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Connor Freeman
Grimaldi
HELA 10 Hour 4
18 February 2016
The System: The Unethical Nature of Big Time College Sports
Over the past couple of years, there has been a lot of talk about whether college athletes
should be paid. From the Ed OBannon trial to the Northwestern football teams attempted
unionization, it has been a huge topic. Many have called for the immediate change of the NCAA
amateurism rules. Many have also called for the NCAA autonomy to stay the same. Based on the
information listed in this report, there is no question that big-time college athletes should be paid
because of the NCAA's hypocritical exploitation of the athlete's market value.
The NCAA makes billions of dollars each year in college athletics. As Eric He of Daily
Trojan describes, the NCAA is "a non-profit, tax-exempt organization that just happens to be a
billion dollar industry." (He) Events such as the NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament and the
College Football Playoff make astronomical amounts of money from TV, merchandise, and
ticket sales. In 2011-2012, the NCAA had a total revenue of $871.6 million. More specifically,
Nick Saban (Alabama) and Jim Harbaugh (Michigan) both made over $7 million a year in salary
(USA Today), while the athletes they coach are given no spending money and arent even
allowed to hold a job to earn it. A 2011 report entitled The Price of Poverty in Big Time College
Sport confirmed that 85 percent of college athletes on scholarship live below the poverty line.
(Huma 4)The athletes struggle through their careers in college athletics. Yet, who do the fans pay
to watch? The obvious answer is the athletes themselves. They are the ones that are competing
against one another. But, the NCAA hierarchy, coaches, and people in the athletic departments
are the ones that are getting rich off of the efforts of the athletes.

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These athletes are defined by the NCAA as amateurs. Jay Bilas, a former Duke
basketball player and ESPN commentator, has been a leader on the issue of big-time college
athletics. He says there is nothing amateur about college athletics because everybody gets paid
except the athletes. (Bilas) Basketball legend Kenny Smith has also chimed in on the issue,
saying, Its the only industry in the world where the employees dont get paid. (Futterman)
This is the hypocrisy of college athletics. It is immoral and unethical to restrict only one class of
college athletics from benefitting off of their monetary value. For example, the coaches are not
restricted in how much money they make. The head coach may make millions of dollars and
even some assistant coaches are getting paid over one million dollars annually. However, the
players are stuck with the amateur label, and cannot be paid. Another way to think of this is
through child actors. A child actor is going to be the star of a new, hit movie that will make tens
of millions of dollars. What if the movie studio decided to not pay the actor, but would pay for a
great hotel and accommodations on set? The family would obviously say no. It's a multi-million
dollar business and the child is the star of the movie. This is a commercial enterprise. In the same
way, college athletics is a commercial enterprise. The NCAA charges gigantic amounts of money
for TV rights and tickets, but the stars are not paid a dime.
The athletes should also be able to make money off of their likeness. Ed OBannon, a
former UCLA and NBA forward, is seeking revenue from TV broadcasts and profits from
merchandise licensing fees on video games and clothing. He brought the antitrust case to court
and won. This was a major blow to the NCAAs amateurism policies and a major step in the
direction of compensation for college athletes. Two years ago, star Georgia running back Todd
Gurley and star Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston allegedly received money for signing
over 1000 combined authenticated autographs. (ESPN) They were both essentially suspended

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indefinitely by NCAA for making money off of their own name. However, the respective football
programs continue to make enormous amounts of money off of their star players every Saturday
in the fall. The hypocrisy is staggering.
People that aren't in favor of paying collegiate athletes often point to how the majority of
collegiate athletes are given scholarships to pay all of the costs of college. This is by far the best
and most reasonable argument against student athlete compensation. An education does have
significant value in today's world, without question. Recent studies have shown that individuals
with a college degree earn almost $1 million more in lifetime earnings over those with only a
high school diploma. They feel that the scholarship is sufficient. However, the numbers say
differently. In the 2015 football season, the Alabama's athletic department made $95.3 million in
revenue. If an Alabama student from out of state paid the full out of state tuition without
financial aid, it would cost $38,306. (Cappas) Assuming the value of all 85 scholarship player's
scholarships are $38,306, this amounts to about $3.25 million in tuition and fees (or as some
would say "compensation"). Put in perspective, Alabama head football coach Nick Saban makes
$7.1 million per year. So, Nick Saban makes twice as much as the sum of the player's
scholarships on the football team. In addition, the financial value of the player's scholarships are
about 3% of the revenue of the football program. This turns out to be an incredible bargain for
the University of Alabama at the expense of the players.
Compensating college athletes is a complex issue, but there is no doubt that the athletes
need to be compensated more for their efforts. Big time college sport is a billion dollar industry
with the employees making no money. They need to be able to financially benefit from their play
by receiving a stipend from the school and making money off of their name. The athletes deserve

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to be rewarded for their contributions. After all, there is no college athletics without athletes to
compete.

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Works Cited

Huma, Ramogi. "The Price of Poverty in Big Time College

Sport." 2014.
He, Eric. "College Athletes Need to Be Compensated
for Efforts." University Wire. 31 Aug. 2015: n.p. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
Sanderson, Allen, and John Siegfried. "When's
Payday for Collegians?." USA Today (Farmingdale).
Sep. 2015: 75. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 17
Feb. 2016.
Futterman, Matthew. "The Debate Continues: Should
the Players Get Paid?." Wall Street Journal. 19 Mar.
2015: D.8. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 17 Feb.
2016.
Mendelson, Joel. "College Athletes Shouldn't Get
Paid." University Wire. 30 Mar. 2014: n.p. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
"The University of Alabama." Cappex.com. N.p., n.d.
Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
Peebles, Maurice. "7 Common Sense Reasons Why
College Athletes Should Be Paid (According to Jay
Bilas)." Complex. Complex Media Inc., 3 Dec. 2015.
Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
Note: I actually know a lot of these statistics by heart, so if I didnt cite a statistic, I
either know it already or I did my own calculations.

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