College athletics are as much a part of American culture as apple pie or the American flag, which represents an entire nations pride for their great country. Primarily, men's football and basketball have been sewn into the American culture and are a part of many households in the United States. March is as dominated by college basketball as fall is by college football. America loves its athletes and roots for their favorite teams by betting and cheering for them as they hope for their team to be crowned victorious. While America treats its college athletes with praise and celebrity status, all of these athletes are severely undercompensated for their participation in these events. For the most part, college football and basketball receive thousands of dollars, in the form of free or partial tuition. However, is this enough? Many of these college athletes come from low-income households and end up with nothing to show for at the end of their collegiate athletic careers. Only 2% of all college athletics, including men's and women's sports, move on to the professional level. Many of these athletes receive no degree or attend loaded classes made for athletes to receive an easy A. Most recently at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, students were being put through classes simply to raise their grade point averages high enough to play football, which proves they are not being educated properly. This is something that happens at schools in all of the power five conferences, which include the Big 10, Big 12, SEC, PAC 12, and ACC. In addition to this many students have been punished for receiving unsanctioned endorsements. One author explains, "there needs to be a call for a shift to a new amateurism which will redefine the meaning of the word entirely"(Fitt). Student Athletes should be treated as far more than simply amateur, unpaid athletes because they should obviously be allowed to profit from their own name, through endorsements and the use of their image in commercials and on television. In addition to this, the NCAA and universities are able to profit immensely from the athletic performances in their programs. The NCAA and university systems must take some responsibility for the payment of these athletes because they work so much and gain so little, while the NCAA and university systems profit from their hard work and determination. In addition to this, student athletes, for the most part spend far more time one their athletics and school work than the average American adult does per week. It is insane to prevent these athletes from making money. 

The most important part of this issue is that student athletes cannot make money form their own name. Students, such as Todd Gurley, Johnny Manziel, and Terrell Pryor, have come under severe pressure for signing autographs or exchanging goods for services. Most notably, Terrell Pryor was dismissed from the Ohio State University's football program in 2010 for exchanging memorabilia for goods and services. These items were his property, yet he was punished for doing what he wished with them. In addition to this, Johnny Manziel and Todd Gurley came under pressure when they were sanctioned after signing memorabilia for fans for profit. This is not only astonishing, but also truly hypocritical. Student athletes are unable to profit from their name, yet the universities are, in the form of video game, advertisements, as well as jersey sales. In addition to this, Ed O'Bannon was able to win a lawsuit in which his was able to prove his image was being used in a video game, being a major reason the video game franchise is no longer produced. One author notes, "When former UCLA basketball star Ed O'Bannon saw an avatar with his likeness in an NCAA-branded video game, he sued the organization"(Keilman). Ed O'Bannon was working as a car salesman when he found his image being used in a game that he had not once been previously compensated for until his lawsuit. These are only a few of the major injustices that the NCAA causes every day in the lives of the typical student athlete. There is simply no excuse for the NCAA to prevent student athletes from profiting off of the name they were able to build for themselves. This issue of endorsement seems to be a way for the NCAA to monopolize the way people can profit off of student athletes.

Many of these college athletes are unprepared for the real world upon the end of their college athletic careers, having taken next to worthless courses in their undergraduate studies. One author notes, "collegiate student-athletes ...  often have lower Career maturity," a substandard ability to "devise educational and career plans," and identities constructed solely around their athletic pursuits (Beamon 1). This quotation explains how student athletes are left unprepared in their futures. Many of these athletes come from lower income areas, being already left behind scholastically. They rely on their athleticism for their future, with very few being able to make it to the professional level. 

While America has come very far in terms of systemic racism, many parts of this nation still feel the looming issue of this race issue. College athletics are not an acceptation in terms of this issue. With the vast majority of college athletes in both basketball and football being African American, it is no coincidence that college athletes face the adversity they do when it comes to the right to be compensated. Krystal Beamon, a professor at the University of Texas-Arlington, has stated that "African Americans are exploited in the college level athletics because they are eluded into the belief that they will have professional level success when in reality they will find only a tiny percent of them will succeed financially through athletics in their future"(Beamon 23). This astounding reality truly sheds light onto the stem of the issue. Afircan Americans have been used and abused for the entirety of this nation. While it is not as clear and prevalent as it once was, discrimination is still a large issue, especially when related to sports. These athletes are not being given chances to succeed academically. This issue has become less about whether to pay athletes or not, but has this issue become about the color of someone's skin. This issue has become about civil, constitutional rights, rather than the simple payment of athletes. It is very clear that this issue is far bigger and more complex than ever.

The NCAA has barred student athletes from being compensated in anyway simply by referring to them as Amateur athletes. In this way, the NCAA is able to completely cut off and stream of revenue, which includes things like free meals. Most notably, University of Connecticut star, Shabaz Napier, explained to the press after winning the National Championship, that "he went hungry some nights." One of the greatest players in the country was not only not being paid for his efforts, work, or use of his image, but he was not even being fed enough. This is probably not atypical for a student athlete, being that many of them are from low-income areas, and have no viable option to eat. Student Athletes must sink every ounce of energy into their respective sports, and with what little energy they have left, they must put into their schoolwork. This allows no time for holding a part-time job or any other ways to make ends meet. 

As NCAA programs become more and more competitive, many coaches and athletic directors have taken the east route and shortcuts by having their student athletes take loaded courses, in which the professors essentially take anything for an A. This most recently occurred at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, where football students were taking being given A's in African American Studies courses in order for their grade point averages to be at the minimum requirement in order to be able to play football. On author notes, "Despite their lecture designation on the course schedule, these classes continued to operate in the same fashion, according to the lawsuit"(Kane). "There was no class attendance or student interaction with anyone other than Crowder, and Crowder continued to grade the papers"(Jacobs). This has also happened at other Universities such as Rutgers University in New Jersey and the University of Washington. This is something that happens at every major school, whether they have been caught or not. With all of this being said, how can student athletes be considered students? In the modern NCAA, most of these athletes are simply not students anymore. In addition to this, the few football and basketball players that do complete their education at their respective universities typically will graduate with essentially worthless degrees. In addition to having these essentially worthless degrees, the majority of NCAA athletes will leave their college with no real world skills or knowledge. With students not taking classes, making money for their universities, and not completing degrees they have become completely separated from the word student. Student athletes have become more than students, in that they spend most of their time participating in athletics, rather than focusing in a degree. This is what is starting to separate student athletes from the term amateur. Student athletes have become professional in the sense that they are now not even taking college courses that require effort. Student athletes are no longer amateur athletes and should not be treated as such. 

The original plan for compensating collegiate athletes would be for their respective schools to pay each athlete $5,000. This idea misdiagnoses the problem of paying student athletes entirely. Instead, student athletes should be compensated through endorsement, the use of their image through advertisement, video games, as well as their presence on television. According to ESPN, the NCAA will make 1.1 billion dollars every season for the next nine years. This is an astonishing amount of money for one non-profit corporation to be making. One author notes, "Duke's athletic program pulled in revenue of nearly$80 million during the most recent fiscal year. But it ended up with just $146,000 in excess revenue"(Strachan). The NCAA and most of the power 5 universities use this cash to create new buildings for their athletic facilities as well as some classroom buildings in order to post even fiscal results, rather than post positive results, which would eliminate their non-profit status. While building and fixing facilities is a part of reality for these schools, many of these universities spend this money just to spend it, rather than on the students that work for it. These universities must maintain these buildings and create new ones in order to remain competitive with other school systems. This is incredibly backwards in that, these colleges spend massive amounts of cash on needless renovations and new athletic facilities, while athletes are left unpaid and unable to provide for themselves.

While college sports are engrained in the fiber of American Culture, this issue has gone too far. One author notes, "the NCAA is buyers cartel or monopolist that engages in price fixing for colleges and universities. They accomplish this through regulations that prohibit the athlete from receiving any income other than in-kind scholarship payments"(Steiber). The NCAA is monopolizing sources of income for student athletes. There is simply no excuse for athletes to be paid either through some sort of monitored salary or endorsements. In addition to this students deserve to be paid for their use in advertisements, video games, and television appearance, just like every other person in the world would be. Finally, if student athletes are to be considered to be students, they must be able to complete full courses, rather than paper classes. The American college athlete appears to be an abused source of labor for the NCAA, television providers, and university systems to make money.

The best way to allow the compensation is to let student athletes to profit from their image. This takes the responsibility away from the universities as well as allows them to maintain amateur, student status. This is a fair way to compensate these students because literally every other person in America is compensated for the use of their image as required by law. Student athletes deserve fair compensation and this is the fairest way for all, including both the NCAA and the University systems. Students deserve to profit from their image, just as every American can. Rather than the universities or the NCAA flat out paying salaries to these athletes, they only will pay for the use of their images.

In conclusion, modern college athletes are far more than amateur athletes and should be treated as such. These athletes bring in far more money to organizations such as the NCAA and public universities than any other form of revenue, being proven through football and basketball coaching salaries at public universities. In addition to the simple fact that college athletes cannot profit from their own name or image is truly appalling. This issue is something that is comparable to women's rights in the workplace. It seems clear that student athletes need to be treated as more than simple amateur athletes, especially in light of recent news where these universities are not even educating their student athletes, but rather giving them easy A's. 

Students in this nation should not have to worry about their futures, especially if they are receiving a college education. It is a scary thought to have, that even with the athletic ability that many of these student athletes, paired with their college education, that they will not end up succeeding. This is why student athletes should be allowed to receive endorsements. In this way, they will be able to build their brand, provide a financial future for themselves, in addition to learning valuable marketing skills that will help them in their futures. Student athletes face a far harsher reality to college than the typical university student. They must maintain a full course load in order to play their sport, in addition to just play the sport. Athletes often participate in 40-50 hours a week of just athletic events in the off-season. The era of pretending student athletes are amateurs is coming to an end. With paper classes becoming more and more common at all major universities, including Rutgers and UNC, students are not being prepared for reality. This is more than the average American full-time workweek. Even if these students are taking paper classes, they are sacrificing their education for a future that is next to impossible to achieve. While some athletes are able to make it to the professional level, the other 98% are often left in the dust without a proper education and left unprepared for real world. This has become a rights issue in that, these athletes are unable to simply profit from their image, while the NCAA and universities do. American athletes truly are treated with celebrity status, but not treated with the same basic rights that the rest of the nation is. 

