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President Donald Trump appeared by phone on the Pat McAfee Show Tuesday, in honor of Veterans Day. Talk inevitably came around to Nick Saban, the seven-time national championship coach McAfee’s colleague on ESPN’s College GameDay. McAfee asked the president if Saban should get involved in non-football entities such as the Ryder Cup and the World Cup — which takes place in the U.S. next summer — to “help out in some aspects so we could have some success on these world fronts.” Trump said that, while he’s at it, Saban should get involved in fixing college sports. “I know him, and I got to know him because he brought his team to the White House,” Trump said. “He had the team, you know, he won a lot, and I got to know him. He a fantastic guy. And, you know, he’s somebody that really, they should get involved in college sports in terms of making sure that, you know, it all works out. Because what’s happening is it looks like it’s not working out too well for colleges, for most of the people, and a lot of the lesser sports are being totally terminated. “You know, that’s a shame. It was almost like a training ground for the Olympics and a lot of those training grounds are being lost. And, you know, Nick knows this stuff better than anybody. He’d be — and he was … He’s really active in it. I think they ought to let Nick Saban take a good, strong look at it. And we all, I can tell you from my standpoint, I’d listen to what he has to say, but I know him well and he’s a fantastic guy and what a great coach.” McAfee replied, “Mr. President, he’s not going to love that. You just signed him up for that job. He’s not going to love it.” Added Trump, “That’s not as easy as it sounds, that job.” Here’s video: There was talk back in the spring that Trump was going to create a College Sports Commission with Saban as the co-chair. The coach quickly shot down that idea, however, saying “I don’t think we need a commission.”
