Changing The Rules Essay Example For Students

Changing The Rules Essay The chants grow louder, Dayne, Dayne, Dayne, its 4Th and goal, the Badgers trail Michigan by 5 with six seconds left. The winner takes home the title as the 1999 National champions. The ball is snapped, Bollinger drops back, fakes the pass, and pitches it to Dayne. He dodges a tackle, bounces off 2 blue jerseys, and stumbles in the end-zone for the game winning TD. Daynes hard work and perseverance paid off and led Wisconsin to a victory. But who really capitalizes when Ron Dayne leads his team to a National Championship? To Dayne, Paid Off in no way means he will receive a check from the University of Wisconsin. Under current NCAA regulations, all student athletes are prohibited from receiving any payment for their efforts(1). Exploited athletes generate millions of dollars for their schools, and never see a dime. Is this fair?College sports are big business. Every single day, universities succeed in coaxing the general public into believing that the kindred and pure spirit of amateur athletics serves as the main catalyst for their respective universities desire to field a good team. However, in reality the common motivation for these universities is nothing other that the almighty dollar. For many universities, the athletic program serves as a cash-generating machine. In terms of profit, if all ties with the university were eliminated, an athletic program acting as its own separate entity could compete with some for tune 500 companies. So, why do the vital pieces of the machine, (the players) fail to receive any compensation for their performance? Certainly, a car engine is cared for and maintained, the owner continually spending money to keep it up. The answer lies in the money-hungry universities and their practice of hoarding all the revenue. Many student-athletes are actually business people, just like students attending business schools and graduate schools. They are many times attending universities because it is a stepping stone en route to a career as a professional athlete,(1) just like an accounting major is studying in order to be recruited by an accounting firm. The lifestyle of a student-athlete is quite different though. A student-athlete must attend practice for 10 to 20 hours per week, travel to games on most weekends during the season, and at the same time, keep up with an academic workload comparable to that of a student without commitment to athletics. But unlike ordinary stu dents without athletics, student-athletes must also many times care for families and spouses. Actually, approximately 24% of student athletes are married, and of that 24%, about 62% have children(1) Of the students without their own spouses or children, many must care for parents and siblings. The rules and regulations regarding the student-athlete are set forth by the NCAA, which serves as the governing body over college athletics. Most college athletes are not wealthy and among the many rules imposed for these privileged individuals, they are not permitted to carry jobs, receive money, rewards, or any type of kickbacks from any sources other than family. The NCAA does not allow their athletes to hold jobs because the job issue has ramifications on recruiting(1). The NCAA believes some schools would have an unfair recruiting advantage over other schools. That one school could offer a recruit a better job opportunity than another. There is an issue that jobs in different locations would pay athletes different salaries. Walter Byers, who advocated an overhaul of college sports, deregulating the system and treating athletes like other students says, The reasoning behind this one is that an athlete at Alabama might not earn as much working in a Tuscaloosa mens clothing store as a USC player could earn as an apprentice stagehand in a Hollywood studio.(3)But really, athletes should not have to work in the first place. While a car cannot run without an engine, a sport cannot be played without athletes. The NCAA uses the name amateurism as the reason it doesnt pay student-athletes. Opponents against paying student-athletes say that they shoul d not be paid because through scholarships, theyre already being paid. A University education is priceless, says Richard Jacoby, member of the NCAA committee. But that is only true if the opportunity to get an education is taken advantage of(4). Yes, a scholarship is a form of payment. A scholarship is nice, but it is not enough. A scholarship will not pay the bills. A scholarship will not feed a child. Life wouldnt be so hard for many of the student-athletes if they were permitted to hold jobs. But the NCAA does not permit scholarship players to be employed during the school year. During the summer, these athletes are forced to train, practice, and compete in order to keep their roster position. This leaves little time to earn money. Cultural Diversity EssayWith giving student-athletes a small salary, such as the $5.40 an hour national minimum wage, more athletes would not have to miss their chance of a college experience. These people are not greedy; they are looking out for themselves. Though a college education is important, the goal of college is to prepare yourself for your future profession. Recently Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and Shawn Kemp are examples of teens that decided to skip college because of the necessity of money. Had they attended college, they would have enjoyed four years of, well, being slaves. It wouldnt hurt universities to give back a little. The average Division One school profits $6 million per year on basketball and football alone(6). Consider that, some universities such as University of Florida or U of M profit more than $10 million per year on their respective athletic programs. Everywhere you look in Ann Arbor you see Michigan Football merchandise. The amount of money and number of people the football program brings into this city alone is tremendous. If every player were given a decent salary, say $75 to $100 a week, it would make life a lot more livable for some athletes. They should not struggle for food or money, considering that they are, in a sense, keeping the town alive. What would Ann Arbor be without football? Much less lively and spirited, to say the least. Sports and Games