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Parker RoseEnglish 1010DDr. Sean M. George2 December 2014Scamming College AthletesToday in the world of sports there is a great debate on whether or not college athletes should be paid. A great majority claims that they should, and I agree. Being a student athlete is a full time job. The athletes scholarship doesn't pay for him/her to go to the movies or out to eat every once in awhile, so how are they supposed to pay for that? The NCAA is making money off all these athletes and the athletes themselves don’t get a penny. How can NCAA executives make over $1 million a year yet, the people actually raking in all that cash get nothing?The average Division I athletics scholarship amounts to about $25,000 a year; And $100,000 over their four year careers. Their sport could be a full time job considering the amount of hours each week they put in. Lets not forget that collegiate athletes are not just putting in work during their sports season, but also as much if not more in the offseason. Players will wake up before they go to class for an early morning of practice, head to class all day until around 4:00 p.m., go to the gym and get in a lift followed by conditioning, go to a required study hall, and finish off the day with homework or maybe even study for a test. When do they have time to focus on something other than their schoolwork or sport? Tyson Harnett explains in his article on the Huffington Post that “A $25,000 scholarship may seem like a lot of money, but it really only covers the basics. It covers thousands of dollars in mysterious, unknown university fees, tuition, housing, a meal-plan and multiple hundred-dollar textbooks. Some players, if they come from a low-income household, get a few hundred dollars each semester from Pell Grants which enables them to buy chicken soup instead of chicken-flavored ramen” (Hartnett 5). Why shouldn't colleges support them for their hard work, and give them a little more to look forward to than chicken soup? Unless these athletes want to be confined to their dorm rooms with no spending money to do anything but head to the cafeteria for some sloppy, hardly edible food, they need to be given some form of allowance outside of their normal scholarship.All the money the NCAA receives they do not earn; the players that go out and showcase their talents to bring in the TV rating, and sponsors do. Recently the NCAA Signed a massive 10.8 billion dollar television deal, and yet no one other than executives will ever see that money. Joe Nocera of The New York Times states “The hypocrisy that permeates big-money college sports takes your breath away. College football and men’s basketball have become such huge commercial enterprises that together they generate more than $6 billion in annual revenue, more than the National Basketball Association” (Nocera 4). The NCAA makes 6 billion off two sports alone but don’t give the actual hard working money makers one penny of that money? The players see the thousands of fans wearing jerseys with their name and numbers that are being sold at the stadium. “The N.C.A.A. can piously define them as students first, but the players know better” (Nocera 5) Joe Nocera explains later on in his article. Many athletes don't believe that there is anything morally or ethically wrong with accepting money because they feel as if the NCAA is scamming or ripping them off. The facts are out in plain view, it is sickening how some of the most well paid people in america earn their money through the hard work of others. All they have to do is sit back and sign multi billion dollar contracts.The NCAA acts as an employer to college athletes. The definition of and employer is a person or organization that employs people, which is exactly what the NCAA is doing without paying them. The NCAA regulates how many scholarships a school can give out, grade requirements to play athletics, decide if your criminal record is worthy enough for college sports, and requires you to follow a number of rigorous rules and guidelines to stay in these sports. Reed Karaim claims in his article on CQ Researcher that “Players are expected to maintain a rigorous training and playing schedule while keeping up their studies. A recent ruling that Northwestern University football players are school employees and thus have the right to unionize, along with class-action lawsuits demanding more compensation and better treatment for college athletes” (Karaim). If athletes are being seen as school employees, and the NCAA controls the revenue and TV contracts for these schools, doesn’t that also make the players employees of the NCAA? Yes, it does.Some people see the athletes as lucky to not have to pay for college and they should take the money they are given and be happy with it. Horace Mitchell in his article about the cons of paying athletes on CQ Researcher states “A high percentage of student-athletes graduate without the burden of student loans that most students accumulate and must repay” (Mitchell 3). Athletes may have less student loans than normal students when it is all said and done, but most students don’t put in put to 50 hour weeks to work their butts off so their “employer” can profit from their efforts while they don't see a penny of that revenue. Think about all the time they spend away from class; multiple weekends a season they miss and that adds up to multiple classes each semester. That makes school much more rigorous and difficult that just your average student. Ever fallen behind in a class because you missed a couple days? Imagine that, but not only are they missing some days, and having to make up all that work, but they also have to put in up to 50 hours of work for next weeks game. Many people state that “playing college sports is a privilege not a right” when arguing not to pay athletes. That statement is true, but if it is such a privilege why does the NCAA and schools treat them as employees. Selling their names on jerseys for profit, and their abilities on television. These athletes “privilege” is the only source of income for NCAA executives. The players are earning the money for those executives and they deserve a piece. Athletes put their bodies on the line, sacrifice hours and hours of hard work, and get used by the NCAA for revenue and receive absolutely nothing. “scholarships do not cover all living expenses, and many student-athletes do not have the opportunity to earn income to cover those expenses or to afford simple social outings with friends, an important component of college life, student well-being and personal development” (Mitchell 6). This Statement by Horace Mitchell, a member of the Board of Directors for the NCAA. To improve the livelihood and to give athletes a pice of the money that they help earn is what these student-athletes deserve. Works CitedHartnett, Tyson. "Why College Athletes Should Be Paid." <i>The Huffington Post</i>. , 21 Oct. 2013. Web. 1 Dec. 2014. &lt;, Reed. "Are Players School Employees?" <i>CQ Researcher</i>. 11 July 2014. Web. 2 Dec. 2014. &lt;, Horace. "Are Players School Employees?" <i>CQ Researcher</i>. 11 July 2014. Web. 2 Dec. 2014. &lt;, Joe. "Let’s Start Paying College Athletes." The New York Times. The New York Times, 31 Dec. 2011. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. <;.

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