Whether or not to pay college athletes is a debate that never goes out of style. Even ESPN.com jumped on board this summer with "Pay For Play" , a week-long feature on this very topic.
The debate is fascinating to me, as college football and basketball generate huge amounts of revenue for individual schools yet the student-athletes do not get a cut of the revenues, a la the NFL. Of all the sports followed by a large amount of American sports fans, college football and basketball remain on the last frontiers of amateurism. Yes, technically NCAA student-athletes are amateurs, but improper benefits, especially in big-revenue sports have been given to select athletes for decades.
I have found that when "Pay for Play" is discussed in the media, it almost exclusively revolves around college football and basketball programs, their athletes, and the multi-billion dollar contracts that these sports generate. Less often discussed is the fact that most athletic departments actually lose money due to operational costs of the entire department. Also drawing less mention is the fact that if you are going to pay the star quarterback, due to Title IX, you also have to pay the female swimmer as well (This is not an indictment of Title IX, which protects both men's and women's sports. Most men's sports too, do not make revenue for their schools).
In one of the "Pay For Play" articles, Michael Wilbon writes that
that some college athletes deserve to be paid. However, he fails to outline a plan for even the limited number of athletes to be paid. With the expense of running a college athletic program and the revenues where they are at, how could there ever be an effective solution for paying all college athletes. Even in a fantasy world, where all college athletes were just paid a small amount of money per week (say, $120/week), this wouldn't stop the high profile athletes from obtaining or being offered improper benefits.
I don't think the current "compensation" system should be changed. I also don't think its perfect either, specifically, there are hardship cases where it seems like reasonable amounts of money can be provided. A lot of focus goes to the "1 and done" athletes in college basketball and select football players who don't make the most of their education. Behind the scenes, many college athletes are making the most of their education and definitely making do with what they are provided with. College sports are incredibly time consuming and difficult, but in exchange college athletes receive many benefits not offered to other college students.
For its impracticality, the ineffectiveness it would have at cutting off improper benefits, and the benefits afforded to student-athletes, college athletes should not be further compensated.
