Should They Get Paid?
By Sherome Milon
In my report I will be talking to you about why I feel that all student athletes should be getting paid. From Division 1 athletes down to Division three athletes, there are a lot of things that go on when being a student athlete. I feel that student athletes should get paid for their services; there are so many things that play into this factor so I will be talking about some huge factors on why I feel that the student athletes should get paid.
First off when you commit or sign to a team you are putting yourself at risk of injury, stress, tiredness or failure. When you’re under a teams system you have to do what they say and when they say. Even having the responsibility to do your school work also, it’s a job, a full time job. Think about it, there are meetings, film and lifting. You have no time for yourself, the athletes not going to go out and look for a job. If the athlete isn’t doing anything with his/her perspective sport they are most likely studying. Being a student-athlete is time consuming and it takes a lot of energy out of that athlete. Then most teams have rules and regulations due to the fact that you are on their teams, some players aren’t allowed to work at all, even in the off-season because they are scared, or think they are putting their players at risk of getting hurt. Then there is off-season training also, and they don’t allow players to work because the lifting and training is mandatory. The coaches want their athletes in tip-top shape before spring and fall practice. For me, this isn’t right, as the players have needs too.
What if they wanted to buy some new shoes? What if they came from poor homes? These are the questions you have to put in consideration when you think about a college athlete. A lot of these athletes come from rough areas in they luckily got a scholarship to play for this team and get his education paid for, but what happens after all that? They would want a little spare change in their pocket. I know from me being a college athlete I have no time to work and I’m from a family that doesn’t have anything at all. I would love to get paid to play the sport I love but the NCAA doesn’t allow this. Anyway, the point is these athletes should get paid. I’m not saying pay them millions of dollars but even a minimum wage pay will be great for these athletes. Or at least a few hundred dollars a month will be good. Say they don’t live on campus that could be funding for their rent, groceries and utilities. Some athletes even have personal responsibilities like raising a baby, and if a coach decides to take a player that has a kid he is taking that player and all his responsibilities as well. I mean that’s a personal choice on the athlete by having a child but they still have to take care of other obligations as well.
Another reason why student athletes should get paid is because we pay to see them play and why shouldn’t they get paid. When we buy BIG TEN NETWORK, and DIRECT TV, and purchase all the ESPN channels we are paying to see these athletes. Even when we purchase tickets, jerseys, coffee mugs, any apparel with that player’s number or anything, we are PAYING to see them. They should be paid. People spend millions of dollars on these things; these athletes are entertaining them and aren’t getting paid for this at all. Yes, they get they name in the paper or have a highlight in ESPN, but for the likings of all you! They don’t get paid to display their talents in front of thousands of people every weekend. I know who does though, THE COACHES! For example Jim Tressel gets paid close to $1 million a year for trying to win as many football games as possible. His players, however, earn no salary for doing the same thing. That’s some bologna if you ask me, these coaches get paid to slave over these kids and make them win them games for the universities and to help build their personal resumes. They would really pay a coach $1 million a year, and let the kid suffer and risk his health for a coach that’s not right! A college or university’s primary objective is to provide its students with a quality education that prepares them to function in the world as opposed to in college.
Another reason why athletes should get paid is because of their health. Day after day they are practicing grueling ours, putting their selves in danger and at risk of getting hurt severely everyday (depends on what sport it is) and they put on shows for audiences and make big plays some good and some end up fatal. Every game someone is getting hurt or injured, there are constant concussions, people getting carted off in golf carts and people on crutches every game. Why can’t they get paid for this? They even have life threatening injuries, for example University of Louisville corner Anthony Conner broke his neck in the game. Then there is the actual trauma-related death. Sub-dermal hematomas, some swelling of the brain, cardiac arrest and paralysis-related terminal illness (Bleach Report). These type of injuries need to be sought after, some of these students don’t have money to pay for it and some of the universities don’t pay for the injuries either. This leads to sometimes getting relieved of your scholarship and then would this leave them with? NOTHING! Therefore athletes should get paid, all players aren’t promised that they would end up in the NFL but if we pay these athletes they would nine times out of ten stay away from boosters and people who are trying to give them stuff. If we pay them, we won’t have incidents like the AJ Green’s and Terelle Pryors big scam. If we can pay the athletes a small stipend, they won't be tempted so much to hook up with these boosters and feel the need to break all these NCAA rules.
These athletes are big commodities for their Colleges and universities; they deserve to get compensated for their duties on campus. One player on a basketball team can bring up to over 20,000 more fans to a game and 1,000,000 dollars to a university in one night. And he gets none of this? Not cool at all. For example the UCONN Men’s basketball team generated millions of dollars for their school and the university when they were in the NCAA tourney and won the NCAA national Championship. And they didn’t receive nothing but a t-shirt and a hat. Why are these universities able to make so much money and pay the people who make it? (Apart from the coaches). It would cost on average $785,000 to pay each player on a football team for the entire year. (Bleach Report). And, I know it will cost less to pay basketball teams, or teams that are much smaller than a football team.
Pay these kids. Why see them suffer just for your excitement? Most scholarships don’t cover the full tuition, room and board. Kids are forced to take out credit cards or take extra loans just to make it through the school year. This leaves kids in debt when they graduate, and it forces them to do things like taking toilet paper from the schools and soap from the dispensers, just to survive. College sports are one of the biggest money-makers in America, we love to watch it, play it and support it. The caliber of the players involved is huge, especially, for instance, Division 1 footballers and basketball players, because the level is so high. The gap between them and the NFL/ NBA is not that great. It is only fair that these players receive something for the work and effort they put in, the way their coaches do. It is not fair that the NCAA is able to make money, and really take advantage of these players in the way they do. It is ridiculous to claim that they are ‘too young’ to be getting paid, or that they should be playing solely for the love of the games. Love doesn’t pay the bills. At the end of the day, this is America, and money is essential for survival. To be playing at college level requires skill, concentration and commitment. It is very hard to balance life with school and sports of a high level. These players are owed something for what they bring to sport.
“In Media Ras” was one of the first things that were up on the chalk board. I didn’t have a clue what that was, but now I know it means into the middle of things. “In Media ras” is where a story begins in the middle or at the conclusion. Media comes in many shapes and forms; it comes at the blink of an eye, a touch, sense everything around you is media. I feel that us as individual’s we have this installed in us. When we remember stories from others, and continue to tell them but leave out certain spots of the story. Technology has risen in these days; Rob mentioned “artificial intelligence” which is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). First off having a computer that talks to you is way more advanced then what we had the first computer that only solved math and addition problems. The thing about this is my grandparents don’t even know what this is. Technology is moving and producing just like woman produce babies. There is always something out every month, some new technology that people are buying and spending their live savings on. The future is in a rude awakening, but I don’t know if it’s going to be good or bad.it sup in the air, I like technology but even at my young age I still question why the need for all of this?
