College Athletes Should Not Be Paid Essay

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Should College Football Players Be Paid by the NCAA?
The NCAA should continue to not pay college athletes because of the many complications that would go along with giving every player pay for play. According to Mark Guarino in his article “NCAA and college sports: Is it time to pay athletes to play?”, Kain Colter, the former Northwestern quarterback says that he spent 60 hours a week on football-related activities during the summer and 40 to 50 hours a week during the season, all while trying to manage school work, and says that “We’re brought to the university to play football.” This being said, the students take football very seriously, more serious than their schoolwork. They treat football as if it is their job but they are working for …show more content…

Being an athlete in college is a choice, no athlete is forced to put in those hours and many people would consider playing college football a privilege. James Shulman and William Bowen in their book “The Game of Life: College Sports and Educational Values” present evidence that demonstrates “a consistent tendency for athletes to do less well academically than their classmates- and, even more troubling, a consistent tendency for athletes to underperform academically not just relative to other students, but relative to how they themselves might have expected to perform” (Bowen and Shulman 3) This is why a scholarship is plenty compensation in itself. Many athletes are going to school for free and all they have to do is maintain the minimum GPA required so they don’t get their scholarships pulled. College athletes should not receive extra pay if they are not going to take their school work seriously and …show more content…

According to Eugene McCormack, a staff editor for the Chronicle of Higher Education, “there are many programs that help pay for the costs of college athletes to return to school after their playing careers have concluded. Colleges even have incentives to help former athletes get their degrees under recently enacted rules by the National Collegiate Athletic Association…” (McCormack 1). Many institutions are “making it easier for college athletes to complete the degrees that eluded them during their playing days” (McCormack 1). Basically, the NCAA is trying to make it up to these athletes for all the time and dedication they put in to the sport by offering incentives like, “free tuition, housing and other assistance - often in exchange for part-time work in the athletic department” (McCormack 2). The post –eligibility program is growing, “In fact, 38 percent of all NCAA Division I football programs have had at least one player come back to finish his degree…” (McCormack

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