Trump and the women’s hockey team joke explained. What did he say?
President Donald Trump made a joke when calling to Congratulate the U.S. women’s hockey team on their Olympic win. What did he say?
- President Donald Trump announced a “Saving College Sports Roundtable” meeting set for March 6 at the White House.
- Prominent names from Florida include Gov. Ron DeSantis, golf legend Tiger Woods, Florida Gators national champions Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer, and FSU Heisman winner Charlie Ward.
- The summit is to address the changing landscape of college sports amid NIL contracts for players.
President Donald Trump’s latest attempt at reining-in college sports includes plenty of Florida representation, starting at the top with its vice chair, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Trump announced the “Saving College Sports Roundtable” on Feb. 26, inviting as many as 40 members of various sports backgrounds to discuss the rapidly changing landscape of college sports. The summit was first reported by Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellinger and reportedly came to be after a golf outing at Mar-a-Lago with DeSantis and former college coaches Urban Meyer, Nick Saban and Mack Brown.
The list includes plenty of celebrities and big names from college and pro sports, including Heisman Trophy winners and national champions from Florida and Florida State. The commissioners of the Big Ten and SEC, NBA commissioner Adam Silver, the heads of ESPN and Fox Sports and even former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have been invited. Notably, no active college athletes have reportedly been invited, and there’s only one current college coach: Florida A&M men’s basketball coach Charlie Ward, a Heisman winner when he played for FSU football.
The president has spoken often of fixing college sports, signing an executive order in July 2025 and creating a separate council aiming to, among other things, tackle the issue of whether college athletes should be treated like pros. The primary focus of previous moves has been athletes getting paid for their name, image and likeness, with NIL deals leading to athletes changing teams on a seemingly annual basis. This is something that coaches have been able to do for decades; the Lane Kiffin saga was just one of dozens of head coach moves from the past college football season.
So far, nothing of substance has come from Trump’s previous endeavors, with his first attempt at a commission getting halted in May 2025. According to Yahoo and ESPN, there is speculation as to whether the roundtable will even take place. Saban and legendary golfer Tiger Woods have been a part of his previous efforts; they’ll be back March 6 for this meeting. And they’ll be joined by plenty of dignitaries from Florida lore.
Florida ties invited to Trump college sports roundtable
- Ron DeSantis: The Florida governor was listed as the vice chair, along with New York Yankees president Randy Levine. He was captain of the varsity baseball team at Yale but has never been directly involved with major college sports, though he did sign into law Florida’s NIL policy.
- Tiger Woods: The 15-time major champion and Jupiter Island resident has 82 career PGA Tour victories, tied for the most ever in golf’s top competition. He also co-founded the TGL tech-infused indoor golf league based in Palm Beach Gardens and is dating Vanessa Trump, ex-wife of Donald Trump Jr. and mother of University of Miami golf commit Kai Trump.
- Urban Meyer: The former college football coach won two national championships leading the Florida Gators (2006, 2008), winning a third with Ohio State in 2014. He also coached the Jacksonville Jaguars to a 2-11 record in 2021, getting fired before the end of his first season. He is currently a Fox Sports analyst.
- Tim Tebow: The former quarterback played on Meyer’s national champion teams in 2006 and 2008, winning the Heisman Trophy in 2007. He played three seasons in the NFL and is now part-owner of Sporting Club Jacksonville, a soccer team in the second-tier USL Championship.
- Charlie Ward: The 1993 Heisman Trophy winner was the quarterback on Florida State’s first national championship team. He also started on the FSU basketball team and played 11 seasons in the NBA. Ward is now head coach of the FAMU men’s basketball team.
- Tony Dungy: The former NFL safety was a head coach for 13 seasons, leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996 to 2001 and winning the Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts after the 2006 season. He was an NBC Sports analyst for 17 years before reportedly leaving the network this week.
Who was invited to Trump college sports roundtable?
Here’s some of the others reportedly invited to take part in the roundtable on the future of college sports. It’s unknown how many of the about 40 people will attend.
- Nick Saban, former Alabama football coach
- Mack Brown, former Texas and North Carolina football coach
- Charlie Baker, NCAA president
- Condoleezza Rice, former U.S. secretary of State and College Football Playoff selection committee member
- Commissioners of the Power 4 conferences (Big Ten, SEC, Big 12 and ACC) as well as Mountain West commissioner Gloria Nevarez and American commissioner Tim Pernetti
- Pete Bevacqua, Notre Dame athletic director
- Jack Swarbrick, former Notre Dame AD
- ADs of Indiana, Wake Forest and Iowa State
- Joe Castiglione, former Oklahoma AD
- David Stern, NBA commissioner
- Robert Kraft, New England Patriots president
- Jimmy Pitaro, ESPN chairman
- Eric Shanks, Fox Sports president
- Bryson DeChambeau, LIV Golf member and two-time U.S. Open champion
- Cody Campbell, Texas Tech board chairman
- University presidents and chancellors at Georgia, Tennessee, Kansas and Nebraska
- Gerry Cardinale, managing partner of RedBird Capital
- David Blitzer, part-owner of Washington Commanders, Philadelphia 76ers, Cleveland Guardians and other sports teams
Notably absent from the list: any active college athletes, or any player agents.
When is the Saving College Sports Roundtable?
The group is scheduled to meet Friday, March 6 at the White House.
Contributing: James Call, USA TODAY Network – Florida
