Analysis: Why College Athletes Should Be Paid

970 Words4 Pages

After Tim Tebow set records in the National Football League, won championships, and brought in millions of dollars to the school, staff, coaches, and athletic department, Tebow went home with nothing. An average of seventy million people watch college sports every year. Now imagine how much money is put into college sports each year. None of this money goes to the athletes that make the game happen. While none of these athletes receive payment for their hard work on the field or court, nine football coaches will be paid at least a total of a million dollars in compensation each year (Eitzen). This is one of the many reason why college athletes should receive a stipend from the school they play for.
For years, college athletes have gone unpaid …show more content…

Many people do not realize that a “full” scholarship does not always cover the whole of tuition or living expenses (Meshefejian). Because of their overwhelming schedule with sports and trying to maintain a passing grade to stay in school, many are unable to find a job (Birkenes and Bagaria). The average American full-time job is forty hours a week. The average player in a Division One school spends over forty hours a week on their game, which means they work more than a full-time employee who is paid ("Top 10 Reasons College Athletes Should Be Paid"). Students have no time to get a job because of the extraneous workload their sport puts on …show more content…

The payment of athletes would not affect many of these excuses opposers give. Colleges often sign deals with big brand name companies to sponsor a new sports facility that the company pays for. The University of Colorado named its basketball arena the Coors Event Center in return for a $5,000,000 donation (Eitzen). The year Boston College’s quarterback won a Heisman brought the enrollment rate up 25 points in one year . They say it would take away from the payment of staff at the university, but places like Alabama and Texas pay their head football coaches $5 million a year ("Top 10 Reasons College Athletes Should Be Paid."). These students are the reason tickets sales, endorsement deals, school enrollment, and other things make such a nice profit