OT: Arian Foster thinks student athletes should be paid
I didn't see this posted yet. I think he makes some really good points, but his reasoning is somewhat off. NCAA may be raking in money (I'm not sure what their profits vs. revenue looks like) but most schools are not. Only 22 athletic departments turned a profit in 2010. As we know from the arguments going on with full-cost-of-attendance scholarships, the schools that are not turning a profit do not feel like they can afford to give athletes any more than what they do currently.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYcXnsy3KHk
(Will embed below.)
My comments from reddit about the video and topic:
So many of his points are off base. First of all, without football, most of these guys wouldn't be able to go to college, let alone some of the more academic oriented ones.
His point about injuries is a complete non-factor. Just because what you do is somewhat dangerous doesn't mean you get paid for it. The same thing could have happened in high school but that doesn't mean high school athletes should be paid. Without exposure and education, most of them would have an extremely dim future.
He complains about waking up at 5am to practice. Get over it. You're going to school for free and a chance to reach the NFL. I wish my worst problem was getting up at 5am...
He mentions that they can't have jobs. During the school year he won't have time (that's the trade off when you play a sport) but during the summer they most certainly can.
He complains about his stipend only being $87 a month. What is he spending that on that the school doesn't pay for? Books? School covers that. Food? School covers that as long as it's campus food. Going out with friends? You have to pay for that with the free $90 a month you get. Most college kids are poor, you aren't the minority here. So he sees other students going out all the time and money never seeming to be a problem but what he doesn't understand is that their parents are most likely paying for all of that. He doesn't have parents with that money, meaning he wouldn't even be in school unless it was for football.
Even if the student is paying for it themselves, that means they most likely have some shitty job that never offers them the chance or exposure to make millions playing a game that they love. Those students are working just as hard as he is to pay their student loans and will continue to pay those loans years after they graduate. Yet he's complaining that he isn't making $10 an hour at the university cafeteria while he plays football, has the chance to become a star, practically getting any girl he wants while doing so, and then, on top of all of that, gets paid six figures at least for being on the damn practice squad.
What most of these guys don't understand is how lucky they really are for getting those scholarships. We all know that most of these guys' are pretty damn dumb and without football they'd be working some dead-end job making minimum wage or committing crimes. Sure, there is a minority that would still go to college and become successful without the scholarship, but they'd never make a million dollars by the time they were 22. These opportunities give them to change their lives forever and put them on a different path where they can actually succeed and do something they love, something many people can't say that they have.
The heart of the problem is that a lot of people just don't understand the value of a college education. That's unfortunate. It always seems like the guys that complain about this are the 1% that make it to the NFL and thus don't see a need for a college education in the first place. I wonder if the players who know they'll never make it professionally are more appreciative of their free education?
To me, the answer is simple: remove all constraints on a kid earning money, but don't require a minimum salary across the NCAAs. What do I really care if Kentucky wants to pay $10,000 for a point guard or Alabama $50,000 for a tail back?
To me this does several hings:
1. Removes the facad of college sports of not being a business.
2. Allows a kid to cash in on endorsements etc. when in maybe one or two years he / she wouldn't. Hell, in this case each school could employ an agent and require some percentage of earnings to that school's general fund.
3. It would allow the NCAA to actually focus on things like academic fraud, and put some substantial penalities in place (like maybe losing accrediation -- don't laugh, what other than academic fraud goes directly at the heart of the worth and integrity of a degree???)
4. When I was a student athlete, NCAA actually limited the amount of money one could make in a summer job. Insane.
When I intended UM my friend was in EECS and spendt his summers with Microsoft earning tens of thousands of dollars. UM actually used his story in some student recruiting literature. Replace EECS with "basketball" and "Microsoft" with the Lakers and all of the sudden its a recruiting viloation.
For all those who say "they already get paid" -- yes, that may be technically true. But many, do not get paid at the level a free market demands. I'd suggest just be happy with your own life before advacting forcing someone to accept less money.
The problem with that is it will destory any sense of competition. Schools like TCU or Boise St. will never have a chance to build a program. The top talent will all go to the schools that can afford to pay them the most, or have relationships with companies that can offer them the best endorsements. If that's what you are looking to see in the future, that's fine. I can actually see a lot of benefits to splitting FBS into the haves and the have nots. Turn it into a 32 team league like NFL, or something. But there are more negatives to that than positives, quite frankly.
Good points, but I'd like to give you a few more items to think about:
1. I think one can argue that there is already is a division between the haves and have nots. TCU and Boise are the exception and not the rule. Look at the final BCS standings and they are the only non-BCS representatives in the top 25. Its no coincidence that KU and UK played for the bball NC. Both those schools spend (and choose to do so) siginificant money and resources that other schools do.
2. I think its also well estabilshed that neither Bosie or TCU attracted top talent, but instead developed from a pull of USC / Texas castaways. I'd argue that in my system they (and therefore indirectly the school) they would benefit more as their earning power might not be as great in the future (lack of NFL opprotunities, etc.).
3. I'd never really thought of your idea of further seperation of the FBS, but got to admit I kind of like it. NFL uses 16 games + playoff to determine a champion of 32 teams. We use 13 games + 1 bowl to determine a champion of 110+ teams. Someone is invevitably going to be left off the table.
Great, Arian Foster can pay for them then. As was said earlier, if 22 schools nationwide made a profit from athletics, that means they're the only ones that can afford to give their athletes money (not including tuition, food, housing, etc. Don't even get me started on that). That would leave 22 schools with a competetive advantage because recruits would obviously want to go there, and every other college isn't going to accept that, so they'll start paying too. That money would be coming out of somebody else's pockets. I already bust my ass to afford school and don't really feel like giving money to unappreciative cocky assholes.
To be fair, I am biased in the argument because I believe in the value of an eduaction. But for the sake of argument, set aside the fact that players get the cost of an education paid for.
Focus on this: If all they are doing is prepairing to play in the NFL, how do you think that happens? Last time I checked, joining a gym was not free. hiring a personal trainer is not free. Getting expert advice on technique is not free. Getting publicity is not free.
My point is this. Education aside, every school (and I mean every school) spends a ton of money putting the assets in place to help these players achieve their goal of playing in the NFL. The weight room, the meals, the strength and conditioning coaches, the position coaches, the head coaches, the stadiums. All of these cost money. All of these are there purely to help an athlete prepare for the next stage in life. No other student benefits from these assets.
This is no diffferent from why students have to pay tuition to have access to top professors and top equipment in their specific field.
And don't tell me athlete's bring in way more money for their schools than other students. College's and Universities hold thousands if not millions of patents gained on the backs of undergrads and graduate students which earn the school money.
Free education, free access to all the tools needed to prepare you for the NFL, and free food?
Let's stop this discussion about players needing to get paid because they are being taken advantage of. They help the school and the school helps them.
This is a good point, but if there were a real minor league for football, wouldn't they get all that plus a salary? In the world we live in now, that's not a viable option for football, but it is for other sports. I think the real question has to be, why isn't there a minor league for football other than NCAA?
Haven't most of the American gridiron football leagues tried to be alternatives to NFL instead of acting more like d-leagues? It's certainly understandable why leagues that are trying to compete with NFL haven't been successful.
college sports is one of the last strongholds of 'amatuerism'. And no I'm not a blind fool...I know full well there are programs, probably every program with things in the books...that well aren't in the books. And some that flat out and blatantly trade tats for cash/memorabilia/cars, etc...and make the NCAA a laughingstock. But that part is on the NCAA, they treat some schools with kid gloves and set THEMSELVES up for the problem. Drop the damn hammer and prove a point. I hate when rules exist, leadership refuses to enforce those rules, then when things get out of control, they decide to change the rules because their blind eye has opened a can of worms they can no longer contain.
To me, the concept of paying college athletes cold hard cash is a Pandora's box and once it's open, there is NO way to go back. ever. When things are already on the sly...opening up fair game is just a floodgate waiting to burst. And as many have posted, a full ride is probably in the neighborhood of 100-150K anymore if not moreso. Not to mention, they ALL have a right to choose their school, create an oportunity or gateway to a professional career, and make the most of that opportunity. The school is taking a chance on that athlete. They are not only provided an education, also a gateway to high stakes exposure on the most grand of all stages. Anymore, football in particular is nothing short of a breeding ground for the pros...they HAVE their shot, that's what the college step is 'for' anymore. Without bigtime exposure, no pro contract. The schools are ALSO giving opportunity to those who have no pro opportunities the chance to educate and prepare their future...the NCAA even ran PSAs demonstrating how so many of their student athletes will be going 'pro' in something other than their sport...
Also as many said, you really have to be living high on the hog to spend through the stipends...if you live in the dorms it's honestly probably cheaper with food etc rolled in anymore. And honestly the dorm food wasn't a death sentence. Everyone has to pay their dues at some point. I know there are plenty of 'traditional scholars' living on noodles and fruity pebbles getting by as student loans pile up. You open the door to paying NCAA athletes, the concept of college competition is all but lost forever. I completely disagree with this whole concept...as a former UM athlete in a minor sport with little to no perks whatsoever...but I also saw more of this country than I EVER would have as a student first and only...and NO QUESTION in my mind even in the professional world, when I mention earning varsity letters at UM...it opens a number of doors and mouths...it makes an impact worth more than money and often leading to money, and I'll guarantee I'm not alone in this understanding.