The issue of whether or not college athletes should get paid has always been a big debate among student athletes and the NCAA. This issue arises mostly with large sports revenue universities like, the University of Georgia, and the University of Southern California.
Other than covering the athlete’s tuition, books, game travel, and room and board, athletes do not receive any type of tangible money. So, where does the money go, and why doesn’t more go to the athletes that bring in most of the revenue? This is the argument that some are for and against. Me, however, I am for athletes receiving an extra amount of money along with their scholarship. They are working for the school, so why shouldn’t they get paid for their time.
Student athletes on an average practice a minimum of 20 hours and on top of that attend school full-time. During season the hours increase due to games that sometimes include long hours of travel. With all those hours worked a week to improve at their sport, how are student athletes expected to get a part time job to have some extra spending money? I think student athletes should at least be paid minimum wage for every hour spent at formal practices and sanctioned games and events. This salary along with a full scholarship better justifies the work that the student athletes put in for the school. According to University of Georgia Athletic Association, in the fiscal year of 2009 the school received more than $76 million from sports alone. Without the athletes, the $76 million dollars would not be possible.
In my opinion, if the student athletes are making the school over $76 million a year, they should definitely get a cut from that hefty paycheck. Wouldn’t you want to be paid for your face and name being used in a video game and on apparel worn by so many?
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I don't agree or disagree with this. A part of me feels like they should be getting paid because they are making the school money and making a name for the school, but a part of me also feels that if they are getting scholarships, then they don't need to be getting paid. It kind of works like a "work study" program.
ReplyDeleteCollege athletes should receive some kind of compensation for their hard work. I have many friends who are college athletes and their whole lives are devoted to practice and it takes up a lot of time. I feel minimum wage would be a fair enough reward. According to the Chronicles of Higher Education, the NCAA raised more than $3.9 billion for new sports facilities. This would not be possible if athletes didn't work as hard as they do to make the coaches and colleges the money they need to provide these facilities. I feel paying student-athletes would alleviate problems related to illegal payments and point shaving. Paying student-athletes would provide athletes an incentive to stay in school and complete their degree programs, instead of leaving early for the professional leagues.
ReplyDeleteI know that scholarships are offered to students but practicing all the time can leave out time for some extra spending. If colleges don't agree with paying students for playing, students should be allowed to receive endorsements and college universities should work together with sports leagues and offer incentives before graduating and joining professional leagues according to Dr. Steve Chen, assistant professor of sports management. I agree with this because it can place less pressure on athletes.
Diana, you've got a great topic here. Have you joined discussions about this on sport blogs?
ReplyDeleteVery debatable topic Diana :) I like it...
ReplyDeleteIt is funny that there are actually ongoing jokes about how college athletes get rich playing in college. For example, in the movie "Baseketball" with Trey Parker and Matt Stone, creators of South Park, they have a conversation that goes something like this...”Shaq got rich in Orlando".
"No, no, everyone knows he got rich at LSU".
In my personal opinion, I don't think they should be paid or compensated any more than they already are. They are part of the sport they choose because they want to be. Being part of any extra-curricular activity requires time and sacrifice. That is a choice left up to the individual. I think the reward of playing is playing itself. Many of these athletes are on a "full ride" which means all is taken care of if they play the sport they were brought there to play and maintain a minimal grade point average.
I openly recognize that if it were not for sports many colleges would not be receiving the ridiculous amount of revenue that they currently receive. I think you said it was in the ballpark of $76 million. That is a big deal!
It is a big business with all sides winning.
On the NCAA players side- they are getting an amazing opportunity to play their sport on a collegiate level. They are also getting the opportunity to be scouted for the professional side of their pursuits (i.e. NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, MLS, etc.) Many have all expenses paid, so in a sense they are already getting compensation for playing a sport at the institution of their choosing.
For the school- like you said...big time money. Also notoriety and a place on the map. For example, most everyone knows that Michael Jordan was a tar heel. Collegiate television events are still sponsored by major corporations just like professional games. There is a huge following in most universities. For example, Georgia fans, with the vanity tags on the front of their cars saying something like this "A house divided": then two collegiate teams within the same conference like Georgia and Tennessee. Plus players on a collegiate level want to play at a university that has prestige. They can be scouted heavily there. For example, Duke Basketball attracts some of the nation’s best collegiate talent with its title runs of the last couple decades. The same is true with any sport. If someone is a fan, they will most likely be able to identify a player that went to the university brought up in conversation
For the Fan- College sports are awesome to me for a few reasons. I like collegiate sports because they are playing not for the money, but for the passion and sometimes the possibility of playing on the next level, a professional team somewhere in the world. I also like college athletics because there is a lot of parody. For example in college football two teams will be playing. One team is ranked on the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) as a top 25 team and the other is not ranked at all. Sometimes the unranked team gets an upset win over the team that was "supposed to win". Granted, this happens in professional sports, but it just seems to happen so much more in college sports. I also like the bands that accompany collegiate sports. They add such energy to the game! I love hearing fight songs from random universities. It's just so cool. If college players started to get paid, then eventually there would be a players’ union, trading, free agency, and other elements that saturate the professional ranks that keep the NCAA almost pure in the sense of pure sport.