West Chicago American Government Legislative
Semester
HB:901
Share the Wealth, Pay College Athletes
There are almost as many college sports fans as there are professional sports fans. The problem in colleges today is the undecided question of whether or not college athletes deserve to get paid or not. Athletes dedicate their lives to the sport, and they also bring a lot of attention and money to the schools as well. Sports are televised and entertainment to many people and the only people that get the money for the athletes skill is the coaches and school. Athletes may feel unappreciated.
There are many issues that show that this is a problem. Many coaches tend to lead towards bribing to get the best athletes on their team, which is illegal. Allowing athletes to receive compensation would get rid of the issue of recruiting through illegal bribes. There’s also athletes that come from a poor background and can’t rely on their family for money and the demand of the sport leaves them with no time to get a job. This also leads middle class families below the poverty line because there is still room, board, and travel expenses. Many athletes tend to drop out of school to go pro for the money that they are offered. This leads to athletes being less educated and gives them no options after they’re no longer able to do their sport. There’s gambling, merchandise being sold and televised games that these athletes are presenting to America and they should get some of the profits in return for it.
There’s many different solutions that can be used to fix this issue. We believe that the federal government should allow college athletes to receive compensation. These athletes dedicate their “college life” and money for their sport. They provide us with entertainment, and merchandise. Plus, almost every college coach has illegally bribed players to become part of their team. It’s time that those coaches should no longer have to deal with the issue any longer. Our solution is to give the players an “educational lockbox”. This lockbox will only be used for school fees and the rest of the money they don’t use will be given to them only after graduation. We do this in hope that the number of graduating athletes does increase.
Many people may disagree with our plan.. They tend to say that a full scholarship is considered a payment on its own. Also, people say that paying the athletes can put colleges in debt and may lead to ending some athletic programs. Yes, many college athletes get paid full scholarships, but these athletes dedicate their lives to the sport and provide entertainment, and merchandise to America. They deserve some of the funds that they earned.
We believe the problem of athletes not getting paid for the profit, merchandise, and entertainment they provide for people can be addressed if the federal government of the United States allows college athletes to receive compensation for their hard work and dedication to the sport.
Works Cited
Lewis, Michael, and Bob Williams. "Should College Football Players Be Paid?" Proquest Newspaper [New York] 17 Nov. 2008, Vol.141 ed.: 22. ProQuest 5000. Web. 8 Mar. 2013. <http://proquest.umi.com/pqweb?did=1615008651&sid=8&Fmt=3&clientld=16548&RQT=309&VName=PQD>.
This article expresses that college football is comercialized for everyone except the players and that ticket sales and network TV broadcasts generate huge revenues. It also brings attention to the high rates of football players failing to graduate and how the coaches have to encourage the players to attend class. It says that players are too busy, and they participate in a full-time job in playing football for nothing.
Nocera, Joe. "Let's Start Paying College Athletes." The New York Times 30 Dec. 2011: 1-12. Print.
This article bring attention to the fact that college basketball and football are such a huge commercial enterprises that together they generate more than six billion in annual revenue, which is more than the NBA. Also, Ohio state agreed to pay Urban Meyer $24 million over six years. There's also a 14 year, 10.8 billion dollar deals for television rights to the N.C.A.A's men's basketball national championship tournament. It also explains that the scholarships dont cover the full cost of college, and that any student that accepts an unapproved hamburger from a coach, or even a fan, is a violation of the rules of the N.C.A.A. It also explains the situation of the player when they see 100,000 people wearing they're jerseys and put in 50 hours a week at their sport and know better not to take any course that might require real effort that will interfere with primary reason they're on campus, which is playing sports. They're claimed to be students first, but they know that they are making money for the athletic department. The N.C.A.A. itself, takes in nearly $800 million a year, mostly from "March Madness" T.V. contracts. There was 5,500 Division I men's basketball players and only 50 went pro.
"Why College Athletes Deserve Six-Figure Salaries." theweek.com. The Week Publications Inc., 14 Sept. 2011. Web. 7 Mar. 2013. <http://theweek.com/article/index/219223/why-college-athletes-deserve-six-figure-salaries>.
This article brought the attention of an educational lockbox, which can only be used to cover school related cost. Players would recieve the rest of the money after graduation, which would increase graduation rates.
"Why College Athletes Should Be Paid." elitedaily.com. Elite Daily, n.d. Web. 8 Mar. 2013. <http://elitedaily.com/elite/2012/college-athletes-paid/>.
This article states that the NCAA is a multi-billino dollar industry that generated over $845 billion last year, due to the players' abilities to entertain and perform to their fullest. It brings up that the NCAA restricts their athletes from having jobs or making money because they don't want them cashing in our their performances in any way. This also states that the coaches are paid like proffessionals. It states that the average salary for a major college is between $1.5 million to $5 million. Whatever brings in money should be paid for accordingly.These athletes are employees, not just students.
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