Essay peer review

Should Student-Athletes Be Paid

College athletics has more controversy today for different reasons. The main issue surrounding the athletes that perform as amateurs for the NCAA is they do not get paid. The NCAA is the National Collegiate Athletic Association. They are a non-profit organization that was originally started for college football. Their main focus is to keep athletes at all the institutions they oversee and to keep an even playing field for all.  The amateur status prohibits all athletes from getting paid for participation or having an agent. Student-athletes represent the Universities they were recruited to and bring in money for Universities. It is clear that the NCAA has no clear decision as of recently after California is the first state to start moving towards athletes being paid. Therefore, students should not be able to make money while being an athlete in college due to the scholarships awarded to student-athletes and the tuition for the entire University could increase.  However, some say that the revenue should go back to the athletes and pay for play is justifiable.  

Many student-athletes are recruited by Universities and awarded athletic scholarships to continue their athletic careers.  At the 2004 U.S. Army All American bowl the top football recruits were asked a series of questions by USA Today. One of the questions was “Is getting a scholarship to play college football enough for what you put into the game and what the school gets out of your performance”(USA Today, 2004). Sixty-one recruits a scholarship was enough and eighteen did not.  This shows that many recruits are not expecting to be paid outside of a scholarship because they realize they are getting paid in the form of a scholarship. At Northwestern University “ most of the kids at Northwestern are getting a scholarship worth about $60,000, but most of them will never make anywhere near $60,000 playing football anywhere else.”(Mark Guarino). At a school that is well-known for its football program most players are getting more than the average student at a University.

If student-athletes were to get paid the tuition would increase at all institutions. With tuition rates already getting expensive “ this wealth transfer may lead to an increase in the cost of attendance for all students as institutional funds are redirected to support monetary awards for athletes.” (Tom Sullivan).  The increase will make students and their families unhappy “The most forceful voices may come from parents and faculty who face soaring tuition hikes, departmental budget cuts, and other shortages at the same universities where athletic revenues are at a surplus.”(Mark Guarino). This will lead to fewer people going to college and going straight to the workforce or trade schools. The tuition rising it will eventually hurt universities due to low enrollment rates. With low enrollment rates, it will force professors and school officials out of jobs just for college athletes to earn money.  Schools that are bigger and in a well-known conference will “simply put, the large sports revenue-driven institutions will have a monopoly-like power and ability to dominate the recruitment market, resulting in a suppression of competition.”(Tom Sullivan). This imbalance will affect small universities like the University of Hartford. Hartford athletics does not have a better revenue than a school that is nationally ranked for basketball with multiple national championships. 

Some people think that college athletes should get some of the revenue they help generate and pay for play is good. The NCAA is very profitable and “beyond school-issued scholarships, the NCAA is funneling $750 million over 11 years into funds designed to directly benefit athletes. One will make a projected $11.33 million available this school year to needy athletes looking to cover clothing, emergency travel and educational and medical expenses.” (Steve Wieberg). This is enough money for each athlete to receive some amount of money. These student-athletes are working a full-time job while still attending school full time. A former Northwestern quarterback said he “ estimates that he spent as many as 60 hours a week on football-related activities during summer training camps. During the season, that fell to 40 to 50 hours a week” (Mark Guarino). This leads to athletes not being able to get a job and pay for everyday expenses that are not covered under the scholarship for attending the school. 

The NCAA had been against paying student-athletes for a long time. It would ruin collegiate sports. Those reasons a student-athlete should have more negatives than positives than many realize.  The first question is “Where would the money come from? Most athletic departments do not make a profit.” (Myles Brand). This being said this would have to lead to the “non-revenue sports would have to be cut because there wouldn’t be sufficient funds” (Myles Brand).  This would lead most schools to only have one or two athletic programs. Another outcome is only to pay the basketball and football players. However “ paying only men’s basketball and football players would be challenged in court. Title IX suits would be filed because female athletes wouldn’t get similar funds.” (Myles Brand).  Title IX is a big issue still to this date with female sports and now if you throw money in, it becomes an even bigger issue. Myles Brand who was the NCAA president in 2004 said “we have a model for paying players. It’s called professional sports,” (Myles Brand). This is a very accurate statement. The college-level is meant for getting an education while continuing your athletic careers. 

I would like people to understand there is more negatives to paying student-athletes than positives. Many students do not have the talent to make it to the professional level but are getting full scholarships to play for a University.  These people need to realize what paying college athletes will do for the sport and the schools. Also, student-athletes make the choice to continue their athletic careers at the collegiate level or not.  

There will always be a debate about whether student-athletes should be paid or not.  This is important because it can ruin the love of the game for some athletes and make it more like professional sports. Many fans love college sports because there's no money involved.  Students have scholarships to help pay for their education and if athletes were to be paid it would lead to an increase in tuition at schools. College sports have helped students in different ways but paying them is not fair for every athlete at different institutions of different sizes. 

QUESTIONS

1. Is the thesis clear? 

2. Does the essay flow? 

3. Does the concussion connect to the thesis?

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