SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is not pleased with the war of words that was ignited this week between Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher, and he does not want Lane Kiffin calling more attention to the feud.
Kiffin is a regular guest on “The Dan Patrick Show,” and he was supposed to appear on the show on Friday. According to Patrick and company, Sankey did not allow it.
“Lane Kiffin was going to come on, but the commissioner of the SEC asked him not to comment on the Nick Saban, Jimbo Fisher situation,” Patrick said, via Erik Hall of the Mississippi Clarion Ledger.
Paul Pabst, the executive producer of the show, later noted that Sankey did not want any SEC coaches speaking with the media on Friday. The decision came after Sankey released a statement expressing his disappointment in the public spat between Saban and Fisher.
“The membership of the Southeastern Conference has established expectations for conduct and sportsmanship that were not met (Wednesday night or Thursday),” Sankey said. “A hallmark of the SEC is intense competition within an environment of collaboration. Public criticism of any kind does not resolve issues and creates a distraction from seeking solutions for the issues facing college athletics today.
“There is tremendous frustration concerning the absence of consistent rules from state to state related to name, image and likeness. We need to work together to find solutions and that will be our focus at the upcoming SEC Spring Meetings.”
What Sankey is not going to admit is how good the Saban-Fisher feud will be for ratings. The Oct. 8 game between Texas A&M and Alabama has suddenly become the biggest one on the college football schedule. That, obviously, is good for business.
Saban expressed concern over the NCAA’s new Name, Image and Likeness rules at an event on Wednesday night. He said some schools have been abusing the rules by paying recruits, and he singled out Texas A&M. Fisher was irate and absolutely unloaded on Saban the following day.
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