Essay Why College Athletes Should Be Paid

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Imagine an atmosphere so tense that the very air seems to radiate stress, along with the smells of fresh food. You and the thousands of people surrounding you hold their breath in anticipation. Time seems to slow down. All of a sudden, everyone jumps up and erupts in cheers, clapping and hugging and high-fiving the people around them. Many people have experienced this sort of atmosphere before as a spectator of a college sports game or match. Millions of people go to watch their favorite teams or alma-maters compete, and the collection of athletic talent involved draws a crowd and brings people together. The NCAA is the committee that runs college sports, and is heralded as a non-profit organization for amateur sports, not professionals. However, …show more content…

People are generally more motivated to put in a greater effort when they know that they are getting paid for their performance. According to psychological performance coach Steve Siebold, “If anything, waving greenbacks in front of the athletes would be more motivation and increase that competitive spirit. The athlete has a shift in thinking that says, “The harder I play and the better my performance, the more compensation I can receive.”” The willingness to work harder could be greatly influenced if players knew that they had an income dependent upon performance results. There are some people who believe that the players already put forth maximum effort because they are trying to get to get to the professional level and earn large salaries. While this is true, most college athletes try their best to get to the professional level, not all college athletes make it to the next level. Those that know that their chances in playing professionally are not high might not be inclined to always put forth maximum effort. A little extra incentive in the form of compensation would encourage maximum effort from all athletes all the time. Paying these athletes can only increase the effort, and therefore competition, in their respective