Blog Post #6

While the California Senate Bill is one solution to help students receive some kind of compensation for their effort and engagement in collegiate sports, another one, the most obvious one, would be to pay the students directly.  This remuneration may come from either universities or the NCAA, or both. Universities make millions off of college sports and the NCAA makes an average of more than a billion dollars per year off of television and marketing rights and ticket sales (“Where Does The Money Go?”).  Cutting down on exorbitant elitist executive salaries and unneeded expenses, while shifting budgetary concerns would certainly create a windfall of assets to pay college athletes. Many argue that this may lead to a violation of Title 9, but in reality, “Title IX does not directly state whether it requires equal financial compensation beyond scholarships,” in regard to sex (Edelman).  Many have argued that it is justified to pay female college athletes less than males just as the coaches are paid less because men’s sports generate far more revenue (Gibbs).  And, in opposition, many have argued that universities and/or the NCAA should totally equalize pay in regard to sex no matter the revenue disparity (Gibbs). Either way, paying college athletes directly would improve the often precarious and impoverished standings they face, with many lacking adequate healthcare, housing or food security and political representation.  

Sources:

Edelman, M. (2014, February 4). When It Comes To Paying College Athletes, Title IX Is Just A Red Herring. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/marcedelman/2014/02/04/when-it-comes-to-paying-college-athletes-is-title-ix-more-of-a-red-herring-than-a-pink-elephant/#647b92501bde 

Twitter, L. G. (2018, March 30). Ending the sham of NCAA amateurism will not end Title IX. Retrieved from https://thinkprogress.org/title-ix-amateurism-1398c640714f/

Vcortez. (2020, February 10). Where Does the Money Go? Retrieved from http://www.ncaa.org/about/where-does-money-go