Ohio State Football Players: The Scapegoat
After hearing the accusations that have surfaced against Ohio State University, one must think this is a laughable, head-scratching matter… until one realizes that it is completely serious. Without getting into the specific allegations in question…the players received undue benefits and it’s 100% appalling to think that any college football player who is student first and athlete second should agree to anything above what they agreed to. These players are representatives of the university, the fans, the alumni and the entire community. How dare a single one of them go out and tarnish the name of everything they stand for…pawning some of their own stuff to pay for some tattoos?
If an NFL player can earn a minimum of $300,000.00 in the league (if not more depending on the year and how long they have played in the league), why is it okay for NCAA players not to receive any kind of benefit? ? Why do they make them blow their whistles every time a stupid incident like this happens? Has it occurred to anyone that these kids are just trying to live their lives, and yet because they have the gift of playing a game better than anyone else, they are subject to such scrutiny?
The reason I’m upset is the system that the NCAA has put in place. If a player has a scholarship, he is not allowed to have a job. That may be for a good reason, but the truth is that none of these current players did anything to violate that rule, they’re not even allowed to work because that’s his job. If a player like Sam Bradford may be preparing to sign the richest rookie contract in NFL history last spring, how is it possible for him to suddenly rise in value not just by millions of dollars, but by any dollar? These players, like those from Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and a few others, will play every Saturday in a stadium with OVER 110,000 people in the stands and many more watching on TV. College football is a hundred million if not billion dollar machine that affects the economy, sells jerseys, pays millions in salaries, teams, advertising rights in stadiums and on TV, etc. Income is everywhere. However, these players do not see a penny.
It could be argued that players are paid what is their worth in a scholarship. Alright, do you really think a player is only worth $30,000 a year in tuition? What if he’s the Heisman Trophy winner? What if he’s the best player in the country and takes his school to a BCS bowling game that pays millions of dollars JUST TO GO? That doesn’t even take into account the fact that it technically costs the school as little as 20% of the actual price of the scholarship sticker to pay for a child to attend school there (it costs nothing to add your paperwork to the pile). and give them another seat in the classrooms, it just takes the place of another student). In fact, some schools have increased their tuition just to help pay for scholarship costs.
The point is not that these guys were perfect (obviously). It’s not even that they’re completely poor and have the worst story of sadness in the world. The point is that these kids have no way of making money, but they still want to sell their own hard-earned stuff to try and pay for a tattoo or two. If a kid on the glee club or debate team wanted to sell his medals (if someone really wanted to buy them) he would have no problem doing so. It’s not about kids getting into trouble and breaking the law. This is another story about how the NCAA and BCS want to capture every penny they can without letting the “worker bees,” which are the players, get their fair share of their own services. To paraphrase Mike Gundy, “Who’s the kid here?” Tell us what you think.