College Athletes Should Be Paid

You know, for a while, I've had a column in the works that talks about how college athletes should be paid.  That tuition and books and housing just aren't enough for some who can't afford a burger out with the guys.

I remember seeing it firsthand when my son was in college.  He was by no means on an unlimited budget but if he wanted to go out with friends for dinner, he could afford to do that.  Many of his football buddies could not.

We found pretty early on that if we ever showed up with pizza, we needed several.   We would show up with food and football players would come running.  It's like they could smell the arrival of anything edible.

It really hit home when we were going in a local store and one of my son's buddies was coming out empty handed.

We knew this young man--always polite and respectful and, like most offensive linemen, big as a house--and had made friends with his mom.  Mom was this really great lady that was a single mom and worked hard.

I asked this young man if everything was OK.  Most people don't walk into a big box store and come out empty handed.  He replied that everything was great, that he was just in the store making a payment on the  lay-away plan for his computer. 

I remember lay-away plans, where you paid so much as often as you could and when you had paid in enough, you got the product.  But I thought that system went away a long time ago.

And I just assumed that most college students had computers.  I believe this was the young man's junior year and he still didn't own a computer.  Rare then and unimaginable today.

The argument against an allowance is that these athletes are getting a free education.  OK.  I'm good with that.  My son was the beneficiary of that.  But I also know that he, like most college football players, rarely emerge unscathed physically.  They have injures that will follow them for the rest of their lives. 

And I know that lots of colleges are making millions of dollars off these athletes.  They can't work, can't hold down part time jobs.  It's either against the rules or they don't have time or both.

So yes, college athletes deserve an allowance.  Too many come from households that cannot afford to send their college student any money.  None.

Now, when you hear that some college athlete sold his jersey or whatever, please don't think so harshly of them.

But with the recent rash of misbehavior by college athletes, it doesn't seem quite right to push for more benefits.   It certainly makes one stop and think.

Maybe we are creating a culture of privilege and entitlement where athletes (and others) feel that they can get away with anything. 

Maybe we are only seeing the end result of excuses that we give our young people.  I just don't know.

What I do know is that it really does not matter what opportunities you are given, what advantages you are provided.  We have personal responsibilities for our actions.

It really is as simple as that.