Beyond Tressel: College Athletics’ Real Scandal

[ralaw]

I just don't like the idea of paying college athletes, because it seems to me that it would just open up even more issues and certainly wouldn’t eliminate the corruption that already takes place…..I could see it becoming worse. I just think a college degree is enough, because if used correctly along with their influence it can set them up. However, it’s on the student athlete to realize that. If you’re going to pay athletes for making money for the school then why not just make them employees and not force education on them? Why not just make big time college sports semi-pro and give them contracts.

[FedEx227]

Slippery slope.

The divide between the large schools and the small schools would widen considerably. Forget free cars and a nice condo, you would end up with a gradual evolution of college players making millions of dollars. You would have a system where wealthy fans control college athletics.

Don't forget Title 9. How do you make that piece fit?

It just opens up a pandora's box of issues. This is exactly why a coach can't buy a player lunch or pay an electric bill. The line must be drawn at everything or there is no line at all.

That's why I'm not saying the institution should do anything, they shouldn't. They shouldn't get paid and they can't get paid because of Title IX and the multitude of other reasons both financially and ethically.

But if a booster or a used car dealership wants to give the star QB or star PF a car, who cares? Why not establish it as the near-professional sport that it is?

[Warner2BruceTD]

That's why I'm not saying the institution should do anything, they shouldn't. They shouldn't get paid and they can't get paid because of Title IX and the multitude of other reasons both financially and ethically.

But if a booster or a used car dealership wants to give the star QB or star PF a car, who cares? Why not establish it as the near-professional sport that it is?

Because it won't stop at cars.

What if T.Bone Pickens decides he's going to die soon, wants to see some championships, and decides to spend his fortune on paying for players to come to Kentucky? And then Phil Knight does the same at Oregon? You have no issue with turning these players into millionaires, and completely blowing up the entire structure of college sports?

Why do this? Get tougher and force people to comply. It isn't diifficult, its just that nobody has the balls to do it. Or in some cases, they have financial interest to protect.

[Bear Pand]

The kids have a responsibility to themselves. The issue isn’t the schools steering kids to certain majors, but kids going to college (who in some cases wouldn’t even be in college) and not caring about their education. If they cared about their education they could declare whichever major they want and coaches would just deal with it. Coaches are about keeping kids eligible and not whether Jimmy is going to be able to be an engineer in 10 years. Coaches are paid based on winning and graduation rates, so they’re obviously going to steer kids into suspect majors to keep them eligible. However, the athletes have to take responsibility for their education like the majority of college students do. Gordon Hayward not going to Purdue is an example of this.

So it's cool for the university to pay coaches million dollar salaries while they make a mockery of the whole "student-athlete" label?

[Senser81]

I just don't like the idea of paying college athletes, because it seems to me that it would just open up even more issues and certainly wouldn’t eliminate the corruption that already takes place…..I could see it becoming worse. I just think a college degree is enough, because if used correctly along with their influence it can set them up. However, it’s on the student athlete to realize that. If you’re going to pay athletes for making money for the school then why not just make them employees and not force education on them? Why not just make big time college sports semi-pro and give them contracts.

You could do that. But I would liken to "scholar-athlete" situation to being a Graduate Assistant or Teaching Assistant, who is being paid by the University for services provided to the University but also being a student at the University.

[FedEx227]

What if T.Bone Pickens decides he's going to die soon, wants to see some championships, and decides to spend his fortune on paying for players to come to Kentucky? And then Phil Knight does the same at Oregon? You have no issue with turning these players into millionaires, and completely blowing up the entire structure of college sports?

Why do this? Get tougher and force people to comply. It isn't diifficult, its just that nobody has the balls to do it. Or in some cases, they have financial interest to protect.

That's the thing, I don't WANT them to do that, but I recognize that the structure of college sports at least "big time" college sports at the Division 1 level is completely blown up.

If you want to play for the passion of the game and still want to pursue your education there's D2 and D3 for you. However, once you start getting into billion dollar television contracts and college specific television stations hasn't the "structure" already been blown up?

It's not that I don't think kids are properly compensated, I just don't like the time, effort and money that's put into this fascade of "student-athletes" and the pride of college athletics. We all know it's big business, we know what's going on behind the scenes... it's stupid to lie to themselves and to us. Just treat it for what it is.

[Warner2BruceTD]

So it's cool for the university to pay coaches million dollar salaries while they make a mockery of the whole "student-athlete" label?

The athletes themselves make a mockery of the "student-athlete" label just as much, if not far more than the schools.

I find it very hard to feel bad for the top level athlete who makes a mockery of the entire process, and disregards the opportunities afforded to them in some cases. Eat Ramen like half of the rest of the student body, and kindly stfu. Especially the guys who never go to class who will be cashing in before they hit drinking age.

[Senser81]

The athletes themselves make a mockery of the "student-athlete" label just as much, if not far more than the schools.

I find it very hard to feel bad for the top level athlete who makes a mockery of the entire process, and disregards the opportunities afforded to them in some cases. Eat Ramen like half of the rest of the student body, and kindly stfu. Especially the guys who never go to class who will be cashing in before they hit drinking age.

Again, I don't think this is an academic issue or a "student life" issue. People aren't paying millions of dollars to watch you toke up on Thursday night while you watch Space Ghost. TV stations aren't lining up to broadcast your Geology 101 exam.

There is a lot of money out there. The athletes deserve at least some of it.

[Warner2BruceTD]

That's the thing, I don't WANT them to do that, but I recognize that the structure of college sports at least "big time" college sports at the Division 1 level is completely blown up.

If you want to play for the passion of the game and still want to pursue your education there's D2 and D3 for you. However, once you start getting into billion dollar television contracts and college specific television stations hasn't the "structure" already been blown up?

It's not that I don't think kids are properly compensated, I just don't like the time, effort and money that's put into this fascade of "student-athletes" and the pride of college athletics. We all know it's big business, we know what's going on behind the scenes... it's stupid to lie to themselves and to us. Just treat it for what it is.

I don't know, I would argue that the schools are running a business and have a right to make as much money as they can.

But I also believe the athletes are fairly compensated. Aside from the scholarship which they may or may not take advantage of, the top level guys also get top level exposure to the pro leagues. And lets face it, this is who we are talking about, the top level athlete. He's the reason the tennis coach can't buy groceries for his player, because the pandoras box opens up.

[Bear Pand]

The athletes themselves make a mockery of the "student-athlete" label just as much, if not far more than the schools.

I find it very hard to feel bad for the top level athletes who makes a mockery of the entire process, and disregards the opportunities afforded to them in some cases. Eat Ramen like half of the rest of the student body, and kindly stfu. Especially the guys who never go to class will be cashing in before they hit drinking age.

They make a mockery of it, at least partially because they don't really want to be there. They just go because it's their best road to the NBA/NFL. You wanna be a pro basketball player your options are basically to go to the NBDL, go play overseas or go to college for a year or two. Going to college is the option that makes the most sense in terms of the competition/coaching/exposure you'll get.

Why we would expect these kids to eat ramen and shut up, or pay back their tuition if they don't stay four years? Why would a kid like Derrick Rose who can barely read and had someone take his SATs for him go to class? What were his other options out of HS? Go play for the Fort Wayne Fire Ants, Harlem Globetrotters or Basketballakitivus Palankakos in Greece? Or go to college, pretend to be a student and have his games on ESPN all the time.

Only reason to support this system is out of selfishness. We like watching college football on Saturdays and March Madness. If they make major changes to the way athletes are treated it might fuck it all up.

[Senser81]

I don't know, I would argue that the schools are running a business and have a right to make as much money as they can.

If you are arguing for "free market economics", then the NCAA is the worst example you could point to. The NCAA governing body itself is just one big illegal collusion.

If schools were allowed to run their sports as a business to make as much money as they could, then there is no way football and basketball student-athletes would merely be receiving scholarships and nothing more. A school like Oklahoma State would pay the Dez Bryants to come to their school instead of Oklahoma and Nebraska, which results in more wins, more bowls, more TV exposure, more merchandise sales, more money.

[Bear Pand]

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2011-06-01/sports/os-steve-spurrier-paying-players-20110601_1_gators-coach-auburn-s-gene-chizik-mississippi-state-s-dan-mullen

[Steve Spurrier] suggested players receive $300 per game to pay for expenses, a cost that would come out of the coaches' pocket. Or at least some.

Seven coaches, including Florida's Will Muschamp, signed Spurrier's proposal that was presented to the athletic directors at the SEC Spring Meetings on Wednesday.

"A bunch of us coaches felt so strongly about it that we would be willing to pay it, 70 guys, 300 bucks a game. That's only $21,000 a game," Spurrier said. "I doubt if it will get passed, but as a coach in the SEC, we make all the money as do universities, colleges, and we need to get more to our players."

Six coaches signed Spurrier's proposal, which he showed to the media then folded and put in his pocket. Besides Spurrier and Muschamp, Alabama's Nick Saban, LSU's Les Miles, Mississippi State's Dan Mullen, Ole Miss' Houston Nutt and Tennessee's Derek Dooley signed the proposal.

"I just wish there was a way to get our players a little piece of the pie. It's so huge right now," he said. "As you know, 50 years ago, there was not any kind of money and players got full scholarships. Now they're still getting full scholarships and the money's just in the millions. I don't know how to get it done. Hopefully there's a way to give our guys that play football a little piece of the pie."

[Warner2BruceTD]

I think their "pie" comes in the form of the scholarship and exposure to the pro leagues.

Nonody forced Derrick Rose to go to college, he's exploiting the school far moe than they are exploiting him, so its a joke for him to not play by the same rules as the womens soccer goalie.

Now back to my original point. To keep Rose out of a college he doesn't belong in, death sentence for Memphis hoops, and ban Calipari from coaching. This is all you need to do, but they never will. They will sooner give in and professionalize it, unfortunately.

[FedEx227]

Then you also have to tell the NBA to remove their stupid ass rule.

[Senser81]

Now back to my original point. To keep Rose out of a college he doesn't belong in, death sentence for Memphis hoops, and ban Calipari from coaching. This is all you need to do, but they never will. They will sooner give in and professionalize it, unfortunately.

Why is it unfortunate? Who would you rather watch on TV? Derrick Rose at Memphis? Or a true student-athlete at Northwestern who has difficulty dribbling the ball over the half-court line under 10 seconds?