Running head: SHOULD COLLEGE ATHLETES GET PAID?

Should College Athletes Get Paid?

Katlyn Monroe

Arizona State University

ENG 102
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Abstract

The purpose of the essay is to convince the reader that student-athletes that compete at the

division one level deserve to get paid enough to be financially stable and are given the

opportunity to support their families. The NCAA is well-known and very popular in American

society. Also, it can show how much these athletes go through to support themselves since they

barely have time for sleep. And the school they attend for no profit but maybe an athletic

scholarship that may or may not pay for all tuition and fees. Athletes should have the opportunity

to make a profit from the image they created for themselves.

Keywords: NCAA, student, athlete, sports, university

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Should College Athletes Get Paid?

Many sports fans know the debate surrounding the idea of whether college athletes should

receive financial compensation or not has been an ongoing argument for decades. There are

different factors that contribute to the disagreement because there are so many unknowns.

College athletics is one of the most favorable college experiences to be able to attend and/or

watch. Physically attending these games gives off a powerful and raw excitement that allows the

fulfillment of this college puzzle piece. The NCAA, or the National Collegiate Athletic

Association, is a nonprofit organization that produces billions off of mostly division one athletes.

Division one student-athletes should get paid with heavy restrictions but major student-athletes

that have a platform and numerous fans should have the opportunity to make a profit based on

their image.

No surprise, division one athletes bring most of the money, especially men's basketball and

football. Even though it may seem unfair, these players technically deserve more. Also, they tend

to help other smaller sports financially that aren’t recognized as much. The different divisions

are typically based on how many students attend the school, the performance level with the sport,

and how much money there is to offer. It is known that division one athletes have more pressure

to perform at a higher level with more eyes on them which is why they deserve to get paid more

than anyone with certain restrictions. They shouldn’t get paid a riotous amount, but enough to let

them get by and live comfortably, or the opportunity to try to support their families. Also, if you

have the opportunity to make a profit based on the image you created, why shouldn’t you?
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As of right now, no athlete in college gets paid. Many athletes have the opportunity for

scholarships, and many receive enough to cover most of the costs to attend the university. In

reality, not all “400,000 student-athletes that participate in athletic games each year” receive a

full athletic scholarship to attend school and covers fees (Writers, 2019). Also, depending on in

state or out of state, the average athletic scholarship stands at $10,400. Yes, this is a lot of

money, but it won’t cover all the necessary costs of attending college for a lot of the players. For

example, “the average cost to live out of state for a four-year public school is $23,890”

(Collegeboard). The problem arises when financial instability throughout college is hard to solve

and these student-athletes are unable to maintain a job due to the strenuous demands of

maintaining athletic expectations.

The average athletes' schedule is filled from five in the morning and ending around

midnight (A Day in the Life of a Division I Football Player, 2017). Throughout their day it is

filled with training, practicing, classes, team activities, homework, and studying game film. Also,

traveling and competing in games and tournaments take a lot of time outside of the classroom. It

may not seem as important, but these athletes are young people that deserve to experience

college life, fun, and friends. This leaves the question if they needed to get a job to be able to

support themselves, or their family back home, when do they have time to get a job? “A 2011

report entitled “The Price of Poverty in Big Time College Sport” confirms that 85% of college

athletes on scholarship live below the poverty line” (Edelman, 2014). This number is definitely a

number that sticks out because it debunks the idea that all these athletes don’t need the money.

So with all these responsibilities to juggle around when do they have time to focus on

themselves for their mental health? Being a full-time athlete and student puts so much on your
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mental and physical health, “​In fact, 95% of male athletes and 86% of female athletes were

stressed by factors such as: tests and examinations, preparing papers for class, missing classes

because of travel, and making up missed assignments” (Humphrey et al., 2000). ​Especially if you

take part in a physical sport, you are putting your body through a lot and increases the chances of

getting injured. “Through 2004, there were 200,000 injury reports -- filed when an athlete misses

a day or more of practice or competition -- which works out to about 12,500 injuries per year”

(Livestrong). “​In addition to mental health concerns, many athletes report physical health

concerns as well, such as lack of sleep, continuous tension, fatigue, headaches, and digestive

problems” (Humphrey et al., 2000). They put so much work and effort and sacrifice in order to

be successful in their sport and academics. ​Being an athlete definitely has its risks and these

athletes are willing to sacrifice their bodies for the benefit of the team and their university.

“The college sports industry generates $11 billion in annual revenue” (The case for paying

college athletes, 2019). In order to run such a big industry, NCAA outsources companies and

workers that are financially compensated. In addition to outside companies, there are also inside

professionals who are not players that reap the benefits of the games. For example, “Men’s

basketball head coaches whose teams competed during March Madness in 2010 earned, on

average, approximately $1.4 million with the average head football coach compensation in major

programs amounting to $1.3 million” (Study College Athletes Worth Six Figures Live Below the

Federal Poverty Line, 2011). These coaches are getting paid in the millions based on how well

their athletes play. To put this more into perspective, “In 2015, the 53 public schools from the

five major conferences paid their football coaching staff (530 individuals) a combined $405.5

million, compared to $179.8 million in scholarships to their football players (4,979

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individuals)”(The History Behind the Debate Over Paying NCAA Athletes, 2018). Without the

athletes, no coach or any other person relying on the NCAA for an income would be paid. People

are paying money on tickets to come to see them, cable to watch them, and clothes to support

them but not even a percentage of that money is going straight to their pocket.

There are those fortunate athletes that have successfully made it to the elite teams through

working hard their entire life to reach that point. For example, Zion Williamson is a freshman for

Duke basketball that is expected to be the number one draft pick this upcoming NBA draft. All

different shoe brands are itching to sign with Zion. He is expected to have one of the largest

endorsement shoe deals in the history of the sport for an NBA rookie. “Zion's first shoe

endorsement will yield an annual value between $9-10.5 million annually” (Rishe, 2019)

He also has 2.5 million followers on Instagram and has millions of fans that are supporting him

(Rishe, 2019). As of right now, he can’t receive any profit for the empire he built for himself.

There are other athletes that don’t have as big as a platform but still have a fan base and have the

potential to make money solely based on their image. Why shouldn’t they get paid for the work

they have done for themselves and the team?

Many say that student-athletes shouldn’t get paid because they are there to be a student first

athlete second. But in reality that is not the case for numerous schools that are highly competitive

in mainstream sports. “In 2010, the average graduation rate for March Madness teams were

43%” (Writers, 2019). These athletes schedules are strategically planned around the sport, so

they can win and build a name for themselves and the team. Sometimes the love and passion

these players hold for the game they forget that they are there for education as well.
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The scholarships are their payment. Their education is a profit. The opportunity to be there

is enough. These are all common reasonings for why they shouldn’t get paid. Not all athletes

receive full scholarships some receive partial and others may receive no type of scholarship. On

top of their potential lack of funding towards school, they also are unable to fully dedicate their

lives to their education and rather are conditioned to dedicate their time to sports. Therefore, how

useful is the scholarship, sometimes partial scholarship that they are unable to fully utilize.

Others may argue that since these athletes are getting paid, they probably won’t show up to

class. Just because a student-athlete is able to support themselves doesn’t mean they will lose

motivation to go to classes. This leads to the potential of losing scholarships, being ineligible to

play due to grades, and all around not being a student there to get a degree. Many athletes

recognize the fact that “2% of athletes go professional” so they aren’t just going to through the

opportunity of education down the drain (NCAA). This also applies to the argument that it will

change the atmosphere and removes the natural drive for the game but if anything, the idea of

being financially stable will drive the athletes to be more dedicated because they don’t have the

stress ​of not having money on their shoulders.

There are so many unknowns about this topic because athletes have never been paid nor

have been able to make a profit based on their image. This is why there is a lot of hesitation for

any type of action. It is time for action. As fans of these universities, sports, and athletes it is

time to boycott until the athletes get what they deserve. If they do not decide to boycott nothing

will be done in the NCAA and will continue the path of being a billion dollar industry. Some

options include not attending the physical game and watch it through a secondary source or

something like not buying athletic merch through the sport. It is understandable that the love for
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the game is too strong to not support it, but there are other ways to voice your opinion. Social

media accounts and the use of hashtags have been used for years to recognize problems and

phenomenons around the world. To make it a change, there needs to be voices and opinions

being expressed and in this case, the fans are the best option to get this goal done.

The ability to make a profit based on what you yourself can bring to the table will change

the NCAA but for the better. The players will receive what their hard work deserves. Also,

informing the athletic department and the NCAA of how important compensation for players

competing at the division one level is crucial for them to be successful. Having a bit of cash in

their pocket to support themselves and possibly their family will lift a huge amount of stress.

Lifting that stress will help the student focus more on themselves, the sport they play, and their

academics.
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References

A Day in the Life of a Division I Football Player. (2017, November 16). ncsasports.org

Retrieved from

https://www.ncsasports.org/blog/2017/10/03/day-life-division-football-player/

Collegeboard. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/college-costs/college-costs-faqs

Edelman, M. (n.d.). The Case for Paying College Athletes. Retrieved from

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2014/01/06/ncaa-college-athletes-should-be-paid

Humphrey, J. H., Yow, D. A. & Bowden, W. W. (2000). ​Stress in college athletics: Causes,

consequences, coping. ​Binghamton, NY: The Haworth Half-Court Press.

Rishe, P. (2019, February 24). Zion Williamson And Shoe Deals: Estimating Future

Endorsement Earnings Using Social Media Metrics. Retrieved from

https://www.forbes.com/sites/prishe/2019/02/24/zion-williamson-and-shoe-deals-estimatin

g-future-endorsement-earnings-using-social-media-metrics/#57a4ac9d980fv

The History Behind the Debate Over Paying NCAA Athletes. (2018, May 24). Retrieved from

https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/history-behind-debate-paying-ncaa-athletes/

Writers, S. (2019, March 14). 14 Surprising Facts About Being a College Athlete. Retrieved
from
https://www.bestcollegesonline.com/blog/14-surprising-facts-about-being-a-college-athlete
/