Gimme an S, Gimme an A, Gimme an L-A-R-Y, What Does That Spell? Salary?

By: Clinton Valerio

(Blogpost intended for sports enthusiasts and ESPN.com)

College is a time for students to evolve and take the leap from childhood to early
adulthood. It is a time for making new friends, joining a frat, taking classes like Pottery
Making or Intro to Film. It is a time to stay out late, pull all nighters, and know what time
the cafeteria opens everyday. But what really makes the college experience so much fun
is the sense of camaraderie that students, faculty, and other spectators have while they
cheer their favorite sports teams. There is no other feeling in the world than
intercollegiate competition; donning your schools colors, painting your face as if you
were getting ready for war, and shouting the schools fight song in unison. All of this in
support of the god-like talents of student athletes that make college sports what they are.
And us as mere mortals take it all in, we buy sports memorabilia to hang on our walls; we
play in fantasy leagues, and talk about these players as if we knew they were part of our
families.

While this is all going on in the forefront, in the background it is a different story.
Colleges and universities, the NCAA, and television broadcasting companies are bringing
in millions and millions of dollars from inter-collegiate competition; furthermore,
because of these student athletes, the world of collegiate sports has now become a billiondollar industry. So, while these athletes are producing revenue for the various institutions,
you would think that they would get a cut of that money, but they do not.

According to the NCAA rules and regulations, a student must maintain an

amateur status throughout their entire sporting career in college. The NCAA defines that
as amateurism and states that maintaining amateurism is, is crucial to preserving an
academic environment in which acquiring a quality education is the first priority. In the
collegiate model of sports, the young men and women competing on the field or court are
students first, athletes second. (NCAA). Because of these rules and regulations student
athletes are unable to accept or partake in any form of compensation that they might be
offered.
Dont get too upset that student athletes are not getting paid what some think they
deserve to get. They in fact do get paid for their contributions and that payment is very
generous. This payment is awarded in the form of a full athletic scholarship, which
basically means that their entire college education is paid for. And I would say that that is
more than enough compensation for a student athlete.

So, why do I think this? First, the exposure that student athletes receive from
televised sporting events is like having a billboard on a busy and packed freeway. But
they do not have to pay for this billboard. It is basically free publicity for the athletes. The
players image is broadcasted to millions and millions of people. This of course could
lead to a potential career as a professional athlete, which then leads to making millions of
dollars. Business Insider reported the percentage of college football players that go on the
play as professionals is around 1.7%. (Manfred). That percentage might not look like a
lot, but if we look at it mathematically, the total number of players looks a lot more
substantive. For football there is about 117 colleges that have Division I football
programs and each team has roughly about 110 players, give or take a few. With the
percentage that Business Insider reported, out of the 12,870 football players, about 219
players will go professional. This equates to about two full football teams in Division I
competition. Those 219 players are broadcasted on the television each week through
games, commercials, and interviews. Now, if you are like me, I have never been on TV
and my athletic ability is below par so the likelihood of my having the exposure that these
college athletes do is zero percent.
Second, I think that college is for learning and not earning. Why do we have
colleges and universities? Well the answer to this question is simple, they are there so
young men and women can become educated and make a better future for themselves.
There is a reason why sports are under the extracurricular category of school. By
definition, extracurricular means pursued in addition to normal study, it doesnt mean in
replacement or in favor of, it means in addition. This is what the NCAA meant when
they gave their definition to amateurism. I agree with the statement that a college athlete

is a student first and an athlete second. Again, student athletes are generously
compensated for their talents. Division I and II schools allocate $2.7 billion in athletic
scholarships to more than 150,000 students every year. (NCAA). That money is just for
student athletes alone!
Most people would argue that the scholarship amount that athletes get does not
cover the cost of meal plans or additional expenses like clothes; however, this argument
and statement would be wrong. In 2014, the NCAA Legislative Council approved
unlimited meals and snacks to Division I student athletes. This was in response for the
NCAA to meet student needs. (Hosick). Also, the NCAA also has a Student Assistance
Fund that is able to help student athletes in meeting financial needs during the
participation of collegiate sports. (NCAA). Not only do these students get a full athletic
scholarship that covers, tuition, room and board, student fees, and books, but they also
have the benefit of getting free food and are able to take advantage of an assistance fund
to help with financial needs.
This is an issue that has many different sides and opinions to it. Time will only
tell if the old ways of scholarship amounts will make way for student athletes getting paid
a salary. I personally do not see this happening ever and I think that it is safe to say that
the NCAA will not allow it either. The arguments that student athletes should be getting
paid some sort of compensation for the amount of money and revenue they produce are
valid, the counter-argument that student athletes receive full athletic scholarships for their
talents wins every time. Scholarships are compensation enough and most of these student
athletes graduate or leave school with little to no debt for their education, which is
something that the average student cannot say.

Works Cited
"Amateurism." NCAA.org. NCAA, 2013. Web. 22 July 2016.
Scholarships. NCAA.org. NCAA, 2103. Web. 5 August 2016.
Student Athlete Benefits. NCAA.org. NCAA, 2013. Web. 29 July 2016.
Hosick, Michelle Brutlag. "Council Approves Meals, Other Student-athlete Well-being
Rules." NCAA.org. NCAA, 15 Apr. 2014. Web. 29 July 2016.
Manfred, Tony. "Here Are The Odds That Your Kid Becomes A Professional Athlete
(Hint: They're Small)." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 10 Feb. 2012.
Web. 29 July 2016.