Greed in College Athletics
Sadly, greed is not confined to corporate giants in industry. It has seeped into all parts of our culture, even college athletics. Many people were outraged when the players from the Ohio State University (OSU) football team were caught trading memorabilia for money and tattoos, in violation of NCAA rules. Let’s start with the assumption that athletes that win a national or conference championship are very proud of their accomplishment and treasure the memorabilia, such as rings, that allow them to display their achievement. The main reason they sold these treasures was that they needed the money. Many of the best athletes on these elite university teams come from economically disadvantaged families. Frequently, the parents of these students cannot afford to attend the game to see their sons and daughters play. We are not talking about every player on every team at every university. We are talking about some players on the major revenue producing sports teams (football and basketball) at the top schools.
While the OSU student athletes were selling their memorabilia, the president of the university earned a salary of $1.6M and the football coach earned about $3.5M for his efforts. If every player on the allowed 70 man roster were paid $10,000 per season, that would amount to only $700,000. If they took it out of the coach’s pay, he would still make $2.8M a year! However, here is where the greed and power show themselves. By rule, the coaches and universities are not allowed to pay the athletes. Who makes those rules? The NCAA. Who is the NCAA? The university presidents and athletic directors. They have created a system that allows their institutions and coaches to make vast amounts of money from the efforts of the ‘student athletes’ while prohibiting themselves from compensating these athletes in any way other than a scholarship — and the scholarship has strict limits on what it can pay for. Here are just a couple of the rules they created.
“You are not eligible in a sport if you ever have accepted money, transportation or other benefits from an agent or agreed to have an agent market your athletics ability or reputation in that sport. [Bylaw 12.3.1]
c. You are not eligible in any sport if, after you become a student-athlete, you accept any pay for promoting a commercial product or service or allow your name or picture to be used for promoting a commercial product or service. [Bylaws 12.5.2.1 and 12.5.2.2]
d. You are not eligible in any sport if, because of your athletics ability, you were paid for work you did not perform, were paid at a rate higher than the going rate or were paid for the value an employer placed on your reputation, fame or personal following. [Bylaw 12.4]”[1]
As I mentioned, many of these athletes come from families whose parents cannot afford to travel to see their children play. NCAA eligibility rules prohibit the university or boosters from paying for that. Not only do the power people in the world of college athletics prevent themselves from paying the athletes, they also prevent others from paying them. It’s outrageous! These elite athletes allow themselves to be used in this way because for most of them it is the best way at a chance to get an education, play professional sports, and make money after college.
Come on, NCAA, fix this!
I was watching a tribute to songwriter Hal David on PBS when they played and discussed his hit song Alfie. They were celebrating it as a beautiful love song — with love being used in the romantic sense, and it is; but I also heard another message in the lyrics. The lyrics are:
What’s it all about, Alfie?
Is it just for the moment we live?
What’s it all about when you sort it out, Alfie?
Are we meant to take more than we give
Or are we meant to be kind?
And if only fools are kind, Alfie
Then I guess it is wise to be cruel
And if life belongs only to the strong, Alfie
What will you lend on an old golden rule?
As sure as I believe there’s a heaven above, Alfie
I know there’s something much more,
Something even non-believers can believe in
I believe in love, Alfie
Without true love we just exist, Alfie
Until you find the love you’ve missed you’re nothing, Alfie
When you walk let your heart lead the way
And you’ll find love any day, Alfie, Alfie
If you think of love in the ‘love of mankind’ meaning, then it provides a beautiful anthem for living and improving the world for everyone. It is the antithesis of greed.
If you are too young to remember this beautiful song, this Dionne Warwick version is a classic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoNtj27a6Rk
This is an excerpt from my book on Poverty — part 15
(Written but not published. If you want a MS Word free copy, let me know.)
[1] NCAA, “Summary of NCAA Regulations”, 2011–2012 http://cometsports.utdallas.edu/custompages/MISC/ORIENTATION/NCAA%20Regulations.pdf
