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Should college players be paid?

Johnny Manziel with Texas A and M. (Image: Creative Commons)
Roar Pro
10th April, 2014
23

In the wake of the Johnny Manziel scandal last season, debate has been raging over whether college football players should be compensated.

A dangerous prospect from the standpoint of the NCAA, but it may be the next step in the evolution of college football.

The argument for compensation is simple – with colleges making millions of dollars in merchandise sales based on the performances of an athlete, a portion of those profits should be made available to the player.

The argument against is that it will create a greater ability for teams to bias players into signing to a market rather than the college. It opens the door for third-party contributions and promise of bigger incomes, rather than the pure promise of playing opportunity. The scholarship which encompasses a player’s tuition is the compensation that players currently get and it should stay that way.

With so many college players getting by with no money while upholding a contract with their college that gives them the workload of a full-time employee, remuneration for their services is something to be looked at. If players were allowed to receive compensation through a portion of merchandise sales, it would have to be a structured system – a fair and equitable distribution of funds throughout the team and not to a single player.

As the quarterback is the most significantly seen player on a team, clearly he would bring in more jersey sales than an offensive lineman. This is why all merchandise sales should be distributed evenly throughout the team – to reward the success of the team as a whole. This system would reduce the opportunity for players to ascend above their peers monetarily and also keep the focus of college football on the success of the team over the individual.

What can’t be overstated in the entire prospect of paying players is the ability for money to sully the game. This would forever change the nature of scouting and the way players decide on their future. Players may be forced to make decisions about their future based on their current financial circumstances rather than weighing those against the potential for developing into an NFL prospect.

Not every player is going to make it to the NFL, in fact only a small percentage do and even fewer go on to have long careers. But with money in play, the individual may choose to accept an offer from a large college that promises large merchandise revenue to be a back-up or special teams player over going to a smaller school as a starter.

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Obviously this choice reduces that player’s visibility to NFL scouts and seriously inhibits his ability to develop and have the option of going to the NFL.

This is a hot-button topic on college campuses right now and won’t die down until a decision is made, or at least the issue is addressed by the NCAA. If a system can be made that adequately reimburses players for their contributions to the college game, while not negatively affecting their decision-making it may be the next evolution of college football.

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