Why College Athletes Should Get Paid

Colleges get millions of dollars for their sports departments but how much do the athletes get out of it? Athletes are some of the hardest working people out there and they deserve to get paid for their work on the team. There are many reasons why athletes should get paid. They spend all the time with the sport but some never go pro so there was no point to their hard work. Because athletes don't get paid some have to turn to illegal sponsoring. Biggest reason is that the athletes play the game but get nothing out of it, without them there would be no game. College should pay college athletes because they played hard to earn it, the athletes never have time to get a life started and to eliminate illegal sponsoring.
Athletes devote their lives
to the sport so they have earned the money for the time spent with the college sport. Schools make millions of dollars but the hard working athlete gets none. For example, The University of Memphis basketball team brought in $6.7 million, Will Barton who spent 18 hours playing the game got none of it (Veazey N.P.). Because Will Barton spent all of his time playing basketball and practicing he never had time to earn money, so when he is done with basketball and college he will have no money to rent an apartment or buy a car to get to work. The universities get all the money for Will’s work when all they do is hire a coach and go watch them play. Athletes do not have time to work so how are they supposed to support themselves when they have no time to get a job. Schools get millions for playing in post season games or tournaments but without the players the school would not be there getting money(Dahlberg N.P.). Nevertheless athletes do get a scholarship which is not having to pay around $10,000 to attend college, but usually that is not enough for the athletes(Armario N.P.). It is not enough because the athletes need necessities like food and shelter but the universities are not even allowed to give them that and they do not have time to earn the money to go and buy it themselves.
Some athletes never go professional, yet they spend all their time with the sport so they do not have time to get their lives started.
That means that they do not have time to get their careers going and cannot go have internships or interviews. People who went to college and did not play a sport have an advantage over college athletes when going out into the world because they had time to prepare(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.). Once their scholarships have ended , athletes sometimes can no longer pay for tuition and cannot finish their degree, which often leads to not getting a job(Galehouse N.P.). Schools continue to argue about a proposal to pay athletes stipends of $2,000 to cover incidentals not included in college scholarships(Dahlberg N.P.). University of Mississippi athletic department brought in $48.9 million(Veazey N.P.). Gilbert Pena who had to quit football to help his family, has received nothing(Veazey N.P.). Once Gilbert Pena graduated from high school he had to stop playing football because his mother had become diagnosed with cancer. So Gilbert went to work at a warehouse for three to four years to support his mom. Once his mom’s cancer subsided he went back to football and got many Division 1 football offers. If he would have gotten paid by The University of Mississippi then he could have stayed in football and paid for his mom’s rehab(In Gilbert Pena).If players have to quit because of family issues they will not have any money because they didn't have time for a job,
paying them would be able to cover that. Then maybe they will be able to come back to football. So what happens when they cannot get the money they need and will not get it from going pro? Stealing(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.).
If we start paying the athletes then illegal sponsoring will not happen as much because the athletes will get the money they need.
Lots of athletes steal for a reason, mostly because they feel they are getting cheated(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.). The dominant attitude among players is that there is no moral or ethical reason not to take money, because the system is ripping them off(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.). Also some recent studies have found that the system is ripping them off. The studies have found that the average scholarship is $3,500 below what it should be(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.). That $3,500 is supposed to cover additional educational expenses(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.). It has even gone so low that they have to steal chips because they are not even offered that(Gallo N.P.). For example Penn State quarterback Rob Bolden got arrested for stealing chips and a Gatorade(Gallo N.P.). NCAA commissioners think it is such a big deal to give players even the smallest of things, if they do not want to pay them at least let them get things for free from people to sustain their life. Athletics Representatives are not even allowed to give a gift or a piece of equipment, cash or even sponsor an arrangement for an awards banquet for the high school(NCAA GUIDELINES N.P.). Sometimes recruiters illegally give players cash to get them to go to their college, that would end if the college would just pay them(Ehrlich Jr. N.P.).Stealing is a stupid thing for athletes to do and they should not have to do if we just paid
them.
Majority of college athletes do not turn professional so they will never get the money they deserve(Kansagra N.P.). The athlete spent their full time with the sport so they will not have any real world experience. Then they would steal to try to make their life better because they cannot get a job because they did not finish their degree. College athletes need to be paid so they can have a life if they do not go pro and so they do not try to steal. Athletes spend their whole college career devoted to the sport, if they were just paid then that would diverge them from stealing, help them with their life and primarily give them what they deserve.