Macias1
Jose Macias
November 3rd
Wr-122
Ms. Davis
The NCAA vs Student Athletes
The NCAA in the last couple of year has had some issues with their student athletes. One
of the key problems that many people see in the NCAA is that they believe is that the NCAA are
taking advantage of their athletes in numerous of ways. Sporting events like March Madness is a
great example. According to International Business Times, March Madness will make nearly
$800 million dollars just in its three weeks it’s played. Not to mention, that the NCAA alone
makes roughly 6 billion dollars a year. These revenues come from numerous sources, including
ticket sales, sponsorship rights, and the sale of broadcast rights. That money doesn’t go very far.
Coaches will get a few hundred thousand out of that and the NCAA will distribute some money
to schools who participate in things such March Madness. Taylor Branch, who is one of the
greats in chronicles of the civil rights movement and has won prizes such as the Pulitzer Prize, a
prize given to those for their achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature, and
musical composition in the United States, believes “this is a civil rights issue,” stating that “For
all the outrage, the real scandal is not that students are getting illegally paid or recruited, it’s that
two of the noble principles on which the NCAA justifies its existence—“amateurism” and the
“student-athlete”—are cynical hoaxes, legalistic confections propagated by the universities so
they can exploit the skills and fame of young athletes. The tragedy at the heart of college sports
is not that some college athletes are getting paid, but that more of them are not” (Branch).
Macias2
Can the NCAA and athletes come to an agreement? It certainly won’t be easy as former
athletes have tried numerous of times to come to a consensus with the NCAA. But what exactly
can be a fair deal for both sides? That question will always arise. To find a middle ground for
both sides and how both sides can work together to come to a reasonable conclusion. But not
only that. Should student athletes even paid in general? Horace Mitchell has a great point by
pointing out “Students are not professional athletes who are paid salaries and incentives for a
career in sports. They are students receiving access to a college education through their
participation in sports, for which they earn scholarships to pay tuition, fees, room and board, and
