Reflecting on the Shame of College Sports: Should NCAA Div 1 Basketball and Football players get paid?

In the article "The Shame of College Sports" author Taylor Branch points out almost immediately that "the very structure of college sports, wherein student-athletes generate billions of dollars for universities and private companies while earning nothing for themselves" is the problem. There are so many college athletes today that are helping their University's income by promoting their sport. By people attending games, to sponsors selecting certain athletes to fund. Another quote comes to mind from this article that supports this argument; “We want to put our materials on the bodies of your athletes, and the best way to do that is buy your school. Or buy your coach." These companies will do anything to promote themselves via student athletes because they know that one persons teammates will see their logo and therefore want that product too. Also, by offering these young-adult student athletes money, they are sure to see results. How could a 18-21 year old turn down a money offer for doing something they enjoy?

In the second article, "Impact of Money on College Football Realignment is Becoming Increasingly Apparent" the same issue is brought up again, money. The first thing that came into my mind when beginning to read this was "money makes the world go round". Money is something that a number of people have a hard time handling, and when put into the wrong persons hands can be very detrimental. This is why we are seeing a problem with retired athletes going broke. We discussed in class last week that professional athletes feel the need to live up to the expectations of others (teammates). By doing so, these athletes are spending more than they realize and are therefore ending up bankrupt after their professional career is over. This article also addresses the lives of players and coaches before the fame. When athletic students are trying to make a decision on where to go to College, some schools definitely weight out others. This is due to their statistics and recognition which makes athletes gravitate to well known sport schools, like Ohio State. Coaches on the other hand, are being chosen based upon their skills as well. Are they fit to coach specific teams? and how far are they able to take their team? This comes into play when athletes are choosing schools as well.

My own personal opinion on the subject of College sports and money is that if an athlete is "worth it", then go ahead and sponsor them. There are so many athletes in both High School and College that wish to make it to the professional stage but just can't. It takes a lot of dedication and hard work to get to a professional level and with the media sponsoring specific individuals I think it helps some. In a way, the money helps motivate these athletes to go harder and train better. If they want the money to keep coming, then they must work hard and perform to the best of their abilities. On the other hand, I don't agree with the amount of money or free gifts that these athletes are getting. It seems a little over the top and outrageous to be giving these young adults millions of dollars at a point in their lives where they don't even know what to do with it. Lastly, when I was playing water polo in High School I considered playing in college and seeing if I could make it to the professional level. Unfortunately for me, I had spinal surgery and wasn't able to continue playing. I thought a lot about the money I would make and the lifestyle I could of had, but that wasn't my main focus. I wanted to do something I thoroughly loved, and being in the pool was it.