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Last week at SEC Media Days, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian shocked some by referring to "cap space." By using a phrase normally associated with pro sports, Sarkisian was reflecting the changing landscape of college football.
Sarkisian spoke with ESPN's Paul Finebaum about the new world of college football, where coaches have to sometimes make tough decisions to let players walk in order to upgrade.
Just like the NFL.
I think in this day and age of the Portal and high school, youve got to have the ability to be strategic, Sarkisian said on the Paul Finebaum Show.
To make the moves we make, to bring in a Cam Coleman, to bring in a Hollywood Smothers, to bring in a Raleek Brown, to bring in a Mike Masunas at tight end; we had to let DeAndre Moore go.
We had to let Parker Livingstone go.
We had to let Tre Wisner go.
We had to let CJ Baxter go." Sarkisian thinks that if college football is going to bid on players, pay players and manage a roster of paid players, there should be the same transparency pro sports have.
Sarkisian spoke with former Longhorns coach Mack Brown about the need for more transparency.
"We need uniform contracts," Sarkisian told Mack Brown.
"As you know, in the NFL, when you sign a contract, they send that contract to the NFL PA and to the league office and everybody has access and can see that contract.
As you know Coach, in college football we guard our contracts.
We don't want anybody to know who makes what.
We don't want anybody to know how we distribute the money.
I think that has to start there." Fans have a working knowledge of NFL finances thanks to the public nature of the player contracts and salary cap.
They have an understanding of player movement based on available cap space and contract proposals.
Sarkisian thinks its time college football's system changes to reflect the changes to the sport.
A centralized administrative infrastructure would facilitate that.
"We have to have the ability to say, we have a central office.
We have a league," Sark said.
"We have a commissioner.
People in place that can look at these contracts and say, this is a healthy contract.
And then, what are the penalties for breaking that contract.
I think we need to start there." This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Texas coach Steve Sarkisian thinks NIL should be made public, like NFL.