All across America, people come together for local college sporting events to watch live and on television. There is a sense of enjoyment that can likely be compared to that of European soccer; however, a large debate has been discussed over the past ten years about whether these athletes are getting enough incentives for the amount of profit they make and effort they put in. Money, whether you like it or not, dictates most of today's society, so it makes sense for these college athletes that excel in the sport they play to ask for it. At first you could think that there is really no argument to settle here; they are in college, they don't need any more money from the institutions; however, there seems to be many factors that lead to the result of paid college athletes. As many people know, athletes in college that show extreme talent are recruited and likely given a multitude of scholarships which likely end in free tuition and housing; however, is this truly fair when companies are making millions of dollars on their talent? When one analyzes whether or not theses athletes should be making a profit, there is a multitude of aspects that dictate the debate. How much of a profit is made by companies such as the NCAA, do they receive special treatment when it comes to grades and their education, how different are athletes lives from ordinary students, and how would it affect a school as a whole when money comes into account as players are chosen their senior years of high school?

One main aspect seems to catch the attention of most athletes which cause them to question whether or not they should be given larger incentives. This key factor lies within the hands of the large companies that seem to make extreme amounts of profits from the athleticism shown by the players. Companies like NCAA and SEC seem to have large tournaments and championships that rake in large amounts of money. Written in CBS Sports, the SEC reportedly made 527.4 million dollars in revenue during their first college football playoff on the SEC network during the 2014-2015 season and this was only the playoffs. The large amounts of money seem to be going to everyone but the actual players which are the main aspect of the entire network. "The NCAA currently produces around $11 billion in annual revenue from college sports" (Edelman). This is much higher than the annual revenue for the National Basketball Association which actually pays its players high salaries to, sometimes, even sit on the bench. When college athletes begin to hear numbers such as these from the companies that manage them, who could blame them for raising an eyebrow at the fact that they will not receive one cent of that income. It is unfathomable that a player on an NBA team can be benched for an entire season but still receive a million dollars or more, while a college athlete who continues to win tournaments during March Madness does not receive any sort of income. This is where many questions begin to be asked about why these athletes aren't receiving the benefits that they deserve only due to the fact that they are a few years younger than the professionals.

When it comes to being a college athlete, they not only deal with the stress of the everyday college students; they begin their days likely in the weight room at 6 am followed by classes which are hand selected in order for them to be able to make the additional practice sessions in the day. Once that is complete they must make time for meals, homework, and sleep if there is any time for that at all. With all of these aspects in mind, they have to be diligently working on how to improve their game at all times. It is not only a competition with other teams, it is a competition between teammates on who is the best and who will be able to start in the upcoming games. As they constantly stress themselves to the fullest extent, they are able to have study times in order to maintain the GPA that allows them to stay on the team. 

When it comes to GPAs, colleges stay to strict laws in order to ensure that their athletes are performing to the standards of the university. They hire tutors and teachers for the athletes to give them any additional help that is needed for them to succeed in a course. Some may say that this is one of the benefits that these athletes get. Why would they need money when they are practically getting free tutors for every course? However, one main point that is not discussed in articles, such as The New Republic piece on "Cracking the Cartel", is that regular students have access to tutors just like the athletes. There are programs like the Student Success Center at The University of South Carolina that are included in student's tuition that allows them to reach out and get any help they need in a class. The main difference would only be the fact that the athletes' tutors come to the athlete lounges and training facilities due to the fact that they have little time for transportation between practices and class. With all of this in mind, many reporters believe that these players are able to not only be students and athletes, but are also able to work in their free time in order to pay the rest of their bills. However, where could one of these athletes get the time for a part time job? Brad Jones, University of Cincinnati player, graduated in 2009 after receiving a full scholarship during his four years; however, he still had to take out loans in order to have enough money for additional costs such as food, utilities, and other needs. Luckily the debt has already been paid off, but many athletes seem to get stuck in the same situations. They have no means of making money, so they simply must take out loans in order to pay for the basic essentials during their stay in college. Some players were not as lucky as Jones and needed to loan out more money in order to cover living expenses and the rest of the cost that the scholarships did not cover. "Jacksonville University fullback Robert DiMarco has dealt with a much more drastic battle concerning debt.  He took out $22,000 in student loans before graduating from JU in May 2013" (Heitner). This is a prime example of how becoming a player for a large school even to simply get scholarship money to attend can still leave you with tremendous debt to deal with after graduation. It is later stated in this Forbes article, that DiMarco continues to deal with anxiety over the debt owed once he graduates law school due to the fact that the loans continue to add up each year on to the existing 22,000 dollars. DiMarco and Jones are only two examples that portray the end result for many athletes that do not intend on going pro in the NBA. 

When it comes to recruiting, top high school players are given multiple offers from schools that include a multitude of scholarships. Each player weighs out the pros and cons of each University and chooses the best offer for them. However, many wonder how this process of recruitment will change if an income comes into play when it comes to choosing a school. The Sport Journal puts light on this subject and seems to find a result to what the payment of athletes would do to athletic programs. They state, "The other Division I football and basketball programs as well as sports such as baseball, softball, golf, hockey, women's basketball (minus a couple of notable programs), and just about all Division II sports not only fail to make money, but actually drain their athletic budgets. The outcome here would be inevitable: Forcing athletic departments to pay its football and basketball players would result in the eventual elimination of most, if not all, of the non-revenue sports. Is that what we want?" (Johnson and Aquaviva). What this article does not discuss is whether or not this money should be coming from the school or if they should be coming from the NCAA itself. It is understandable to see how the Universities could be losing their other academic programs due to the payment of the main athletes; however, programs such as the NCAA are who are really making the big money. They should be paying these athletes, just like the NBA pays their professionals. 

In conclusion there are many point of views that impact the judgment of the subject. Originally discussing this subject, it seems to be unrealistic to pay these players to play for the university's teams as they get a free education; however, as more facts are discussed throughout this argument, it causes one to wonder whether or not your original position on the matter is correct. These athletes live a completely separate lifestyle from the average student. They chose to pay these sports in order to allow their education to become more affordable, but in the end, they can still remain in debt, have less time for their studies, and are most likely left without an offer to go professional. With all of these outcomes, student athletes should be able to make an income as they practically work for the university for all four years that they attend. 

