Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher sat down for an interview with KSAT 12’s Greg Simmons that aired on Monday, where he continued the defense of his school’s recruiting practices.
“I just researched this. Of the 11 guys we have in place that came early, one guy has an NIL deal,” Fisher said. “Just one [of the 11 early enrollees]. So all these stories you’re hearing are complete lies.”
Fisher was responding to a question about the new name, image, and likeness (NIL) rules that have led to questions about how Texas A&M secured its top-ranked recruiting class. Alabama head coach Nick Saban singled out the Aggies last Wednesday, claiming they took advantage of the new NIL rules and “bought every player” on their team.
Fisher called the comments “despicable” in a news conference the following day and said the Alabama head coach was a “narcissist.”
“Some people think they’re God,” Fisher said of Saban. “Go dig into how God did his deal. May find out about a guy, a lot of things you don’t want to know. We build him up to be the czar of football. Go dig into his past. Or anybody that’s ever coached with him. You can find out anything you want to find out. What he does and how he does it. And it’s despicable.”
Saban has since apologized for singling out the school and clarified that he “wasn’t saying that anyone did anything illegal in using name, image, and likeness.”
Simmons’ interview with Fisher turned contentious when Fisher questioned Simmons on whether he did his own research or just believed “false” social media posts. Fisher touched on a rumor that swirled around social media in February that Texas A&M had a $30 million fund for NIL deals.
“It was written on social media so everybody believes it,” Fisher said. “You’ve got news channels believing it and big people believing it. And you believed it.”
“Did you do your research? No, see you can’t answer,” Fisher continued. “So you just assumed, and that’s the way this world goes now. As soon as it’s written on social media and someone says it, you believe it. So where does that put you guys as reporters?”
“Nobody wants the truth. You want a story and a click and a hit,” added Fisher.
During last week’s press conference, Fisher asserted that he was “done” with Saban, who he had coached under from 2000-2004 at LSU. In the interview with Simmons, Fisher once again affirmed he would not be talking to Saban.
“I didn’t read it,” Fisher said when asked if he had seen Saban’s apology. “I don’t read social media.”
Simmons then asked the Texas A&M coach if he would accept the apology.
“I said we’re not talking,” Fisher responded sharply.
