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Luis Tinoco
Professor Melton
English 5
May 1, 2016
College Athletes and Pay
What if you never got paid for every time you worked? College athletes go through this
every year as they play, but never get paid for the time the spend playing. The debate of whether
or not to pay college athletes has been changing the way the public sees college sports and the
NCAA. Being a college sports fan myself, my interest has increased for the topic. For the past
two decades, this issue has gained national attention because of legal cases that have been filed
against the NCAA. The NCAA has made claims that college athletes are amateurs, and should
not be held to the same level as professionals. The organization also claims that awarding
scholarships and having a free education is payment enough. However, research has shown that
college sports brings in billions of dollars of revenue but the athletes who play these sports do
not earn a penny of it because of their rules. College athletes deserved to be paid for their work
because they represent their respective universities and dedicate so much time to that university
while the NCAA makes billions of dollars. The legal cases against the NCAA, as well as
statistics demonstrating the NCAAs revenue, will prove it is time to start paying college athletes.
This issue has been gathering attention in recent years due to new information regarding
the NCAA. The NCAA has been put on the spotlight and as a result, has seen backlash from
sports fans, current college athletes, and former college athletes. Many former athletes have filed
lawsuits against the NCAA hoping to change their rules and to get the money they deserve for
their past work. A very recent example is the lawsuit filed by Ed OBannon, a former UCLA

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basketball athlete. He filed a suit because he noticed that his old games were being aired and his
name and persona were being used without his consent. The article by Rachael Marcus states
The suit is seeking a trust that would allow players, upon leaving school, to receive a portion of
the money generated by the use of their names, images and likenesses. (Marcus). However, the
NCAA argues that they cannot be paid because of their rules that were created to preserve the
amateurism of college sports. However, Ed OBannon and other former athletes argue that they
should be paid because they are no longer under contract of the NCAA and are no longer
athletes. The NCCA has faced dozens of other cases very similar to this. It only shows that the
NCAA has been taking advantage of former and current athletes for their own gain. They will
keep facing lawsuits like the Ed OBannon case if they do not change their ways and begin
paying college athletes.
The most important argument on why college athletes should start getting paid is based
on how much the NCAA makes. In 2011, a $10.8-billion-dollar deal was signed with
CBS/Turner Sports to televise March Madness basketball games between 2011 and 2024. On
top of that, there's a new four-year deal with ESPN that pays the BCS $500 million. (Wilbon).
This demonstrates clearly that just from TV deals alone the NCAA makes over $11 billion
dollars a year, and yet, no college athlete receives a penny from this big TV contract. Also
according to Rachael Marcus, And Collegiate Licensing itself makes 80 percent of the $4.6
billion college sports retail market, according to its website. (Marcus). It is evident that the
NCAA has the funds to at least start paying some college athletes a salary that can cover all their
costs of a college education. It is not ethical that the organizations executives and college
coaches make millions of dollars per season, but the athletes who put their bodies on the line and
attract the huge crowds that enjoy college sports, do not earn any of it. These statistics are

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important and will further research by demonstrating the severity of the problem and giving an
insight on how much the NCAA makes.
Information showing the NCCAs revenue have had many questioning how the NCAA
would pay athletes and why they havent since they have the funds. It is not an easy task to
provide a way to pay every college athlete, but a few have proven it is not impossible. Joe
Nocera of the New York Times proposed a salary cap idea that would apply to all college
athletes. All athletes would have a salary cap that would be decided on how much the sport
brings in. In basketball, the cap would be $650,000. In football, it would be $3 million. Second,
I would impose a minimum salary: $25,000 per player in each sport. (Nocera). In his proposal,
Nocera suggests that football and basketball athletes deserve more because those are the sports
that bring in the most revenue but, that all college athletes deserve at least a salary of $25,000 for
their work no matter the sport they play. This demonstrates that the NCAA can indeed pay its
athletes in an ethical manner without any controversy. This proposal would ensure that all
athletes get some money whereas in the current system, only a portion get enough money from
their scholarships to cover their tuition costs.
The overwhelming evidence against the NCCA shows that they are no longer in the
position to deny college athletes a proper salary. The research conducted shows they have plenty
enough funds to do so, and it is unethical if the NCAA still refuses to pay hard-working athletes
a decent salary. This is an ongoing issue and there is still much research to be done about it.
Further research can include interviews conducted on current and former college athletes to get
their opinion on the topic as well as interviews with the executives at the NCAA and their

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thoughts on the situation. Continuing research will be able to show indefinitely whether these
athletes should be paid or how much.

Works Cited
Marcus, Rachael. "All Play and No Pay." ABA Journal 99.7 (2013): 15-16,19. Web. 1 April 2016.
Nocera, Joe. A Way to Start Paying College Athletes. The New York Times. January 8, 2016.
Web. 6 April 2016.
Wilbon, Michael. College Athletes Deserve to Be Paid. ESPN College Sports. July 18, 2011.
Web. 1 April 2016.

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