Should college athletes be paid????

[BLUE 1,026]

What do you guys think????

 

I think, for all the millions some of these big schools reel in, that they should get, at the very least, some sort of compensation....but there are problems and obstacles to overcome with this ie how much they should get paid, and if this would even completely solve the problem of boosters or whoever giving these players gifts, money etc....

 

What's your take, TGP'ers????

[Sarge+ 3,436]

I dunno. A lot of schools are now having trouble giving financial aid to even the neediest of students, so I don't know where they could come up with the money to pay student athletes.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

Most of these athletes, the ones that people think should be getting paid don't know how good they have it. A free education at a big 4 year school is seen as nothing these days. When in reality, it has far more value than any cash considerations the schools could offer.

[Barracuda 629]

I say no...because...most of these kids are getting a free ride through college, this is a privilege that most other kids couldn't touch. If these guys that play football are smart, they'll take their education seriously. If they don't make it to the pros, which most of them won't, they have something to fall on which is still a respectable career.

 

However, there is a side of me that says yes for the reason Blue stated. It's just my belief that they are given enough with scholarships yada yada. It's a different story for athletes that don't get that free ride. I believe those should be rewarded for representing the school in competition.

Edited August 18, 2011 by Barracuda

[Anthony 78]

Most of these athletes, the ones that people think should be getting paid don't know how good they have it. A free education at a big 4 year school is seen as nothing these days. When in reality, it has far more value than any cash considerations the schools could offer.

 

That education isn't "free". I talked about that in another thread. They work for it. Don't perform on the field, court, etc, and that schollie is yanked.

 

I voted no. They shouldn't be paid. What they should be able to do is take advantage of their earning potential, the same way Olympians do and maintain amateur status. They should be able to endorse products. They should be able to sell their own autographs and memorabilia. The NCAA is probably the only entity in the country that doesn't allow someone to sell their personal belongings. I can get Andrew Luck's autograph and turn around and sell it. Luck can't sell his own. Does that even make sense?

[FSUViking 184]

Pay them what, though? No matter what the school pays them, it won't be alot and some booster is always going to offer more.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

That education isn't "free". I talked about that in another thread. They work for it. Don't perform on the field, court, etc, and that schollie is yanked.

 

I voted no. They shouldn't be paid. What they should be able to do is take advantage of their earning potential, the same way Olympians do and maintain amateur status. They should be able to endorse products. They should be able to sell their own autographs and memorabilia. The NCAA is probably the only entity in the country that doesn't allow someone to sell their personal belongings. I can get Andrew Luck's autograph and turn around and sell it. Luck can't sell his own. Does that even make sense?

 

You are right... they work for it, so it is in the true essence of "payment". Sounds like a great deal to me. Especially when most college kids these days leave school $40K + in debt.

[Anthony 78]

Pay them what, though? No matter what the school pays them, it won't be alot and some booster is always going to offer more.

 

That's exactly why I voted no. Paying them isn't a solution to the current problem. Any paycheck the schools may agree on would be chump change in comparison to what Nevin Shapiro was dishing out at the U.

[Travis425 9]

That education isn't "free". I talked about that in another thread. They work for it. Don't perform on the field, court, etc, and that schollie is yanked.

 

I voted no. They shouldn't be paid. What they should be able to do is take advantage of their earning potential, the same way Olympians do and maintain amateur status. They should be able to endorse products. They should be able to sell their own autographs and memorabilia. The NCAA is probably the only entity in the country that doesn't allow someone to sell their personal belongings. I can get Andrew Luck's autograph and turn around and sell it. Luck can't sell his own. Does that even make sense?

 

The problem with that is you allow Nike, etc to literally endorse specific universities in recruiting that say sell the most merchandise, you couldn't build a smaller universities program under conditions like that, which in turn would cause a lot of damage to the universities as a whole not just the athletic department. Not to mention the infinite number of cases of boosters playing who can pay the most for an 18 year old's autograph situations. The NCAA and universities can't stop boosters that are going to do whatever they want to, it's been proven time and again. What the NCAA has to do is preserve the integrity of the game, pay them or not. But it's gonna take a lot of money, spread out to a lot of sports and athletes to pay enough money for some kid to turn down $2,000 cash at the bar from some dipshit willing to give it to him. How are they supposed to do that?

[BwareDWare94 723]

Pay them for what? The fact that they are blessed with ability? How about no? Many of them have scholarships and sometimes even free housing. I think they're doing just fine.

[PackIsBack 124]

If they go to a large division one school they've most likely been offered many scholarships and other incentives for playing with them. With that being said, trying to fit in practice along with being a full-time student has to be really difficult and stressful so it is like having a full time job in college. If they were offered payment, maybe they could just get paid for the semester that they are playing football (like for just the games...or possibly some practices). Also, they would need to figure out what amount they're paying and if they would create any monetary incentives if they play well. Would there be raises at all (whether based on merit, experience, success on the field during games, etc.) or a set amount no matter your position on the field? In the end, I think this concept would need a lot of consideration to make sure that their players are treated fairly.

[Anthony 78]

Pay them for what? The fact that they are blessed with ability? How about no? Many of them have scholarships and sometimes even free housing. I think they're doing just fine.

 

 

*If a kid on an academic scholarship (tuition, housing, etc) is blessed with an ability that allows him to , let's say, be an advisor for Microsoft, he can be paid by Bill Gates and keep his scholarship. If a football player just signs with an agent, he loses his scholarship before he even finds work.

 

*A kid on an academic scholarship can seek employment any time of the year, with unlimited earning potential, with no danger to the scholarship. The Student Athlete can not.

 

*If a football player accepts a 12 oz. soda from a booster, he can be ruled ineligible and his scholarship in danger for accepting impermissible benefits until he repays that $1.50. Dillon Baxter was ruled ineligible for a game last season for accepting a ride across campus on a golf cart by someone suspected of being an agent. The ride was estimated at around 5 bucks, which he had to repay to rejoin the team.

 

I'll say it again, nothing is free for the student athlete. To keep anything, he/she must put in work for the program, and only the program. If other scholarship students are allowed to seek employment outside the curriculum without facing penalties, why isn't it the same for the student athlete? The answer is easy, and it's because the more time that athlete devotes to something else is the less amount of time with the program. They need him on top of his game to field a quality product to increase the programs earning potential. A BCS Bowl game is worth $15 million to the school. Back when my bro played in the 90s, the school received $1 million for every nationally televised game (basketball). You aren't going to reach BCS bowls or build a program worth of National telecast if your workhorses are spending part of their time working jobs and earning their own money.

[RazorStar 4,025]

The thing about most of these student athletes is that they're poor kids who don't know what to do with money, didn't get any education in high school, and are ignorant to the value of a degree. The school is spending a lot of money to make sure these kids are just meeting academic requirements. So they're spending a lot of money on the athlete, but the athlete doesn't have the cash to spend on anything, so it feels like they're being ripped off.

[blotsfan 2,112]

Schools shouldn't be allowed to pay them but anyone else can. Of course, make those benefits taxable...

[Anthony 78]

The thing about most of these student athletes is that they're poor kids who don't know what to do with money, didn't get any education in high school, and are ignorant to the value of a degree.

 

That's an assumption. I grew up with Harold Miner. Harold had the grades to qualify for an Academic scholarship at USC. Though he lived in the hood, his mother also attended USC. He went on an Athletic scholarship, because you're no longer allowed to mix the two. I was also raised with Sean Higgins, a good student that had the grades for both Michigan and UCLA. And also Chris Mills, who easily qualified for Kentucky. Lou Alcindor (Kareem Abdul Jabbar-and no, I'm not that damn old and wasn't raised with him), attended UCLA on an academic scholarship, telling coach John Wooden to give the athletic scholarship to someone else.

 

Kellen Winslow Jr, named in the new Miami Scandal, is the son of an NFL Hall of Famer. He was raised in affluent neighborhoods and attended the best schools. USC's Marc Tyler, infamous for his "Breaking bread" comment on TMZ, is the son of Wendell Tyler. He attended Oaks Christian High School. Not everyone can attend that school. That's where Joe Montana, Will Smith, and Wayne Gretzky send their kids. Poverty isn't the culprit for mismanagement of money. You'd be amazed at how much stretching a poor family can do with the little they have. It's youth and immaturity that mostly leads to the mismanagement of funds, and you find that in kids having little to no education, as well as in kids attending the best schools. The difference between the rich and poor kids is that the latter has mom and dad to fall back on, while the former has to learn to fend for himself.

Edited August 18, 2011 by Anthony

[RazorStar 4,025]

Most, not all. I know there are the rich and famous, and they get to go to the Southern Cal schools, it's really the SEC that preys on the poor ones.

 

I think the thing is, when you're stretching a tight budget, you tend to think a large amount is more than it actually is. So when you start seeing that money come in you spend more to meet what you're making.

[Krawnka 282]

They get paid with education. But, I think they should be allowed to earn money, as long as it's not inflated endorsement type deals...no agents, let them figure out how to manage themselves first.

[KiLaSix9+ 398]

As I said in the other thread, no. A full scholarship is more than enough compensation. Give me four full years at FSU or UM, fully paid. I either make it to the pros or start my adult life with a four year degree and no loans that are going to be following me for half my adult life.

[Tridentdawgpound 1,043]

I don't exactly think they should be paid by the school but I wish they'd loosen up the rules and let players profit off their own gear and sell their own merchandise.

[Guest Phailadelphia]

Considering how much money the schools make in apparel sales, ticket sales, marketing appearances, and everything else...yeah the kids should absolutely be getting paid.

[Krawnka 282]

You've got to figure, for every athlete they make buckets of cash on selling their merchandise, there's 2-3 others they make next to nothing off of...yet they still get a paid for education.

 

All of them got scholarships, but not all of them turn out to be profitable investments.

 

The kids' incentive to perform well, is A to keep their scholarship, and B to impress pro scouts.

[blotsfan 2,112]

I don't exactly think they should be paid by the school but I wish they'd loosen up the rules and let players profit off their own gear and sell their own merchandise.

Except letting them sell their gear is the same as getting paid. Boosters will just say "Hey, I'll give you $5000 for every week's jersey if you go to Ohio State."

[WindyCitySports 407]

They get paid thousands in scholarship money to go to big name schools, setting th up for a great life after college. Either they go to play in the NFL, or they get a job in the real world, with a degree on their resume from a well known college, and they have saved thousands of dollars in not having to pay for college. I don't think any money should be payed to them for the reasons above, and also because we have a tradition of only paying players who are playing as their job and not playing for the school they are attending.

[sweetness34 142]

The thing about most of these student athletes is that they're poor kids who don't know what to do with money, didn't get any education in high school, and are ignorant to the value of a degree. The school is spending a lot of money to make sure these kids are just meeting academic requirements.

You've said a lot of ignorant things in the past, but this is BY FAR the most ignorant thing you've ever posted. You are flat fucking wrong.

 

Yes a few slip through the cracks and are dumb, but for the most there are more intelligent people than there are idiots. College is hard, the dumb ones last a year or two (which I've seen), but by time they are seniors a good majority that are left are actually quite intelligent.

 

 

Now back on topic, this is coming from a D1 football player who is not currently on scholarship.

 

Athletes should not get paid, it's way to slippery of a slope. It really does suck that the university can make a shit ton of money off a player and we don't see a dime other than scholarships. And we work our asses off, more than any fan will ever understand. Right now it's fall camp and I spend from 7am until 10pm with maybe an hour or two off in the day at some point. We live in the meeting rooms and locker rooms. High school was a cake walk compared to what we go through, I've had to see the team doctor three times in the last three days for three separate injuries to which I'll be taping them all up and hitting the field tomorrow.

 

Now you get to the season, it's crazy. It's not uncommon for me to leave my apartment at 5:30 in the morning and not come back until 7pm then head right back to the library for a few three-four hours of studying.

 

Now a scholarship is actually a great deal, for those who have them. Not only do you get school and books paid for. You get 5 meals a week in the cafeteria, and then you get $800 a month to cover expenses such as food and rent. Which my rent only costs $400ish a month, that leaves me $400 a month for food which I often spend $50 for groceries for two weeks. Now that would be if I was on scholly.

 

So here's my suggestion, get rid of the scholarship caps, they are dumb. We all work just as hard on the team, now if a player slacks off or isn't performing you should be able to take it away until they get their act together. But for a guy like me who devotes probably 30 hours a week or more to football, and get nothing in return. I should get something.

 

But I love football, I love everything about the game. That's why I play it, not for the money. Guys that are just playing football for money don't last long at all, I've seen it. It's too much work to have only money for a reason to play.

[RazorStar 4,025]

Get at me Sweetness.