After completing my previous post, I do not believe that athletes being paid by the universities would be a successful way to handle this issue. As previously posted, many colleges rely on student fees to fund their athletic programs and even then, most of them aren’t making enough profit to fully fund their own programs. How would this even be possible knowing that most college athletic programs are funded by student fees found in tuitions? I do not think it is fair to potentially raise fees for all students, just so athletes can get paid. Additionally, many of these athletes are paying those same fees when they pay their tuition costs.
Upon further research, I found that there is another way that college athletes could be paid. According to Dan Murphy of ESPN, back in October of 2019, the NCAA voted to “start the process of modifying its rule to allow college athletes to profit from their names, images and likeness ‘in a manner consistent with the collegiate model.’” This happened because of California passing its “Fair Pay to Play Act,’’ which I have mentioned in previous posts, that the NCAA called it an “existential threat” and vowed punishment. This is saying that the NCAA, the organization that regulates student-athletes, is willing to work to find a way to allow the athletes to make money off of themselves without the universities being responsible for that. In my opinion, this would be the most reasonable way to begin solving this issue. Instead of putting it on the universities, it is the athletes job to find ways to make money. An editorial from, The Columbus Dispatch, says that this way “wouldn’t cost schools a dime and that it would simply allow athletes to hire agents and endorse products. This comes at a time when money has turned college sports into a professional operation, but the people it depends on the most are treated like amateurs.”
I believe that this solution would be the best of both worlds. The universities would not have to take a financial hit in paying their athletes and the athletes would be able to use their name, image and likeness to their advantage as a way to make money. I don’t really know why this would be an issue. Athletes have a very good argument when they question how a school can make so much money off of them, but the athlete themselves is forbidden to profit. If someone is given the opportunity to endorse themselves or their talent, then they should be able to do it.
This whole conversation started after O’Bannon v. NCAA. This case began after Ed O’Bannon, a former UCLA basketball player, noticed that a video game included a player that matched the same profile as him even though he never authorized this. According to fanbuzz.com, O’Bannon v. NCAA “argued that student-athletes were entitled to financial compensation post-graduation.” This case “grew into a movement to help the student-athletes working, essentially, pro bono for billion-dollar institutions.”Of course there are still some questions to be answered, ones that deal with issues regarding equality amongst gender and different sports, which become more issues for the NCAA to figure out. A main concern is that the NCAA has done nothing to address this issue. They are sitting back waiting and watching as states make their own rules and how the government plans to intercede. Other states, twenty-three to be exact, are in the process of working on proposals like that of California’s in an attempt to pressure the NCAA to kickstart their response to them. Each state having its own regulations will not be the answer. The issue needs to be resolved by a national policy that is consistent no matter what state the athlete is in. This would mean that the court system, the federal government and the NCAA all agree upon some resolution regarding the paying of athletes. I hope that the integrity of college sports is the top priority and truly full-scholarships are considered for all deserving athletes, and it does not become a big business model.
Should College Athletes Be Allowed to Get Paid? 