College Athletes and Scholarships: Not what it Seems

What most people don’t is that not all athletes get the full-ride scholarships that people think of. Most collegiate sports don’t even offer full-ride scholarships; instead they have a set amount of money that they can do whatever to give scholarships. According to a U.S. News article, “The average athletic scholarship is about $10,400. Only four sports offer full rides to all athletes who receive scholarships: football, men’s and women’s basketball, and women’s volleyball” (O'Shaughnessy). Just to put this into perspective, there are twenty-four total college sports, and only these 4 offer full scholarships. This showcases the rarity of a full-ride in college athletes. Looking into it even more, most of those college athletes come from low income families, “86 percent of college athletes come from below the poverty line” (Hayes 1). A college athlete's schedule is also very hectic. In an article showing the schedule of a football player, it lists, “6am-7am: Wake up,

Collegiate sports have turned into a billion dollar industry and are probably just as popular, if not more popular than professional sports. College athletes put their bodies on the line to play a sport they love, many with hopes and dreams to one day make it to the professional leagues. Athletic facilities are the major money makers for all universities. Colleges bring in billions of dollars in revenue annually, yet athletes do not get paid. Some fans believe athletes should not get paid due to their sports level being “amateurish.”; however, this is far from the truth. There is much more to being a college athlete than just practicing and playing games. These student-athletes must practice, weight lift, go to meetings, travel, go to tutoring and study groups, all the while maintaining sufficient grades. This is very tedious work and is very time consuming. College athletes have a high standard to live up to (Frederick Web; Huma Web; Patterson Web ).

In conclusion, it is a fact that athletes, especially at larger universities across the country get special treatment in regards to academic issues and lifestyle. Universities will go to any extent to protect their players from being academically ineligible to play, and seems they will do anything to get the best recruits in the country to give their team an advantage. It is hard for the NCAA to enforce strict rules, especially academically because schools have academic freedom which enables universities to make their own classroom policies. The NCAA asks, "If a certain institution permits grade changes for students up through and even after the final exam, how do you hold athletes to a different standard?" In reality, it is almost impossible to hold athletes to a different standard, and as long as this loop hole exists, colleges will be using any method enticing athletes to come to their school and continue to play through their college career, regardless of their academic status. It is unethical, but until NCAA rules change, who can dictate these procedures are not allowed?

The price for college is a huge sacrifice that many families end up taking for their child. For athletes, many receive scholarships or are granted money to attend college, but the sacrifice they have to deal with is much larger than money itself. However, many of these athletes’ superiors argue that it's their choice to sacrifice their bodies, and that they’re just student athletes they don’t deserve to be paid. The people who end up stating these claims are the people who end up making millions off of them and who pay their coaches millions in return. Of course they’re college athletes, but college sports have never fell from the public eye and are just as popular as professional sports, and just as profitable. The problem with college sports

The ugly truth behind the money machine that is college sports is that, every year, college athletes are deceived by the institutions the compete for into making them millions of dollars, with relatively little in return. Athletes are said to be given a chance to attend college and to attain a free college degree. However, research has shown that this is not completely true for two reasons. For one, the student athlete will spend most of their time in preparation for competition. Secondly, what education the student athlete does receive hardly serves them outside of maintaining eligibility just so

Helen Hayes expresses that “ the expert in anything was once a beginner.” This quote relates to all athletes in pursuance of making themselves noticeable. Being an amature at sports is an athletes worst fear. Any athlete who is passionate about their sport, wants to succeed in the world of sports; therefore, the rising athletes want to continue their success in college. College is a place where the athletes start to receive fans and begin their journey of success. However, beginning the college experience is like throwing away one’s money because of all the collegian’s expenses. Many college athletes of today are accumulating debt in college instead of collecting money for their dedication and hardwork. The ongoing debate on whether or not college athletes should be paid is starting to raise sport fans and athlete’s attention about the issue. People are starting to realize the true facts about playing college sports and that it is not just fun and games anymore. Athletes are merely performers and the audience is just enjoying the show. With that being said, college athletes are being profited off of without receiving their paycheck. College athletes should be paid because the college they are attending is expensive, businesses are profiting off of them, and the hard work of an athlete is not being paid for.

The NCAA states that the student athletes are paid in the form of an education, but this is not always true. There have been many instances in which student-athletes have graduated with grade school reading levels or never graduated because they were not directed to pursue any specific degree path (Marquette sports law journal). The emphases of winning in collegiate sports use to be for moral. College sports now are a very lucrative business and a lot of it comes from being on television and through sponsorship. Nike is going to endorse the teams that win over the teams that lose. College athletics has been estimated to be a $60 billion industry (McCormick). Universities are all too willing to try and get a piece of this huge industry.

A topic that is very controversial for everyone is, should student-athletes in college be compensated? There numerous evidence that supports in favor and many against the proposition of paying student- athletes who play sports for their university. As a college athlete, students are putting their bodies on the line each game they play. There’s possibility of suffering a traumatic brain injury or being paralyze after physical contact. These athletes are sacrificing their bodies and physical health at an opportunity to play a game which they love, and hopefully play it in the professional level. While that’s taking place, college football and basketball are big business that keep expanding. College sports bring in a large amount of revenues. The result is that many of them fail to graduate. Paying college athletes would not ruin amateur sport because even though most college athletes do get scholarship and should focus on their education it doesn’t help them if most of the time they are not attending classes to be in practice or games. College sports do make a high-income and athletes deserve a portion of the revenue they bring their programs.

Its no secret that college sports brings in the big bucks, and without the athletes preforming day in or day out universities would lack the funds to support a school needs. The college sports industry makes 11 billion in annual revenues (Mitchell, Horace, U.S. News Digital Weekly). 11 billion dollars made off of college sports alone is enough its self to pay these student-athletes for their contribution to a school’s success because without them there wouldn’t be this much income. They need these athletes and the NCAA should quit exploiting them for their talents and compensate them. Student-athletes are amateurs who choose to participate in intercollegiate athletics (Mitchell, Horace, U.S. News Digital Weekly). Indeed, they are amateur but in sports the word professional has a different meaning since in all sports there is a 1-2-year stint before an athlete can go from the college level to a professional standpoint. Meaning it only takes a year or two

In today’s society, there are many issues, dilemmas, and scandals that we have to face. After reading Kenneth Jost’s article about college football there is, respectively, many issues in this field. I firmly agree that the Committee of the Coalition of Intercollegiate Athletics, which is an organization that represent roughly half the FBS schools, should search for ways to force college athletes to be admitted into the school before being provided with scholarships to play. Even though everyone loves watching college athletics, the purpose of going to school isn’t to be entertained, it’s an opportunity to better your education. Although many colleges feel like this will decrease their schools win efficiency there are examples that diminish

In order to justify the compensation of college athletes we must look at the current programs in place. Right now college athletes are spoon-fed an education, giving them a distinct advantage over other students. Universities provide them with free private tutors and review sessions to help further compensate for their time on

Former University of Connecticut basketball player, now Miami Heat guard, Shabazz Napier told reporters that he used to go to bed starving in college because he couldn’t afford food.(CNN) Numerous high school athletes every year aren’t able to go to college because they can’t afford it. These athletes that cannot afford college would also have their families to support while in college because of the families lack of financial income. College athletes should be paid to help themselves financially and to keep them focused on earning their degree.

One school of thought currently cycling throughout media circles is the definition and compensation of college student-athletes. Some colleges and universities provide student-athletes with complete or partially-paid tuition expenses, lodging, books, and other educational incidentals while the athlete plays sports at their institution. Many advocates for fair market compensation for college athletes argue that some Division 1 athletes “labor under very strict or arduous conditions, so they really are laborers in terms of the physical demands on them while they are also trying to go to school” (Cooper 12), but college athletes are primarily students and athletes second. The opportunity to play sports does not exist without the establishment of the institution as an educational foundation first that develops mascots and athletic programs after the fact. College athletes should not be additionally compensated beyond traditional athletic scholarships because college athletes are primarily students who also have the opportunity to play sports while receiving an advanced education.

The debate on whether college athletes should get some type of compensation has been an ongoing one. A documentary which aired on the EPIX channel entitled “Schooled: The Price of College Sports”, shows the evolution of college athletics and how it became what it is now. With the creation of the term “student athletes” in the 1950s by Walter Bayers, student athletes were forced to give their labor for the sake of the NCAA. The term, as expressed by some of the interviewers in the documentary, is an evil term because it allowed universities and colleges to stand behind the term and neglect the student athletes. As the NCAA and the universities start to amass insane amount of revenue from the sweats of these said student

It is an age old debate on whether a college athlete should be paid. It is a high school student 's dream to play sports at the collegiate level. Many people question why the NCAA, coaches, and administrators are allowed to earn large amounts of money while the student athlete’s hard work and efforts are limited to a scholarship. Others feel that is should be considered a privilege that a college athlete can earn a college degree while enjoying what they love, by playing collegiate sports. Student athletes should not receive payment because they are already receiving payment in the form of an expensive athletic scholarship and are also able to receive the new cost of attendance stipend to assist with further financial burdens.