When we all sat down around our dinner table with our families to make the life changing decision of what to university to continue our education at we weighed factors like quality of education, location, cost and many of other factors but the key factor that it all comes down to in the end: college athletics (ok maybe not everyone’s key factor but its a benefit for sure). Having a good football team or basketball team creates a exciting culture around campus and its something that very few would not want to be a part of. College athletics can define an entire school and are often a major source of revenue for many schools. It is reported that college sports generates over 11 billion dollars of annual revenue. In a market that is so filled with money, the people who are bring in that revenue are getting none of the money. Some people argue that these athletes are being exploited in order to continue raking massive amounts of revenue and are not being compensated appropriately for the time that they dedicate to their craft. Others argue that earning a scholarship and free room and board and a meal plan and other benefits is more than enough of a payment for what they do.

The rules on this concept of players not being allowed to accept any sort of money is very strictly enforced by the NCAA. Two of the most notable occurrences  of these rules being broken include two of the best college football players to ever player the game: Cam Newton at the Auburn University and Reggie Bush at the University of Southern California. While these rules crack down on issues as small as players accepting money for autographs these high profile incidents involved directly paying players in order to influence them. It was uncovered that before Cam Newton had decided to play his college career at Auburn, his father has demanded that the competing school of Mississippi State give him $180,000 for him to take his talents there. This is obviously a direct rules violation and scandals like this play a big role in why college athletes are not allowed to accept money, so that they do not find loop holes that would encourage such behavior.

Via Orange County Register

Then there is the Reggie Bush scandal that rocked the world while USC was dominating the college football world in the mid-2000s. This scandal is not like the blunt, demanding of money that took place with Cam Newton. Reggie Bush was an outstanding college football player. The star running back for what seemed to be becoming on of college football’s great dynasties. After Reggie Bush walked away with the 2004 Heisman Trophy, it was uncovered that him and his family had accepted over $100,000 worth of illegal payments. These payments obviously violated the NCAA rules but if you look at what the payments received were, you can understand why so many players accept payment “under the table” like this. Some of the payments that Bush accepted were for things like airplane tickets and rental cars for his family who was very poor to be able to travel to games to be able to watch their sun play as well as paying the rent on his family’s house as they were threatened to be evicted. The money even went to buying suits for Bush’s stepdad and brother so that they could wear them to the Heisman Trophy presentation where Bush would go on to bring home the award. Now, Bush has returned his Heisman Trophy due to his violations.

Many players out there today are in a similar situation that Bush and his family came from. Living paycheck to paycheck in neighborhoods that are often not suitable for a child to be raised in. Many young boys in this situation dream of playing in the NFL where they can be making millions of dollars to play the game that they love. Football and sports are an escape and an opportunity for many young boys and girls who want to be able to provide for themselves and their families. It is often argued that for this reason players should be able to accept money. Players playing at the college level are not able to work a job in order to make money whenever they are dedicating countless hours to on the field and in the weight room when they are not working on the same course load that we all have as college students. Money can be a problem for student athletes who are provided with a meal plan and housing but there are so many other things that we as humans require that costs money that can often be difficult for some of these student athletes to afford.

On the other side of the debate, people argue that if they athletes were allowed to accept money, many players would try to make money off of their own brand and universities may have even more of a reason to exploit athletes by selling autographs and other such practices. Also, it is not like these kids are not being compensated at all, the cost of tuition can be as much as an annual salary for them and to have their education completely paid for is worth a lot. Whether or not players are paid in order to play this game that they love, they have the opportunity to play at this level for free and are given the chance to prove themselves and play in the pros but even if they do not make it there, they will walk away with a degree and completely debt free primed for success in the real world.

Via NESN.com