his hiring of former Maryland coach DJ Durkin, he didn't mince words about his fellow coaches.
"To have coaches in our league and across this league say it, they're clown acts," Fisher said. "It's irresponsible as hell that multiple coaches in our league, and the guys griping about NIL and griping about [the] transfer portal, are using it the most and bragging about it the most."
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There are signs the sport's landscape is shifting. A&M beat Alabama last season and then followed that up by landing the best-ever recruiting class according to 247Sports. Fisher seems to believe that is the reason behind some of the comments.
"If you don't like that we're coming on, get used to it, all right? Because we ain't going nowhere," he said. "It's an absolute joke to the people that put the hard work in and do it. It's irresponsible. The ballgame's changing, man, and it ain't because of NIL and what goes on. It's pretty irresponsible of all of them, and they're clowns."