NEWNow you can listen to Pak Gazette articles!
For the past two decades, former NFL star quarterback and Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy Aikman has shared his thoughts on what he’s seen during whatever game he and his longtime broadcast partner are calling.
The three-time Super Bowl winner is part of the “Monday Night Football” broadcast team. Aikman has routinely given his opinion on a variety of football-related topics, from the state of NFL officiating to college football.
Some of Aikman’s most recent thoughts on the college game focused on the growing number of players who have taken advantage of the transfer portal in today’s polarized NIL landscape.
The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and many others have referred to the current state of the sport at the college level as the “Wild West.”
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PakGazette.Com
Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman before a game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants at Acrisure Stadium. (Barry Reeger/Image Images)
“College football has become the Wild West, as everyone knows. Forget about Lane Kiffin for a minute, but starting with the NIL, there just hasn’t been any guardrails. I’m on the Board of the National Football Foundation, so I hear firsthand from a lot of the commissioners and athletic directors and the people involved in all of that. It needs to be cleaned up, first and foremost,” Aikman told The Athletic.
When asked about the mobility of student-athletes in today’s world, Aikman reflected on his personal choices during his time competing at the NCAA level.
NFL GREAT TROY AIKMAN RESPONDS TO JERRY JONES TRADE PLAN AMID LOSS OF EFFORT: ‘HE MAY WANT TO CANCEL’
“I transferred. I went from Oklahoma to UCLA, and I always felt that if a coach can up and leave, a player should have the same opportunity if a coach leaves,” he continued.
UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman runs the ball against Arizona on October 2, 1988 at Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Arizona. (Mike Powell/Allsport/Getty Images)
“What’s obviously happened over the years since I got out of college football is that, over the last few years with NIL, players haven’t been held accountable,” Aikman continued. “So players pick up and now they leave all the time, whereas before it was usually the coach. The player used to be out for a year. Now, players can up and leave whether they’ve been paid or not. It’s every man for himself.”
Aikman then dove into another hot topic in college football: Lane Kiffin’s decision to leave Ole Miss for LSU. The NFL analyst gave his best guess as to what prompted Kiffin to make the jump.
“Lane Kiffin’s motivation? Is it his thinking that it’s a better opportunity for him at LSU? Possibly. Is it money? Possibly. Is it lifestyle? Possibly. I can’t answer any of those questions.
Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin throws a football before a game against the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Oct. 25, 2025. (Kevin Jairaj/Image Images)
“But whatever his motivation, he feels like LSU is the right place for him. So I don’t blame him for that at all. I know there’s always hard feelings. Ole Miss didn’t want to lose Lane Kiffin,” he said. “Once he made the decision to leave, now he’s an outcast. Let’s get this guy away from us as much as we can. I understand that too. Everyone gets a little tired.”
Aikman concluded that those in positions of power should ultimately take charge and focus on putting things in order.
“In my opinion, I think there has to be some leadership at the top that cleans this up. Starting with the players who accept money, there has to be some accountability and responsibility on their behalf to have a program to follow,” Aikman said.
“I gave money to a kid. I won’t name who. I did it once at UCLA. I never met the young man. He was there one year. He left after the year. I wrote a big check and he went to another school. I didn’t even get a thank-you note.”
Aikman is scheduled to be in the squad for the Week 15 matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Miami Dolphins on December 15.
