The Pros And Cons Of Paying Student Athletes

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"[Student] Athletes are little more than indentured servants," according to Nancy Armour, USA Today sports columnist ("Paying"). Major issues get overlooked by Armour and others who support paying college athletes. The National College Athletic Association (NCAA) must push back against increasing pressure to pay student-athletes to preserve the principles of college sports, the college experience and uphold the teamwork of a school. In 1987, Southern Methodist University received the death penalty (Dobbs). Their scandalous history started in 1982 with Bobby Collins. He was the football head coach of SMU, who failed to recruit big-time players, so he started paying them to commit to SMU (Dobbs). The NCAA investigated the team in 1987 and …show more content…

The organization's legality is critiqued as a business. In O'Bannon v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, the NCAA compared to the Sherman Antitrust Act, which prohibits "[e]very contract, combination..., or conspiracy, in restraint of trade or commerce" ("O'Bannon"). This law points out how the NCAA restricts commerce to its players. Since it is a multibillion-dollar company, the players are the product because they are making money for the NCAA. When Nancy Armour called the athletes "little more than indentured servants," she is referring to the NCAA and the Sherman Antitrust Act ("Paying"). However, the significant difference between the NCAA and other businesses is that the NCAA is an organization for students. It pays students in the form of scholarships appropriate for student-athletes. College sports are at the preceding level to professional sports, so paying them as a professional would be inappropriate. Armour must remember that colleges have programs to help the student-athletes, such as career planning, academic help services, and student support centers. If a college athlete is struggling with any aspect of their day, they can use programs the college provides. The options benefit the players in ways that money can not because they provide immediate help and plan for future success out of

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