Should college athletes be compensated? Should Florida follow Cali’s lead? Part 1
Bottom Line: California’s new law that would enable college athletes to become professional enough to make money off their athletic performance while still playing as amateurs accomplishes a couple of things that have been in the works for a while. First, it allows us to address what collegiate athletics has become for many and second it provides a potential catalyst to reform a badly broken system. It’s one in which I think both sides are to blame. The colleges/NCAA and the players. First the colleges and the league...
In case you haven’t been paying attention, college athletics – especially in D1 football and basketball programs, is the epitome of posturing. Show of hands, does anyone honestly believe that the NCAA and division one schools are as interested in the education and intellectual development of student-athletes as they are making money? In case you’re naïve I’ll help. The average salary of a division one college coach is $1.7 million for football and $1.6 million for men’s basketball. The average salary for a college professor at these schools is $97,000. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem with it given that it’s based on market conditions. Just don’t treat me like I’m stupid. That especially goes for players who’d never be considered for admission into schools based on academic/civic performance but are lustily recruited by these schools because of their athletic skill. As for the students...
Are there legitimate student athletes who take their education as seriously as athletics? Without a doubt. Are there large numbers of high-profile athletes that couldn’t give a rat’s rear end about the education and do the bare minimum necessary to remain eligible to play? Unless you’re new here you know the answer. And that takes me to the next point. Every scholarship athlete is compensated.
- Average annual value of a scholarship for all student athletes - $18,500
- Average annual value for a division one college football player - $42,000
Now, that’s pretty darn good for an 18-year-old kid playing amateur athletics. In fact, 99% of grade school athletes would all but die for the opportunity to have a scholarship that also allows them to continue to play sports. And that’s what takes me full circle. I’ll address that point in the second part of this story today.
Here's a link to the second part of the story: