Alabama head coach Nick Saban will join a group of prominent SEC figures on a trip to Washington, D.C., this week to discuss potential NIL regulation. The officials are expected to encourage lawmakers to pass federal legislation to better define ways in which college athletes can profit from their notoriety.

https://twitter.com/TheNILDeal/status/1664258666046824450?s=20

The delegation will also include SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, who said that issues in college athletics could only be solved outside intervention.

“There’s a lot that goes on between our campuses and D.C. And so this is an opportunity to focus on athletics and some of the pressures that we’re facing,” Sankey said, according to Fox News. “To communicate that, given the realities in college athletics, Congress is the place that can fix the issues we have.”

According to Saban, who spoke at 2023 SEC Spring Meetings in Florida last week, the issues with current NIL guidelines is that they are not fully developed and leave too much room for exploitation and disparity between schools and athletes. Saban did not say he was opposed to the concept and even went as far to support a players’ union, similar to the one seen in the NFL.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a level playing field because some people were showing a willingness to spend more than others,” Saban said. “Whereas, if you want to bring the NFL into it, they have a salary cap. They have all the things that level the playing field. We can put guidelines on this stuff that would do the same thing.”

The SEC reception with lawmakers is scheduled to take place on June 7, and individual meetings will take place the following day. Saban will likely serve as a prominent face in the delegation in order to increase publicity and congressional participation in the effort.

It was all so avoidable. From the opening drive against Florida State University Sunday, it was clear that the start of the Brian Kelly era at LSU would be turbulent. But it could have been a loss and a wakeup call. It didn’t have to be a calamity with the power to completely derail the program for years to come.

At the end of a game in which LSU played atrociously, Florida State found a way to match them, fumbling at the goal line with a 24-17 lead and 1:20 remaining in the fourth quarter. After a completely inept day, Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels somehow managed to put together a 99-yard drive and found receiver Jaray Jenkins in the end zone on the final play of regulation.

It was the sort of heroic moment that has the power to completely change one’s perception of a game. Kelly and his players seemed completely redeemed as the special teams unit ran out to tie it up. Sure, the Tigers played terribly, but the team capitalized on the Seminoles’ mistakes. LSU finished strong and was probably going to triumph in overtime with obvious momentum. Successful seasons have started worse, and the team was going to have several weeks before it had to face another serious rival.

The extra point was blocked.

Elsewhere in the SEC, #1 Alabama and #3 Georgia defeated their Week 1 opponents by a combined score of 104-3. Texas A&M dominated Sam Houston while Tennessee, Auburn, #20 Kentucky, Mississippi State, #21 Ole Miss and South Carolina all picked up routine wins against weaker opponents. #19 Arkansas won a competitive game against #23 Cincinatti while Florida scored a shocking upset over #7 Utah. Even lowly Vanderbilt has managed to win both of its games and currently sits atop the conference standings.

LSU was the only SEC team to lose in Week 1, and the Tigers didn’t just lose. They played badly enough to get clobbered on their own turf, received a miraculous comeback opportunity they didn’t deserve, and then they missed the extra point. The reaction since within the LSU community has been visceral.

Kelly blamed himself for the loss after the game, saying that he and his staff had “some learning to do.” The fanbase has not been quick to forgive him, however, as the team’s supporters have launched into a collective tirade on social media. Some have even called for the head coach’s removal after a single game. While the fans melt down online, some within the program are following suit.

After making just two catches for 20 yards Sunday night, All-American wide receiver Kayshon Boutte deleted all of his Instagram posts and unfollowed the LSU football account. Boutte was reportedly considering a transfer in the offseason but decided to stay. Kelly told reporters Tuesday that he had a productive conversation with his receiver the day after the game.

“He’s the least guy I’m concerned about on our offense,” Kelly said. “He has handled it in a manner that he’ll learn from.”

If the guy who just wiped his Instagram is the least of his concerns, then Kelly may be in for a wild ride in Baton Rouge. Even reporters are snapping at the head coach; after appearing late to a press conference Monday and receiving mocking admonishment from Kelly, The Advocate writer Leah Vann replied, “Maybe if you won, I’d be on time.”

As players threaten to quit, fans remain hysterical and the media teases him to his face, Kelly has ensured that his transition period at LSU will not be a smooth one. For the new leader of the historic Southern program, where losses matter and pride runs wild, it will be impossible to feasibly manage operations day to day if the embarrassments persist on weekends. The mutiny’s already begun with the shore still in sight.

On Wednesday, the Big-12 announced its intention to go forward with football in the fall after a board of governors meeting on Tuesday. This comes during a week where several other schools and major conferences have announced that they will not go forward with their seasons. “Our student-athletes want to compete, and it is the board’s collective opinion that sports can be conducted safely and in concert with the best interests of their well-being,” Big 12 board of directors said in a statement. “We remain vigilant in monitoring the trends and effects of COVID-19 as we learn more about the virus. If at any point our scientists and doctors conclude that our institutions cannot provide a safe and appropriate environment for our participants, we will change course.”

While there have been these cancellations, which seems like the logical thing to do, there was a group of college football players, spearheaded by Clemson star-quarterback Trevor Lawrence who took to Twitter to express their desire to play. This also comes after two other major conferences, the ACC and SEC, announcing their intentions to play. Along with their announcement, the BIG 12 released a fall game schedule.

“The virus continues to evolve and medical professionals are learning more with each passing week,” Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said in a statement. “Opinions vary regarding the best path forward, as we’ve seen throughout higher education and our society overall, but we are comfortable in our institutions’ ability to provide a structured training environment, rigorous testing and surveillance, hospital quality sanitation and mitigation practices that optimize the health and safety of our student-athletes. We believe all of this combines to create an ideal learning and training situation during this time of COVID-19.”

For the second time in four years, Vanderbilt won the College World Series on Wednesday night, freshman Kumar Rocker won the College World Series Most Outstanding Player award after the win.

“My coach, Tim Corbin, he’s Nick Saban,” said Rocker, according to ESPN.

The Commodores swept the SEC regular season and set the new league record for wins (59) and dominated the post season. The team also tied the record this year with a whopping 13 draft picks to go to the MLB or minor divisions.

“I felt we were going to hit well, I felt we were going to play well. I thought this was going to be a nice night for the kids,” said coach Corbin, according to FOX News.

They beat the Michigan Wolverines 8-2 in Omaha, Nebraska.

The motivator for the Commodores had to be the passing of former teammate Donny Everett, a player for the Commodores who drowned in June of 2016. His parents, Susan and Teddy Everrett, were honored after the game as they were brought to the mound to celebrate what they achieved, and the life of their former teammate.

“It meant a lot. I just wish my son could have been up there, too,” said Teddy Everett, according to NCAA.com. “I’ve been around the boys all year, I love all the boys, they’ve been amazing. The Corbins have been wonderful to us.”

The Commodores are now the sixth national champions from the Southeastern Conference since 2009, a conference who has dominated all sides of sports in recent history. Vanderbilt came into the tournament with a No. 2 seed placing, with Donny in their hearts.

“To this day, every time I look at Teddy, I think of Donny,” said Ethan Paul, according to NCAA.com, “And just being able to share that moment with them was something that I think, I can speak for the seniors, but probably the whole team is something that we’ve all really wanted to do.”

The No. 23 Kentucky Wildcats will visit the Florida Gators on Saturday, and here are all the facts to know before the big matchup.

Florida vs. Kentucky basketball preview

Florida beat Kentucky 66-64 in their previous game in Lexington on Jan. 20 after the hosts blew a late lead. The Wildcats (21-9, 10-7 SEC) are coming off a 96-78 home win over Ole Miss on Wednesday. After that, Kentucky freshman guard Quade Green said his team needs to “go to Florida and spank them.” The Wildcats have won four straight games.

The Gators (19-11, 10-7 SEC) have won their last two contests against No. 14 Auburn and Alabama.

Should the Wildcats win on Saturday, they would earn a top-four finish in the SEC.

Kentucky has gotten consistent scoring from Kevin Knox, all-around consistency from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, shot making from Green, hustle plays from Hamidou Diallo and Jarred Vanderbilt and bench scoring from PJ Washington. Sophomore Wenyen Gabriel has also been productive, and played one of his best games on Wednesday.

For Florida, junior guard Jalen Hudson has enjoyed a strong season thus far scoring-wise. He’s averaging 15 points and four rebounds per game.

Next week, Kentucky has the SEC Tournament in St. Louis.

Here are all the details for Saturday’s game:

Date: March 3, 2018

Time: 12 p.m. EST

Place: Exactech Arena, Gainseville, Florida

TV Channel: CBS

Online Stream: CBS Sports HQ

Odds: KenPom projects Kentucky to be a 3.5-point underdog. It gives Florida a 63-percent chance of winning. ESPN’s BPI predictor gives the Gators a 66.5-percent chance of winning.

MEMPHIS, TN – MARCH 26: Malik Monk #5 of the Kentucky Wildcats shoots against Justin Jackson #44 of the North Carolina Tar Heels in the first half during the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament South Regional at FedExForum on March 26, 2017 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The No. 18 Kentucky Wildcats will visit the South Carolina Gamecocks on Tuesday night, and here is everything you need to know before the game.

Kentucky vs. South Carolina basketball preview

The Gamecocks have lost three of their top four scorers, two of them to the NBA: Sindarius Thornwell and PJ Dozier. They also dropped a non-conference game to Illinois State and opened SEC play 1-3.

However, South Carolina (11-6, tenth in SEC) are now coming off a surprise 64-57 upset of Georgia. The Gamecocks average 18.8 fouls per game — more than 214 other Division I teams — and 12.5 offensive rebounds per game (fourth-most in the SEC).

Meanwhile, Kentucky (14-3, third in SEC) have won four of their five conference contests.

John Calipari will have to be extra careful. The Wildcats’ head coach has been ejected at South Carolina twice in the past four seasons — and during the 2015-2016 season, that happened less than three minutes into the game.

“I said, ‘Cal, don’t put me out there with these puppies,’ ” said UK assistant coach Kenny Payne. 

Payne also provided a detailed update on five-star freshman Jarred Vanderbilt, who is vying to return from his third left foot injury in two years. Vanderbilt is cleared to play.

“It’s wrong for adults to force a kid to do anything when they don’t feel like they are ready yet,” said Payne, who also praised Vanderbilt’s skills. “His speed is unbelievable … he can really move … an exceptional ball handler … literally like a point forward.”

Kentucky vs. South Carolina:

• Time: 9 p.m. ET
• Date: Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018
• Location: Colonial Life Arena (18,000), Columbia, S.C.
• Records: Kentucky 14-3, 4-1 SEC, South Carolina 11-6, 2-3
• Favorite: Kentucky by 2.5 (according to seccountry.com)
• TV Channel: ESPN
• Streaming: on ESPN3.com and the WatchESPN app.

Kentucky has been playing the last two games without its starting point guard, Quade Green, who tweaked his back. However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been great for the Wildcats.

MEMPHIS, TN – MARCH 26: Malik Monk #5 of the Kentucky Wildcats shoots against Justin Jackson #44 of the North Carolina Tar Heels in the first half during the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament South Regional at FedExForum on March 26, 2017 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The field for the fourth College Football Playoff was set and for the first time, two teams from the same conference made it.

College Football playoff Bowl Game Matchups News

Alabama (1-1) will face Clemson (12-1) in the Sugar Bowl and fellow SEC member Georgia (12-1) will play Oklahoma (12-1) in the Rose Bowl.

When Alabama earned the fourth and final Bowl spot over Ohio State, the Big Ten was left out for the first time. In addition, the Pac-12 was shut out for the second time in four seasons.

“I don’t see anything that’s happened in the first four years in the work of the selection committee or the playoff that is inconsistent with how it was designed or what was possible,” said Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott.

The Buckeyes (11-2) finished first in the Big Ten East. One of their two losses was a humiliating 31-point defeat at unranked Iowa (7-5, fourth in Big Ten West), who is set to play Boston College (7-5, third in ACC) in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium in New York on Dec. 27.

“It doesn’t change my view that the present structure is best for college football,” Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said during an interview with ESPN of the possibility of an All-SEC championship game. “I can be supportive of (the selection committee) and at the same time be disappointed and a little bit surprised.”

Here is the list of the rest of the New Year’s Six bowls: USC (11-2) vs. Ohio State (11-2) in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 29 ; Washington (10-2) vs. Penn State (10-2) in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 30 ; Miami (10-2) vs. Wisconsin (12-1) in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 30 ; and UCF (12-0) vs. Auburn (10-3) in the Peach Bowl on Jan. 1 .

Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban said he trusted the Bowl committee would reach the right conclusion about which team merited a spot.

“I really do believe based on the total body of work that our team really deserved to be in,” Saban said in an ESPN interview.

This marks the third straight year that Alabama and Clemson face each other in the playoffs, though this time it’s in the semifinals.

Ohio State coach Urban Meyer voiced his disappointment in his team not earning a spot.

“I sank in my chair at home, because I really thought we were in,” he said. He noted his team had three wins “against the top 16 teams in America.”

“But I get it,” he added.

GLENDALE, AZ – JANUARY 11: O.J. Howard #88 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates after scoring a 53 yard touchdown in the third quarter against the Clemson Tigers during the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship Game at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 11, 2016 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Update: Non-Big Five Conferences

Four-Star

As most college football fans know, today is National Signing Day: as team’s scramble to make one last impact on top recruits, these young high school students make a decision about the next four years of their lives. And as the media scuffles around to hear the latest announcement — there will be a lot — uSports will try and consistently update you on all four and five-star recruits’ decisions.

SEC

Five-Star

https://twitter.com/mikedyce/status/562983599390326784

Four-Star

https://twitter.com/UofCFB/status/562997015236599808

https://twitter.com/Volquest_Paul/status/562995633028882435

https://twitter.com/jomalley1964/status/563009624044216320

Big Ten

Four-Star

https://twitter.com/PickSixPreviews/status/562971180303679488

ACC

Four-Star

https://twitter.com/UofCFB/status/562992266776936448

Big 12

Four-Star

Pac-12

Five-Star

Four-Star

https://twitter.com/LeonRogers/status/563096997658652672

Make sure to keep tuning in for updates about all four and five-star recruits: if you want to look at a comprehensive list of three-star and below, go to the SB Nation or Bleacher Report Live page. As for who is winning National Signing Day and the recruiting process, check out 247 Sports’ team chart below.