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College Athletes Should be Compensated Essay

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Today there is much controversy over the subject of compensating college athletes. Some believe that providing a payment would further complicate the issue, but others say that it would end all of the problems. College athletes should receive some form of compensation for participation in collegiate sports due to the hardships they endure, a failure of scholarships to cover all expenses , the exploitation of college athletes by the colleges and universities they play for, a disparity between coaches’ and players’ compensation, and the hypocrisy of National Collegiate Athletic Association’s rules. A recent report states that playing at a large basketball or football program takes the same amount of time as a full time job …show more content…

McCartney answered, “The education plus the costs of basic living and the opportunity to play college athletics is significant compensation”(McCartney 3). Instead of receiving the money that they generate for their school, college athletes earn athletic scholarships. These scholarships do not always cover the entire cost of attending college, which forces numerous players beneath the poverty line (Sports Illustrated 2011). Gary Clark, a guard for the Wake Forest men’s basketball team states,” At a lot of schools, players come from underprivileged families. I know we are getting a scholarship, but some folks don’t have cash to get something to eat when the school cafeteria is closed, or money to buy a used car” (Ford 1). A recent report found that the shortfall of scholarships, for the entire cost of attending school, is between $952 and $6,127. This calculation took many things into account, such as clothing and emergency trips home. These numbers do not reflect money that the athletes may receive from their families or from small jobs, but the majority of athletes are persuaded to appear at voluntary workouts during the summer. This makes is near impossible for the athletes to find outside work (Sports Illustrated 2011). When asked about full-ride scholarships and their shortfalls, Mr. McCartney answered, "It will pay enough to cover the basic costs of living, and I am not opposed to a small increase to insure all the student athlete’s needs are covered

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