Alex Golesh opens up on dealing with NIL boosters in first year at Auburn
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Alex Golesh has coached in the SEC before, but that was only as an offensive coordinator and tight ends coach at Tennessee in 2021 and 2022.
The 41-year-old has never been the main guy before in the SEC — until now. Now, Golesh is the head coach at Auburn, being hired on the Plains after 3 seasons as the head guy at South Florida. This is all uncharted territory for Golesh, in terms of stature, in terms of expectations and, of course, in terms of the intensity coming from NIL boosters.
In the modern era of college football, handling everything that comes with NIL boosters is part of the job description of a head coach. It’s not always easy, and that might be an understatement, but it’s an aspect of the job that has to be handled with care and detail. Golesh is realizing all this right now as spring football approaches, and during an exclusive interview with On3’s Pete Nakos he broke it all down.
“Are there people involved in helping fund this operation? Hell yeah, you need those people. It’s also being very real with them, it’s having conversations, and it’s being really honest …,” Alex Golesh told Nakos.
“They have a right to know what you’re spending money on. But you have to be really careful. If you’re going to spend money and then want to be involved in decision-making, then we’re good. We don’t need your money. If you’re upfront and honest from the beginning, you’ve got a chance.”
Here is Golesh’s full comments to Nakos on the tricky subject as he launches Year 1 at Auburn:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
