No More Money?

Money, money, and more money is what the issue of college athletics seems to focus on. It has been established that there is clearly a problem with student athletes not actually taking the student part very serious. So, does the solution lie in the money or does the problem?

Compliments of the HufffingtonPost

An ongoing debate throughout the country and the NCAA has been whether or not to pay college athletes in an attempt to solve the student athlete dilemma. However, that is going to be another topic for another post. The opposing and often overlooked aspect of this debate is eliminating the financial compensation given to them in order to attend the universities. In other words, eliminating the usage of athletic scholarships.

A special interest group referred to as the League of Fans has been advocating for this solution for years. The argument is that by eliminating athletic scholarships it would restore academic integrity for athletes in a college campus. Without scholarships, athletes wouldn’t possess the win at all costs mentality. This mentality is often what leads to sever injury. Athletes who have received major injuries or head damages often continue to play. If they are unable to they risk losing their athletic scholarship in certain situations. This results in players pushing their limits and often resulting in more serious and traumatic injuries.

Compliments of The Ann Arbor News

If student athletes are truly students first then perhaps they should be treated the same as every other student. They should receive only need based or academic based scholarships in order to help cover the cost of tuition. This is part of the argument made by the League of Fans. If only academic scholarships are made available then perhaps athletes will focus more on their academic careers in order to further pursue their athletic ones.

Additionally, athletic scholarships actually hurt the wallets of everyday students. According to Communities Digital News, the rising tuition rates across America include a specific “student services” fee. This fee can often be substantial and the purpose of this fee is to generate revenue in order to give out athletic scholarships. Therefore, every student attending a university is actually subsidizing athletic scholarships as part of their tuition. Most people question the morality of this expense. Why should hard-working students have to sacrifice part of their money in order to pay for athletic scholarships or new athletic equipment that they won’t ever get a chance to receive or use?

In the eyes of groups like the League of Fans it seems the solution lies either in eliminating athletic scholarships or requiring universities to operate their athletic programs as separate businesses entirely that are not tax exempted. This is a more extreme measure. However, some members of society do feel as if this may be the only solution is universities are unwilling to eliminate the usage of athletic scholarships.

Now, there are obviously people who argue against the elimination of athletic scholarships. The argument here is that athletes and universities simply cannot afford eliminating them. Elimination of these scholarships would jeopardize college athletics as a whole. Athletes would be less inclined to go to college. Most would simply try to go straight to the professional level. Additionally, by eliminating athletic scholarships it may be eliminating some young adults’ chances of ever going to college. As pointed out by the Guide to Athletic Scholarships, a majority of athletes come from low income families and are not often ingrained with strong academic backgrounds. Therefore, this would make it nearly impossible to receive academic or merit based scholarships. Due to their lack of wealth and education, their college and professional dreams may be ruined.

Members of society who advocate against the elimination of athletic scholarships also argue that these scholarships act as compensation for the time athletes have to put into their practices and workouts. This could be time otherwise used to maintain a job and help pay their way through school. Therefore, the money lost by losing this opportunity should be gained in the form of athletic scholarships.

Whatever the case may be it is clear that there is great debate over the “solution” of eliminating athletic scholarships. Does it do more damage than good? Perhaps the solution lies in giving the athletes money, money, and more money, instead of taking it away.