Saban, who guided the Crimson Tide to the national championship last season, referred to some agents as pimps Wednesday at the annual gathering of members of the news media before the Southeastern Conference football season.
“I don’t know that I would disagree with him about some agents as pimps, but all I know is there are coaches who would also fall in that category,” said Cindrich, who represents the Jets’ D’Brickashaw Ferguson, among others. “I would never tolerate nor permit Saban or any other coach to lump me in that category.
“In terms of him throwing that out there, most agents know what goes on in college programs and what programs are clean or not. You want to find out who has the dirty programs, give immunity and go off the record with agents, and it would be like a cockfight, the last one standing wins.
“There are ways to determine the truth of allegations out there.”
Saban unloaded on agents because the N.C.A.A. and the SEC are investigating allegations that Alabama defensive lineman Marcell Dareus received improper benefits from an agent. Dareus is projected as a first-round pick in the 2011 N.F.L. draft, but he could lose his college eligibility if the allegations prove to be true.
Saban said the N.F.L. should do a better job of policing agents. If not, he said, perhaps N.F.L. scouts and agents should be banned from campuses and be made to evaluate players some other way.
“We need to create some consequences for people who are not doing the right things here, which starts with the agent, in my opinion, who is entrapping and taking advantage of young people,” Saban said. “There’s a lot of good agents out there that don’t do this stuff.”
There has been a barrage of accusations of agents giving benefits to college players, which has resulted in N.C.A.A. investigations at North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida this week. Southern California was severely sanctioned by the N.C.A.A. because Reggie Bush received improper benefits from an agent.
The N.C.A.A. is investigating an allegation that the former Florida offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey, a first-round pick of the Steelers, received $100,000 from an agent last December before the Gators’ Sugar Bowl game against Cincinnati. Mike Pouncey, his twin brother, said here that the allegation was false.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that the N.C.A.A. is investigating whether Georgia players received improper benefits from agents.
“It’s an epidemic, and the epidemic needs to get fixed,” said Urban Meyer, the Florida coach. Meyer said the Gators have security around the team, not to keep away fans, but to keep agents and their representatives from contacting players.