This is an opinion column.
One of the biggest busts in Alabama football history. Jaylen Mbakwe, I will always wonder what could have been.
They used to say that Alabama is the place where champions are made. That marketing campaign doesn’t really resonate with me anymore. Just look at Mbakwe. He never learned the first thing about being a champion at Alabama, and now he’s in the transfer portal and visiting places like Georgia and Texas.
Maybe Mbakwe will figure things out at a different school under one of Nick Saban’s former assistants. I’m not optimistic, but I’ll support him.
Mbakwe played high school football at Clay-Chalkville. Like everyone who went to Alabama, he was a big man at the time. He was ranked the No. 1 overall athlete in the country by ESPN in his senior year. He could do it all. Now that’s a cautionary tale. What happened?
That’s the problem with college football these days, and it’s not just an Alabama thing. When children are given money without earning it, it does not make them professionals. It just makes them want to be lazy.
Fancy car comes without earning.
Free money is wasted on unpleasant jewellery.
If you want a PC friendly column, you’ve come to the wrong place. This is for someone else to write. Here’s just the real thing. There’s nothing in this world I hate more than wasted potential. Mbakwe’s story makes me angry. He attended campus as one of the top 20 recruits. Five stars. Blah blah blah. He didn’t do much at cornerback his freshman season, so he switched to receiver. However, first of all, he wanted more money or he was going to leave.
I don’t really blame him personally. I blame the system. College football in its current form is pretty good at developing spoiled kids.
Does anyone remember what Mbakwe’s sidekick Ryan Williams wrote on Twitter after Mbakwe went into the transfer portal for more money? This happened last year. Mbakwe was standing. He wanted Alabama to pay, otherwise.
Eventually Alabama caved.
“We got action,” Williams said.
famous last Words. What Alabama got was no action from Mbekwe, and Williams somehow forgetting how to play football this season.
Lesson learned.
Mbakwe and Williams were more focused on developing podcasts and playing video games than learning how to become professionals.
I don’t want to get lost in the weeds here, but Alabama might want to think about showcasing that stupid podcast studio they built for football players.
Maybe get back to creating champions.
In war the lions are fighting for a piece of raw meat.
That’s how NFL linebacker Rashaan Evans once described practice at Alabama. That’s hard stuff.
Alabama football these days? I don’t see many hungry lions.
The raw meat in Evans’ metaphor was the idea of becoming a professional through hard work and playing time. This was a fight for survival. Now free food is available everywhere.
Mbaweke, not a hungry lion at all.
He got fat as soon as he arrived on campus, then he threatened to leave if he didn’t get more food and now he’s off to look for the next free meal.
That’s your problem with Alabama football these days, and it’s something Nick Saban never had to deal with.
I don’t have all the answers to the problems facing college football this offseason. However, if I were a general manager, I know how I would play this new game. Freshmen with big wallets don’t win national championships. It is more efficient to spend money on transfers of elite guys like Indiana’s guys than of five-stars like Mbakwe.
Indiana overhauled its roster over the past two years with a group of juniors and seniors looking for a chance to prove themselves. Just look at Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza. He studied hard at Cal for three years. How did Indiana coach Curt Cignetti find him?
He gave priority to experience over ability.
Auburn fans should definitely remember Mendoza. Go back and look at it. His breakout game in 2024 was Cal’s 21–14 victory over the Tigers.
Another missed opportunity by Hugh Freeze? go figure.
However, Cignetti was watching, and he built his team around a former two-star recruit who was once ranked 140th among high school quarterback prospects.
The transfer portal is open till January 16. More and more Power 4 teams will follow the Indiana model. Perhaps Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer should find some hungry two-stars and get to work.
College football is a similar game. Just have to find the hungry lions.
It’s better to invest in hard work rather than wasting money on the next big bust.
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