Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low
Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News has a column Wednesday about Alabama's hiring of Joe Mendes as a consultant.
Nick Saban did so on the recommendation of Southern California coach Pete Carroll. Mendes' specialty is helping players make more informed decisions with regard to agents. Mendes has 25 years of NFL front-office experience.
Does Andre Smith come to mind?
I can tell you from meeting with Saban a couple of weeks ago that he's still bothered by that whole situation. Saban told me that agent education was still an area where Alabama wasn't quite up to speed, which explains Mendes' hiring.
Saban has never been one of those guys just to say something to be saying it. So when he says Alabama will pour its resources into the total development of the program and the total development of the players in that program, he means it.
He's also serious about finding a way to come down harder on the unscrupulous agents and runners that are a problem for every major program.
Saban, in vintage fashion, bristles whenever he talks about it.
"Everything in our program here is to get kids to be responsible for their own self determination, to be accountable, have discipline, don't expect something for nothing, do a day's work for a day's pay," Saban said. "Those are the values that we preach … and then some guy gives them a free ride and it's a problem. I'm mad at the guy.
"If you're doing what I want, then you don't give anybody a free ride because we're trying to teach guys that that's not real. That's not how it is. That's not going to help you be successful. Don't think you're going to get something for nothing. There is no such thing as something for nothing.
"Every agent is doing us a disservice and the kids a disservice by doing that stuff."
Hiring Mendes is a smart move by Saban and Alabama. At least they're trying.
But the reality is that you can't ensure that players (or their family members) are going to make smart decisions regardless of all the safeguards and education you put into place.
Not when somebody is waving a bunch of money in front of their faces when there hasn't been any money for the last 21 or 22 years.
Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News has a column Wednesday about Alabama's hiring of Joe Mendes as a consultant.
Nick Saban did so on the recommendation of Southern California coach Pete Carroll. Mendes' specialty is helping players make more informed decisions with regard to agents. Mendes has 25 years of NFL front-office experience.
Does Andre Smith come to mind?
I can tell you from meeting with Saban a couple of weeks ago that he's still bothered by that whole situation. Saban told me that agent education was still an area where Alabama wasn't quite up to speed, which explains Mendes' hiring.
Saban has never been one of those guys just to say something to be saying it. So when he says Alabama will pour its resources into the total development of the program and the total development of the players in that program, he means it.
He's also serious about finding a way to come down harder on the unscrupulous agents and runners that are a problem for every major program.
Saban, in vintage fashion, bristles whenever he talks about it.
"Everything in our program here is to get kids to be responsible for their own self determination, to be accountable, have discipline, don't expect something for nothing, do a day's work for a day's pay," Saban said. "Those are the values that we preach … and then some guy gives them a free ride and it's a problem. I'm mad at the guy.
"If you're doing what I want, then you don't give anybody a free ride because we're trying to teach guys that that's not real. That's not how it is. That's not going to help you be successful. Don't think you're going to get something for nothing. There is no such thing as something for nothing.
"Every agent is doing us a disservice and the kids a disservice by doing that stuff."
Hiring Mendes is a smart move by Saban and Alabama. At least they're trying.
But the reality is that you can't ensure that players (or their family members) are going to make smart decisions regardless of all the safeguards and education you put into place.
Not when somebody is waving a bunch of money in front of their faces when there hasn't been any money for the last 21 or 22 years.
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Chris Low
Low joined ESPN.com in 2007 after 10 years with The (Nashville) Tennessean covering the University of Tennessee and SEC. The Rock Hill, S.C., native lives with his wife in Knoxville and has three sons.
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