[OhCanada-Participant]

http://www.operationsports.com/news/754908/judge-rules-in-favor-of-obannon-ncaa-violates-anti-trust-law/

Production of EA Sports NCAA games has been haulted this year due to the evergoing debate in Student Athlete compensation. This is a must read for anyone who believes players deserve a cut in some shape or form.

[herceg_bukuParticipant]

 As a former student athelete, I fully believe that atheletes HAVE to be compensated for all the time and effort that they put in. I wont even get into how much money sports generate for the D1 universities, and atheletes dont get anything from it but a scholarship. Which in the end if u raelly break it down by annual pay, is not much more then a bit over minimum wage salary LOL. I may be exagurating a little bit but anyone who has been an athelete at that level can relate to struggles and harwork you face every day. At the end of the day basketball or football or whatever is like a full time job on top of the schooling.

[herceg_bukuParticipant]

 As a former student athelete, I fully believe that atheletes HAVE to be compensated for all the time and effort that they put in. I wont even get into how much money sports generate for the D1 universities, and atheletes dont get anything from it but a scholarship. Which in the end if u raelly break it down by annual pay, is not much more then a bit over minimum wage salary LOL. I may be exagurating a little bit but anyone who has been an athelete at that level can relate to struggles and harwork you face every day. At the end of the day basketball or football or whatever is like a full time job on top of the schooling.

[ballislyfe25Participant]

The athletes don’t get anything but a scholarship, however, they are getting a free education and that is a huge deal. I attended Hofstra University (evident by my username) in Hempstead, NY on Long Island and the cost of a full year here is $50,000 approx. The D1 athletes on a full scholarship at Hofstra are not paying $200,000, minimum, in tuition, room and board, food (which is of high quality, important for athletes) and countless other expenses. They are “student-athletes” for a reason; students first, athletes second. They are there to obtain a degree free of charge, and that comes with added responsiblity as an athlete. Yes, there are many 10-12 hour days during both the regular season and preseason, but that is the cost of a free education at prestigous colleges and universities. In high school, we used to have 6:00am lifts 3 days a week, class from 7:30am-2:30pm, and practice/film sessions usually lasting until 6:00pm or later…multiple days a week, and if you participated in more than one sport, EVERY month out of the 9-month school year. Think about the time and dedication. If high school kids can do this, I do not see why Division 1 athletes (who have their entire day preplanned for them, including their studying hours) can do it either.

On that same note, it is totally unfair how the NCAA operates and profits off the these kids’ hard work and dedication. The idea that the rich are getting richer because of scholastic athletic programs is just rediculous. The money that is generated through NCAA athletes should be used to improve the colleges/universities participating through the form of more scholarships, improve living conditions, better quality education, campus/area safety, etc. I honestly do not have an answer or many suggestions that could change this problem but I think many are very against what is happening with the money generated for the NCAA.

[ballislyfe25Participant]

The athletes don’t get anything but a scholarship, however, they are getting a free education and that is a huge deal. I attended Hofstra University (evident by my username) in Hempstead, NY on Long Island and the cost of a full year here is $50,000 approx. The D1 athletes on a full scholarship at Hofstra are not paying $200,000, minimum, in tuition, room and board, food (which is of high quality, important for athletes) and countless other expenses. They are “student-athletes” for a reason; students first, athletes second. They are there to obtain a degree free of charge, and that comes with added responsiblity as an athlete. Yes, there are many 10-12 hour days during both the regular season and preseason, but that is the cost of a free education at prestigous colleges and universities. In high school, we used to have 6:00am lifts 3 days a week, class from 7:30am-2:30pm, and practice/film sessions usually lasting until 6:00pm or later…multiple days a week, and if you participated in more than one sport, EVERY month out of the 9-month school year. Think about the time and dedication. If high school kids can do this, I do not see why Division 1 athletes (who have their entire day preplanned for them, including their studying hours) can do it either.

On that same note, it is totally unfair how the NCAA operates and profits off the these kids’ hard work and dedication. The idea that the rich are getting richer because of scholastic athletic programs is just rediculous. The money that is generated through NCAA athletes should be used to improve the colleges/universities participating through the form of more scholarships, improve living conditions, better quality education, campus/area safety, etc. I honestly do not have an answer or many suggestions that could change this problem but I think many are very against what is happening with the money generated for the NCAA.

[TopShottaParticipant]

When looking at things from a legal standpoint, student athletes are treated more like athlete/employees than student athletes. The current ruling is a step in the right direction. Players should def be able to capitalize off of their own names, images, and likeness. If the NCAA is smart they will get in front of this and come up with some fair and balanced rules for student athletes to be compensated properly for their work.

[TopShottaParticipant]

When looking at things from a legal standpoint, student athletes are treated more like athlete/employees than student athletes. The current ruling is a step in the right direction. Players should def be able to capitalize off of their own names, images, and likeness. If the NCAA is smart they will get in front of this and come up with some fair and balanced rules for student athletes to be compensated properly for their work.

[Roland209Participant]

First, it’s athlete, not athelete. If you were a former student-athlete, then this is a reason education is important.

I don’t think it’s fair these student-athletes should be paid when they are already getting a scholarship. That is more than enough to compensate for the money they bring back to the school, considering the majority of students are already having trouble paying back their student loans. So student-athletes should get a scholarship AND other compensation? Now that is unfair. If anything, if student-athletes really want to get paid, they need to prove it in the classroom as well or go overseas.

[Roland209Participant]

First, it’s athlete, not athelete. If you were a former student-athlete, then this is a reason education is important.

I don’t think it’s fair these student-athletes should be paid when they are already getting a scholarship. That is more than enough to compensate for the money they bring back to the school, considering the majority of students are already having trouble paying back their student loans. So student-athletes should get a scholarship AND other compensation? Now that is unfair. If anything, if student-athletes really want to get paid, they need to prove it in the classroom as well or go overseas.

[TopShottaParticipant]

 For the folks who don’t believe student athletes should be properly compensated for their services..

http://247sports.com/Bolt/The-Average-NCAA-FBS-Mens-Basketball-Player-Is-Worth-212080-30220555

 

[TopShottaParticipant]

 For the folks who don’t believe student athletes should be properly compensated for their services..

http://247sports.com/Bolt/The-Average-NCAA-FBS-Mens-Basketball-Player-Is-Worth-212080-30220555

 

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

Ok, then they can pay taxes.

Student fees cover a lot of those athletic expenses too.

I am not saying it is wrong.  I mean I paid CASH to go back to school to watch Derrick Rose play basketball.  HOWEVER, I would like to get that Final Four banner THAT I PAID FOR.

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

Ok, then they can pay taxes.

Student fees cover a lot of those athletic expenses too.

I am not saying it is wrong.  I mean I paid CASH to go back to school to watch Derrick Rose play basketball.  HOWEVER, I would like to get that Final Four banner THAT I PAID FOR.

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

I am pretty sure they already get some stipend/meal money.

If they don’t like it they can deal with Sallie Mae like everybody else.

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

I am pretty sure they already get some stipend/meal money.

If they don’t like it they can deal with Sallie Mae like everybody else.

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

If they want to make it FAIR then they basically need to pay everyone THE SAME.

As opposed to something that I think would be pretty neat: having a draft of the top 100 or so college prospects.  Each eligible team (teams would have to GRADUATE their players and stay out of trouble) would be put into a draft to pick the guys. 

Then the top pick gets something like $1 million a year, the second pick gets half a million and then on down to about $50,000 to $100,000 for picks in the 80 to 100 range.

You can even do territorial picks, so West Coast teams would have the better shot at a great player from California.

Everyone else gets paid a bigger stipend, with bonuses for academic achievements (honor roll, Dean’s list, etc.) and graduating college.  Then they could also get free grad school for something like a one year masters, a two year MBA, a law degree, or even med school.  Give them a ten or twenty year window to complete grad school too.  So a guy graduates college, saves some of his stipend and graduation bonus money, works somewhere, and then goes back for his MBA.  That would be a pretty sweet deal.

I have also been a fan of letting high school basketball players being allowed to get drafted out of high school (or after freshman year) and then letting them go back to school.  So a team would have the kid’s rights for a maximum of five years.  Then, the NBA contract would take over when the kid left school (kind of like Larry Bird).

I guess you could either enter the COLLEGE DRAFT or the NBA DRAFT. 

About college athletes having JOBS during school.  I would basically go the other way.  I would almost make it MANDATORY for upper classman athletes doing a paid summer internship one year where they ALSO get credit hours.  Take a six week paid internship the summer after your junior year.  Then write a paper about it and if you pass you also get 3 or 4 credit hours for it.  Maybe even free study abroad on top of the internships which would be a good thing for rising sophomores or juniors. 

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

If they want to make it FAIR then they basically need to pay everyone THE SAME.

As opposed to something that I think would be pretty neat: having a draft of the top 100 or so college prospects.  Each eligible team (teams would have to GRADUATE their players and stay out of trouble) would be put into a draft to pick the guys. 

Then the top pick gets something like $1 million a year, the second pick gets half a million and then on down to about $50,000 to $100,000 for picks in the 80 to 100 range.

You can even do territorial picks, so West Coast teams would have the better shot at a great player from California.

Everyone else gets paid a bigger stipend, with bonuses for academic achievements (honor roll, Dean’s list, etc.) and graduating college.  Then they could also get free grad school for something like a one year masters, a two year MBA, a law degree, or even med school.  Give them a ten or twenty year window to complete grad school too.  So a guy graduates college, saves some of his stipend and graduation bonus money, works somewhere, and then goes back for his MBA.  That would be a pretty sweet deal.

I have also been a fan of letting high school basketball players being allowed to get drafted out of high school (or after freshman year) and then letting them go back to school.  So a team would have the kid’s rights for a maximum of five years.  Then, the NBA contract would take over when the kid left school (kind of like Larry Bird).

I guess you could either enter the COLLEGE DRAFT or the NBA DRAFT. 

About college athletes having JOBS during school.  I would basically go the other way.  I would almost make it MANDATORY for upper classman athletes doing a paid summer internship one year where they ALSO get credit hours.  Take a six week paid internship the summer after your junior year.  Then write a paper about it and if you pass you also get 3 or 4 credit hours for it.  Maybe even free study abroad on top of the internships which would be a good thing for rising sophomores or juniors. 

[mixtape2003Participant]

It all depends were you argument is coming from as far as compensation. If you believe that athletes need to be compensated because they are not allowed to work and earn money, then you would have to compensate all athletes, men and women, football to swimming the same. But if your making the arguement based off of the revenue the school make of these players then thats a different argument. Then you would have to look at how all the revenue is divided up now among the school athletics now, cause if they start to compensate players, some programs like swimming, golf, or other low revenue sports funding could be cut and turned into club sports to make up for the revenue they are losing.

[mixtape2003Participant]

It all depends were you argument is coming from as far as compensation. If you believe that athletes need to be compensated because they are not allowed to work and earn money, then you would have to compensate all athletes, men and women, football to swimming the same. But if your making the arguement based off of the revenue the school make of these players then thats a different argument. Then you would have to look at how all the revenue is divided up now among the school athletics now, cause if they start to compensate players, some programs like swimming, golf, or other low revenue sports funding could be cut and turned into club sports to make up for the revenue they are losing.

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

The “student-athlete” talking point has nothing to do with proper compensation. One can go across many colleges and universities across the country and find graduate teaching assistants (graduate students who teach classes), graduate research assistants (graduate students who work for faculty members or departmental research), and graduate assistant coaches (quite obviously, graduate students who are also assistant coaches). Similar opportunities are available for undergraduates. While it varies from place to place and program to program, there are certainly cases where team managers have received both scholarships and pay. At some schools a TA, GA, or GRA would get full tuition remission plus a monthly stipend. With others, it is a partial remission plus monthly stipend. Now, nobody gets rich off this, and one can easily argue they are getting far less than they deserve in many cases, but there is compensation. In some states, graduate assistants are unionized. In fact, many of the pure labor issues for basketball and football players have been worked through the rights of teaching assistants and their cases with the National Labor Relations Board. Universities even made the same claim that TAs and RAs should not be allowed to unionize because they were not employees, they were students. It is the same playbook as the Northwestern football team.

Regardless as to unionization and differences between private and public universities, there is still a clear understanding that if you teach a class, you ought to be compensated for your work. If you aid in the research of someone who is receiving grant money for that research, you ought to be compensated. In no other area of the university is there a controversy over whether a person who takes classes is also allowed to receive a paycheck in addition to a scholarship or tuition assistance of some kind. The only reason the argument runs counter for football and basketball is that they have historically been able to avoid it.

Schools and athletic conferences have turned major college football and men’s college basketball into marketing and fund raising arms for the university. I am not writing that to be sensationalistic, but because that is how they are used. If you wish to guarantee your chance to buy season tickets for the Georgetown University basketball team next year, you have to make a donation to Georgetown Athletics.

http://www.wearegeorgetown.com/tickets/mens-basketball/#path-non-student-season-tickets

Georgetown is not unique in this, but their webpage does lay it out in the clearest way I have seen. If you want lower bowl season tickets to Hoyas basketball, you have to pay $500 or more in a donation to Georgetown athletics (can anyone fill me in on how much the for the right to buy your $30+ per game tickets. If you want to go to every men’s soccer game, it is $5 per game and general admission so this fall it would run you about $45 for the entire slate. I’m not slamming Georgetown or soccer, but just pointing out the difference between big time college sports and the rest in how they are utilized by the university. Alabama football requires “Tide Pride” annual contributions per seat to buy season tickets (lettermen, faculty, and staff get a break on that one). The tickets might officially cost between $55-$100 per game, but the required donation to buy them runs as high as $3,575 per seat per season.

The creation the SEC channel with ESPN, the Big Ten Network, and the various other partnerships that exist between conferences and television channels is also a huge variable. No longer are college football and basketball weekend sports. 24-hour sports stations need programming, and that programming is needed on Monday-Thursday nights too. For the first half of the college football season, games start on Thursday and run through Saturday. Starting in mid-season, they start on Tuesday night. With Maryland and Rutgers joining the Big Ten as a way to generate $45 million per school, it is going to be hard to look the other way when guys are flying close to halfway across the country to play in a made-for-tv mid-week game.

I could go on, and get into the appearances and other fundraising nonsense that is rampant, but I kind of want to watch a college game next fall and winter without excessively hating myself. The colleges have made the decision to make the athletes into employees first and students… maybe not second but somewhere down the line. They did so when they wanted to chase every last dime they can obtain, and leave no doubt that they have professionalized their college football and basketball teams. The games are no longer appearing on television, they exist for them. An Ivy League basketball game might end up on tv, but they are played on Friday and Saturday nights and the league is not jumping through hoops to get there.

The money and interest is why there is so much corruption within these two sports. Even if the players received a stipend that does not come at graduation/point of transfer/declaration for the draft, some of it would continue to operate. If someone is going to offer a kid’s parents a house, he is going to offer the house. The big sleaze is the stuff the NCAA should actually care about. Players being corrupted by outsiders is a concern. Protecting the university community from sexual and domestic abuse being covered up, DUIs being covered up, a pedophile coach being protected, etc. are huge concerns. The little nothings the NCAA actually catches are not worth the effort, and can be corrected.

Furthermore, it does not matter if a player is a NBA or NFL prospect. The fact that Eric Crouch and Jason White never collected an NFL paycheck does not mean they did not get exploited for their on-and-off field work while in college. It is not the job of a college football or basketball program to be a feeder for the NBA or NFL, nor is it the job of the NBA and NFL to do the job of providing back pay for work done by players while in school. I do not think top division college basketball players, or college football players, deserve anything approaching NBA or NFL money, but let’s not act as though they are not at all different from the rest. What is the argument against a UNC football or basketball player receiving a stipend similar to what is afforded a GA or TA? Yes, they are students. But yes, they are doing work above and beyond the educational return. This much is revealed not only in the hours spent, but the monetary return to the university.

http://gradschool.unc.edu/policies/faculty-staff/tuitionsupport/

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

The “student-athlete” talking point has nothing to do with proper compensation. One can go across many colleges and universities across the country and find graduate teaching assistants (graduate students who teach classes), graduate research assistants (graduate students who work for faculty members or departmental research), and graduate assistant coaches (quite obviously, graduate students who are also assistant coaches). Similar opportunities are available for undergraduates. While it varies from place to place and program to program, there are certainly cases where team managers have received both scholarships and pay. At some schools a TA, GA, or GRA would get full tuition remission plus a monthly stipend. With others, it is a partial remission plus monthly stipend. Now, nobody gets rich off this, and one can easily argue they are getting far less than they deserve in many cases, but there is compensation. In some states, graduate assistants are unionized. In fact, many of the pure labor issues for basketball and football players have been worked through the rights of teaching assistants and their cases with the National Labor Relations Board. Universities even made the same claim that TAs and RAs should not be allowed to unionize because they were not employees, they were students. It is the same playbook as the Northwestern football team.

Regardless as to unionization and differences between private and public universities, there is still a clear understanding that if you teach a class, you ought to be compensated for your work. If you aid in the research of someone who is receiving grant money for that research, you ought to be compensated. In no other area of the university is there a controversy over whether a person who takes classes is also allowed to receive a paycheck in addition to a scholarship or tuition assistance of some kind. The only reason the argument runs counter for football and basketball is that they have historically been able to avoid it.

Schools and athletic conferences have turned major college football and men’s college basketball into marketing and fund raising arms for the university. I am not writing that to be sensationalistic, but because that is how they are used. If you wish to guarantee your chance to buy season tickets for the Georgetown University basketball team next year, you have to make a donation to Georgetown Athletics.

http://www.wearegeorgetown.com/tickets/mens-basketball/#path-non-student-season-tickets

Georgetown is not unique in this, but their webpage does lay it out in the clearest way I have seen. If you want lower bowl season tickets to Hoyas basketball, you have to pay $500 or more in a donation to Georgetown athletics (can anyone fill me in on how much the for the right to buy your $30+ per game tickets. If you want to go to every men’s soccer game, it is $5 per game and general admission so this fall it would run you about $45 for the entire slate. I’m not slamming Georgetown or soccer, but just pointing out the difference between big time college sports and the rest in how they are utilized by the university. Alabama football requires “Tide Pride” annual contributions per seat to buy season tickets (lettermen, faculty, and staff get a break on that one). The tickets might officially cost between $55-$100 per game, but the required donation to buy them runs as high as $3,575 per seat per season.

The creation the SEC channel with ESPN, the Big Ten Network, and the various other partnerships that exist between conferences and television channels is also a huge variable. No longer are college football and basketball weekend sports. 24-hour sports stations need programming, and that programming is needed on Monday-Thursday nights too. For the first half of the college football season, games start on Thursday and run through Saturday. Starting in mid-season, they start on Tuesday night. With Maryland and Rutgers joining the Big Ten as a way to generate $45 million per school, it is going to be hard to look the other way when guys are flying close to halfway across the country to play in a made-for-tv mid-week game.

I could go on, and get into the appearances and other fundraising nonsense that is rampant, but I kind of want to watch a college game next fall and winter without excessively hating myself. The colleges have made the decision to make the athletes into employees first and students… maybe not second but somewhere down the line. They did so when they wanted to chase every last dime they can obtain, and leave no doubt that they have professionalized their college football and basketball teams. The games are no longer appearing on television, they exist for them. An Ivy League basketball game might end up on tv, but they are played on Friday and Saturday nights and the league is not jumping through hoops to get there.

The money and interest is why there is so much corruption within these two sports. Even if the players received a stipend that does not come at graduation/point of transfer/declaration for the draft, some of it would continue to operate. If someone is going to offer a kid’s parents a house, he is going to offer the house. The big sleaze is the stuff the NCAA should actually care about. Players being corrupted by outsiders is a concern. Protecting the university community from sexual and domestic abuse being covered up, DUIs being covered up, a pedophile coach being protected, etc. are huge concerns. The little nothings the NCAA actually catches are not worth the effort, and can be corrected.

Furthermore, it does not matter if a player is a NBA or NFL prospect. The fact that Eric Crouch and Jason White never collected an NFL paycheck does not mean they did not get exploited for their on-and-off field work while in college. It is not the job of a college football or basketball program to be a feeder for the NBA or NFL, nor is it the job of the NBA and NFL to do the job of providing back pay for work done by players while in school. I do not think top division college basketball players, or college football players, deserve anything approaching NBA or NFL money, but let’s not act as though they are not at all different from the rest. What is the argument against a UNC football or basketball player receiving a stipend similar to what is afforded a GA or TA? Yes, they are students. But yes, they are doing work above and beyond the educational return. This much is revealed not only in the hours spent, but the monetary return to the university.

http://gradschool.unc.edu/policies/faculty-staff/tuitionsupport/

[Author]

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