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Should College Athletes Be Paid?

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Centuries ago in the 1770s the first sport known as cricket originated in England. As time passed by more sports began originating in England such as football and basketball. These sports became very popular worldwide and were incorporated in Universities as extra-curricular activities. As more students started playing some students demonstrated more talent than others. One of the sports students played was football which in the United States college football became a national obsession. More people became intrigued by football and this sport began bringing a lot of money by filling up the stands. The issue of paying these athletes began arising, so the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) decided to give them a free education …show more content…

Before any athlete can sign any type of athletic scholarship they “are required to adhere to NCAA amateurism requirements to remain eligible for intercollegiate competition” (“Compliance”). These rules include… Once these athletes sign the contract for whichever University they choose to attend; they compromise their freedom by abiding to all the NCAA rules. They are controlled by the NCAA rules and coaching staff. These college athletes are exploited by the NCAA for money without athletes being paid any money because they are amateurs. According to the Free Dictionary the definition of amateurism is, “one who engages in an art, science, study, or athletic activity as a pastime rather than a profession.” This definition is referring to an athlete who has never accepted money, or who accepts money under restrictions specified by a regulatory body, for participating in a competition. The word amateurism was used and created in England for the use of sports, which the NCAA adopted very easily. In the documentary, Schooled Frank Deford who works for Sports Illustrated mentions “The NCAA has got kids trapped. Football players, basketball players. You want the path to go pro? You’ve got to come and play for us. And play for free. Thank you very much.” The whole purpose of this word is to make athletes believe that they are playing for the love of

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