So as I sit here and watch the OSU versus Michigan (go Bucks) I start to wonder, where is the money?
Why can’t these athletes get paid? Is it because college is somehow held to a higher moral standard than professional sports? I don’t think so – millions are made by athletic programs around the country. The NCAA has to make a TON off of college sports, let alone everyone else. In fact, college sports are one of the most ‘sellout’ sports ever. They have a bowl game called the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl – really? Why is it everyone makes money here, except the athletes?
Anyway, before I continue too much on my rant, I do sort of get why they can’t be paid by colleges – believe it or not. If athletes were paid by the school, wouldn’t they just be a minor league team? What about all the smaller colleges that can’t afford the best athletes, their programs would suffer dramatically.
So what’s the Mark Graham Plan of Excellence suggest? Well, it suggests allowing the students to make money. Not by the school, but by sponsorships. If Nike wants to sponsor a Terrelle Pryor – why can’t they? Because the NCAA wants to keep as much money as possible, that’s why. Is it any wonder why the NCAA allowed Pryor and others to play in the sugar bowl game after they ‘broke’ the rules by selling their stuff? Because the NCAA wouldn’t have made near as much money had they not played.
Why did I put quotes around the word broke you ask? There is no question in my mind that those players broke the rules, but that doesn’t mean the rule is right. And no rule is ever going to get changed unless it is challenged first. I think it is a stupid rule, and it needs to be challenged and eventually done away with.
So I say let them make as much money as the market will bear!
P.S. Basketball players have to be the worlds best actors. Its amazing how a light touch will send a player skirting across the floor.