Should college athletes be paid?

[golfgal]

No it shouldn't be a paid position. It would be sad to see colleges eliminate programs like swimming, running, tennis, etc because they don't draw in crowds. I do think they should be able to give an athlete a living stipend.
By the way my son just gave a verbal commitment with a D1 school for running. This is a sport that gets very little money thanks to title 9 and the bloated budgets for sports such as basketball and football. I could be resentful of those programs who can give their athletes full rides. However it is the income that these sports bring in that will enable my son to get a very good scholarship in his sport.

How does Title 9 effect your son's scholarship ability? You also have to remember, track and cross country are not revenue generating sports, infact, they lose money at 99.9% of all colleges every year. The "bloated" budgets for football and basketball subsidize your son's scholarship. Without these income generating sports, there would be no scholarships for these. Don't get me wrong, I love track and Cross Country-especially since we live in a town with one of the best Cross Contry teams in the nation- just pointing out that your DS should be thankful that he got anything because most don't.

Now, as for college athletes getting paid, they already do-they get athletic scholarships to pay for their schooling. Some get full ride scholarships and some don't, but they still get them and they are worth a LOT of money in the long run. There is a gal from our town playing D1 basketball, she has a full ride, 5 year scholarship. SHe is elligible to play basketball for 4 years, but they wanted her bad enough they gave her 5 years so she could take a light load. She will graduate in 4 years and is a 4.0 student. D3 players can't take scholarships for sports, so they are really the only "unpaid" athletes.

 

[lap3]

I hate to break to you a college education does mean better yourself. I was student atlthetics in basketball got my degree. It has done darn thing for me. It has not help get better job. As matter have work two jobs and still not making enough money to support myself. If some told get a chance to making millions dollars I taking and get education later.

In this world right now college education means a nothing filling kids head with fantasy that crazy.

Say take money because college education means nothing still can be working minium wage job still have college education.

In this world right now college education means a nothing filling kids head with fantasy that crazy.
So, if you didn't go to college, do you think you would have done better? Maybe, maybe not. I'm not saying that "college" is the answer to success in life. However, it will prepare you for jobs/careers that require an education that someone without a degree wouldn't be able to obtain. Getting a degree won't guarantee you of getting the job you've been studying for. I believe that it will open doors for you that would have otherwise been closed for those without an education.

Therefore, paying a student athlete is not only not an option, it shouldn't even be considered.

 

[jrydberg]

Not only shouldn't they be paid, they should be held to much higher academic standards than most are now.

 

[Caradana]

The Ivy League has no athletic scholarships and yet kids still play ...
There are a lot of intangible benefits. A leg up in admissions, team friendships, a sense of belonging and contributing, as well as the obvious pro prospects.

 

[wvrevy]

Well, I'm going to go the complete opposite way as most of you. I think they should absolutely be paid. It should be completely controlled by the NCAA, and it should be no more than what other students make doing work study.

Listen, the FACT is that most of these athletes put in WAY more hours than any normal student does at a job, particularly the football players. As such, they have very little time to be able to get out and get another part-time job. A lot of these kids come from low-income families, and don't have the luxury to just quit the team and still stay in school. Add in the restrictions the NCAA puts in about how much help they can receive in finding jobs and such, and it's ridiculous how these kids are treated. They shouldn't be paid tens of thousands of dollars, but they SHOULD get some kind of compensation for the time they spend dedicated to their sport.

And for those whining about how much money the football team and basketball team gets, just remember: if it weren't for those teams, 95% of the womens teams would have no funding AT ALL. We have a collegiate diver on this thread claiming that people actually do come out to watch. Well, that's nice, but the attendance for an entire season of diving at the best attended school in the nation won't equal the attendance at 1 home football game for any of the top 50 football schools. "Well attended" for a diving competition is a couple thousand people. There are several schools that average over 100,000 per home football game. The comparison is ridiculous.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

While I don't believe Student Athletes should be paid, I do believe the NCAA should relax some of the work rules. I understand that they are in place so that an SA is not just receiving "graft" but it can make it difficult.

Title 9 is a whole different debate. Let me just say it is one of the best initiatives ever when a university embraces it and treats it as it was meant to be treated.

 

[Minnie824]

I do not personally think they should be paid. I think that would take some of the heart out of the game...if you watch a college bball game compared to a pro bball game, college is so much more exciting. They have more drive and want to really win. With the pros, yeah, they want to win to, but they're getting paid either way, I don't feel it matters as much to them.

 

[Bob Slydell]

Well, I'm going to go the complete opposite way as most of you. I think they should absolutely be paid. It should be completely controlled by the NCAA, and it should be no more than what other students make doing work study.

Listen, the FACT is that most of these athletes put in WAY more hours than any normal student does at a job, particularly the football players. As such, they have very little time to be able to get out and get another part-time job. A lot of these kids come from low-income families, and don't have the luxury to just quit the team and still stay in school. Add in the restrictions the NCAA puts in about how much help they can receive in finding jobs and such, and it's ridiculous how these kids are treated. They shouldn't be paid tens of thousands of dollars, but they SHOULD get some kind of compensation for the time they spend dedicated to their sport.

ITA with you wvrevy

 

[krissy3483]

Listen, the FACT is that most of these athletes put in WAY more hours than any normal student does at a job....

But no one is forcing them to play. They may be there with the hope of going pro, but the fact is the majority of them won't.