preview

Should Paying College Athletes Be Paid?

Decent Essays

Some may say that paying college athletes is a poor idea considering they have the reputation for being cheaters or only interested in what they want. “...The argument against allowing pay to student athletes arises mainly from greed and self-interest” (Text 1 lines 41-42). Regardless this is not always the case as some students need money and that the greedy ones are actually the coaches. Scholarships can be taken away, forcing students to look for jobs and struggle to find a balance between school and work. Last, The NCAA has an awful reputation for going against the law and not giving financial assistance to students for impractical reasons. It should be noted that by these reasons athletes should be paid for their participation in sports. …show more content…

Most students need these scholarships as they may not be able to pay for schooling or housing. So it is their priority to do well, otherwise all their effort was for nothing. “Most scholarships are revokable, so if an athlete doesn’t perform well on the field, he can, in a sense, be fired from college. But academic work for some athletes is secondary: during men’s basketball and football players spend 40 hours per week on their sports, easily” (Text 2, lines 8-10). If they became lazy and didn’t do as well as the school expected, not only do they lose their scholarship but sometimes their housing and their dream. The only way they can stay in school is if they do well in their said sport. At least by being paid, athletes would not need to rely solely on their scholarship. They would be able to pay for their tuition, housing and other expenses. Although, if they wanted to, they could leave at any point in time and pay for the rest of their college experience but sometimes it isn’t really a choice. “Recruits jump on the offer of tuition, room and without hesitation… A scholarship athlete at a university can leave anytime he wants to, free to become a tuition-paying student like anyone else” (Text 3 lines 12-15). “Freely” is more of an understatement here. Yes, students could leave …show more content…

law that what it does is illegal and makes unsound claims, putting most athletes under one narcissist stereotype. Not being able to pay the players directly is an immense problem that could end the NCAA which would also decrease the salaries of the coaches. “Not only are the NCAA rules that prevent colleges from paying student-athletes immoral, but they also are likely illegal. Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act, in pertinent part, states that “every contract, combination… or conspiracy, in restraint of trade or commerce… is declared to be illegal.” Applying this language, any agreement among NCAA members to prohibit the pay of student-athletes represents a form of wage fixing that likely violates antitrust law. In addition, the NCAA’s no-pay rules seem to constitute an illegal boycott of any college that would otherwise seek to pay its student-athletes” (Text 1 lines 24-30). Considering this it gives evidence as to why this organization should be shut down in the first place. Not only does it not support paying its players, but it is also under the influence of being illegal. This paired with outlandish arguments like how if the athletes get paid they would be creating a title IX problem is an annoying problem. The athletes would not encourage the problem as Division 1’s male basketball coach is paid twice as much than the Division 1’s

Get Access