Jimbo Fisher took aim at critics Wednesday over some of the chatter regarding Texas A&M’s top-ranked recruiting class.
The new NCAA rules on Name, Image, and Likeness now make it legal for players to earn significant money through endorsements and other means of profiting off their image. What is not legal is offering NIL deals in exchange for signing with one specific school.
Some claims have Texas A&M coming dangerously close to breaking that rule when putting together their No. 1 recruiting class for 2022. Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin publicly bemoaned his school’s inability to hang with some major programs in terms of NIL money, and even joked that Texas A&M must have paid a “luxury tax” in bringing in their class.
Fisher responded to that Wednesday, accusing Kiffin of being a hypocrite and making allegations that are “irresponsible as hell.”
Jimbo Fisher today on accusations about A&M’s NIL-recruiting: “To have coaches in our league say it, clown acts. Irresponsible as hell. The guys griping about NIL and transfer portal are using it the most. That’s the ironic part. It does piss me off.” https://t.co/vd4AebCRg8
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) February 2, 2022
Fisher’s strongest response, however, was reserved for an internet rumor of questionable sourcing. In January, a poster on the OUInsider website with the username “SlicedBread” alleged that Texas A&M donors paid as much as $30 million in NIL money to help entice recruits to sign with the Aggies. That post was picked up by the website BroBible, which wrote a post on the allegations despite the lack of evidence and the unverified source.
That post in particular angered Fisher, and he even referenced it specifically in multiple media appearances on Wednesday.
Jimbo Fisher talking NIL on @247Sports NSD show: "It didn't affect recruiting at all. This $30 million thing is a joke. This idea there's some fund out there & it was written on BroBible by a guy named sliced bread and now all of a sudden the country believes it?"
Quite a quote
— Chris Hummer (@chris_hummer) February 2, 2022
Pretty amazing. How much anyone believed allegations posted on a message board by someone named SlicedBread is definitely a fair question, but Fisher is mad enough about it that he’s willing to draw attention to something most people probably hadn’t even heard about.
Fisher sounded more relaxed about NIL rules when he previously spoke on them. He does not want to be accused of breaking any rules or any impropriety, of course, which helped prompt this response.
Photo: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
