Analysis: Why College Athletes Should Be Paid

Eprofessionals in terms of effort, time, and commitment to their sport. College athletes at Men’s Division One football and basketball schools should be paid in order to compensate them for their hard work in generating millions of dollars for their school.

College athletes in Division One basketball and football should be the ones to receive some of their college’s revenue, or money being brought in. Besides playing the most popular sport, these athletes do the most for their schools and are under the most pressure out of any college sport. Division One college football and basketball teams have the most nationally televised games and sell the most merchandise. In addition, these sports produce the most revenue out of all, and are the

Coaches have much more freedom and make extreme amounts of money because of their player’s success. They are some of the highest paid public employees in the United States. The Alabama football coach, Nick Saban, makes a total of about $7,160,187 per year, mainly due to his player’s successful performances. However, the players receive nothing. Recently, the new University of Michigan head football coach, Jim Harbaugh signed a contract agreeing to pay him $7 million dollars, making him the second highest paid coach, only behind Nick Saban. College football coach salaries have gone up 59% since 2011 compared to a 25% increase for the National Football League. Coaches also make money through endorsement television, speaking, and summer camp deals while the player are unable to do throughout the year. This gives the coaches access to many forms of income, all of which are closed for student athletes. Many players struggle to support themselves and their family throughout their college career, however their coaches make millions. It seems

In 2013, college football generated a record $3.4 billion in revenue making it one of the most lucrative sports, college or professional, in North America (Gaines). Major colleges run their football teams similarly to those of the National Football League. They rely on their players to win and generate millions of dollars. They also run extremely difficult practices and make the players do what they ask all day. However, the only difference is that college athletes do not get paid. In addition, these numbers are not declining. The revenue produced by college football is continuing to grow. The 2014/2015 season was the first with the college football playoff, which means an additional $345 million yearly for college football (Gaines). The amount of money being made is rising for college football, and the players are still receiving zero. Lastly, from the 2015 NCAA Men’s College Basketball Tournament alone, the NCAA revenue exceeded $1 billion. These student athletes should be able to share some of this money being brought