Nick Saban on Ohio State’s roster: ‘If you don’t pay the right guys, you’ll be shit out of luck’

Nick Saban and the rest of the ESPN College GameDay crew had a lot to say about Ohio State utilizing NIL to their advantage over the offseason.

Through NIL and the transfer portal , Ryan Day’s squad was able to add stars like Quinshon Judkins , Will Howard and Caleb Downs , as well as keep a myriad of contributors from heading to the NFL. It’s all shaping up for a season where the main goal, the only goal for that matter, is to win a national title.

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While you can make plenty of bones about the money spent by the Buckeyes, Saban summed it up with one hilarious, poignant quote: “If you don’t pay the right guys, you’ll be shit out of luck.”

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That’s certainly the money-quote from Saban. However, he made another good point about Ohio State’s roster, believing the money will really show its impact as it pertains to the players the Buckeyes were able to keep in Columbus.: “Really, it’s the guys they kept, as Rece said, that’s most important,” Saban added, “because they already have the culture.”

While Saban kept it real, Kirk Herbstreit believes the media is over-inflating Ohio State’s win-now roster due to the money spent, thinking that while it’s a good roster, it doesn’t match up with some of the Buckeyes’ teams of yesteryear.

“I guess my take on that, we talked a lot about that, is what did they actually bring in? You know, I mean, we talk about this $20 million roster, but again, they brought in a quarterback in Will Howard, who was going to fight to keep his job at Kansas State. You brought in a backup running back from Ole Miss, he’ll be kind of a good tandem to TreVeyon Henderson, who’s already there. And then they brought in a great safety in Caleb Downs. That’s really what they brought in,” Herbstreit added.

“So, I’ve looked at Ohio State’s roster over the last 10 or 15 years, I don’t know if this roster is as good as some of the others. When was the last time Ohio State had a, ‘Wow, now they really have some talent.’ Are you saying Caleb Downs, Judkins and Will Howard make this roster, ‘Oh my god, all the chips in. They better win.’ I don’t see that.

“… The perception is they went out and brought people in to strengthen the roster, and I’m just saying, it’s about coming together as a team. It’s not about individual talent. That’s Ohio State, that’s everybody who goes through the portal.”

Meanwhile, Desmond Howard made some salient points as well, pointing out that when he’s getting his haircut at the University of Miami , coaches for the Hurricanes will point out Ohio State’s NIL wealth. However, he pushes back on the notion that the Buckeyes bought their team for 2024.

“When I’m in the barbershop, I have these Miami Hurricanes coaches come in and they say, ‘Hey man, you see what Ohio State did in the portal?’ So you’ve got a good point. Like, they’re not talking about the guys who came back, they’re talking about the guys who got in the portal,” Howard stated. “And my response was, ‘When did Ohio State ever have a talent issue?’ Like, look at the recruiting rankings. They’ve never had that problem. And at that point, they were quiet.”

Perception isn’t always reality. Regardless, Ohio State will take a national title anyway they can get it in 2024, and if that involves dealign with some snide comments, so be it.

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