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01/29/2018

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Sarah B

Jackson states that she is a sports fan, but won't attend any of the men's college basketball games as she feels it's contributing to "exploitation of football and basketball players". Jackson feels that the revenue athletes should be held to the same academic standard as the nonrevenue athletes. While I agree with Jackson, I don't believe enough support is provided by the article. Statistical assessments of the academic differences would have provided more support than there currently is.

Oleksiy Tarasyshyn

I agree with the point Sarah B. makes about Jackson's selective screening towards obtaining data on such a topic. By excluding a certain group from the data pool, end results may be too one-sided due to her limiting full analysis of both groups of college sports. The only "excuse" she may have for her specific group study is if she declared her intentions to only get results from one side of the field.

Anthony R Cazarez

I agree with sarah B and Oleksiy Tarasyshyn with how the data isn't fully complete with the exclusion of a certain group and the fact that there isn't engough data for this particular issue since there is a seperation of the the two types of college sports.

Annika Robinson

I agree with Sarah B. because you do see more football and basketball players having to stay longer in college because they haven’t gotten enough credit for their majors. With other sports that don’t have pro standings or that bring in revenue into the college, they have more time to focus on their majors and the academic part of things. The way I see it is that no matter what sport you play, however much money you bring into the school, every last person who goes to college needs to earn the degree that they intended to get without focusing to much on that sport and to find that perfect balance.

Carly

I also agree with Sarah B. and Oleksly. Although her choice of not wanting to watch the men's basketball games is completely her decision, she also seems completely one sided. Not only is there not enough evidence, but I feel as though she doesn't have a great enough reason to refuse to watch. Unfortunately, something about racism always comes up with sports.

ali haiy

I agree with sarah b because they are excluding data and only getting selective data. When doing college sports it will take longer to finish college cant take the same work load and from there data they only want one sided data.

Oscar Guzman

Like everyone else I agree that not enough data is provided to back up the statement of Jackson. Yes, athletes of certain sports don't have enough time to study due to other obligations regulated by the NCAA but you also have to consider that within those teams their are other players whom know they're not going to make it as professionals and prioritize their education. These role players don't get the spotlight that the star quarterback of the football team might get and have a bit more time on hand.

Mariane Edelstein

Jackson doesn't want to watch the men's college basketball this spring because she doesn't want to support a system that she doesn't agree with its policies. From what I understood, Jackson believes that college sport's system is solely focused on making revenue and not prioritizing education. Also, even though she seemed pretty clear about how she feels, and what is right or wrong, she failed to present enough evidence on the matter. Even though I agree with some her of her points, I am not too familiar with this kind of policies, which makes it harder to say if her statement makes sense.

Tushar Pankaj

I definitely agree with these claims. There is no way to defend the lack of pay for college athletes except with racism. We all know that college athletics generates huge sums of money for the college, for the NCAA, and for TV stations. How is their work any different from the pro sports? Just the fact that they're in college doesn't mean they shouldn't get paid. I'm in college and I've gotten paid for some of my research work that also doubled as an educational opportunity.

pepper vongketmany

Jackon will not be watching any men's college basketball this spring because she feels there is a disadvantage between revenue athletes and nonrevenue athletes. From what I read, revenue sports such as basketball is a popular sport, supported by many fans. Jackson said in the article, "In big-time college sports, majority-black teams entertain majority-white crowds. Mostly white head coaches make millions, and the mostly black players don't make any money beyond their scholarships. These students have little time for academics and therefore don't graduate at the same rates as the general student body or the nonrevenue athlete peers." The students who play the sports don't have the time to balance play and study. The college sports system is more concerned about bringing money in and not making the student athlete's education important. I wonder where the balance is in the college sports system?

Francisco Sanchez

Jackson illustrates a stable point and is merely saying what people are thinking. While I can agree that this is an important subject to discuss, I also believe that the same players that are being "exploited" knowingly disregard their education with the hope of going pro. The focus should instead be on educating the players on the importance of balancing their ambition for the game and the importance of their education.

carole curry

That's always been the stereotype if your black and not an athlete there's something wrong. I don't agree with this. However, I have found that many you blacks going to college tend to be there for athletics purposes for example; a scholarship. Its unfortunate. Many can say that this is not true but statistics are there and I do not see it ending.

Lucca Grassi

I agree with her that it is unfair that the players do not get properly compensated for what they are doing for the school. I do not agree with her that it is a race issue I think it is a greed issue and the NCAA does not care what race you are all they care about is keeping all the money from the players to line their own pockets.

James Gore

Jackson says she will not be watching college basketball this year because of the way the players are exploited. She feels as though the players should be compensated for the revenue they generate for the colleges and the companies that air their sporting events. I believe she argues her point well but I do not believe that these players should be paid because it will change the ethics of the sport. College students are competing to both represent their college as well as try to get attention from professional scouts.

George Champion

I agree with James. No one is forcing these athletes to play and represent these universities and they are already treated like Gods on these campuses. If they want to indeed go pro, then they probably never took their academics that seriously in the first place. These universities train them and prepare them to go pro, they give them the opportunity and make it possible for them. Tuition that other people pay gives them the scholarship they need to make their dreams come true.

miguel miret

I agree with Lucca, I believe it is unfair that the players do not get properly compensated for all they are doing for their university. As players are bringing national attention and high revenue towards the schools they play for. However, I do not know if the case is racial or not, it may be a high possibility, as many college athletes of basketball and football are made mostly of African American race, and looking at it in that case, then one can only imagine what would happen if the majority of the players where of white race. Would they have already been getting some sort of compensation because of all the white involvement in the sports industry? Who knows, but I do believe each player should get a fair and equal cut of the profit both the NCAA and each university is making from their hard work and passion for the game.

cameron biddle

Jackson calls herself a "sports fan" but is choosing to boycott the male sports because she perceives them as being exploitative to the students who generate revenue. by boycotting them she is denying the school the amount of money they would receive from her attending thus voting on the policy changes she wants to see with her dollars.

Alfred

I think, if you provide value in this world, you should be compensated for the value you add, by the people that value your contributions. If fans of college sports want to continue their chosen form of entertainment, then they will continue to expect competition of the collegiate level. The professional organizations: NBA, WNBA, NFL, MLB, MLS, etc...are willing to pay these athletes a livable wage...allowing them to provide not only for themselves, but their families and communities. A lot of young athletes get burned out in college. They’re expected to perform at this elite level, yet can’t ensure they eat a decent breakfast. College athletes are expected to study, practice, lift weights, go to class, and of course...be athletic. If they were paid...even minimum wage, they would be able to perform without the fear of an investigation of where their groceries came from this month.

Pedro L. Gonzalez

I agree with Jackson, but I don't think you need to be an insider or have benefitted from the system to see its inherent problems. College sports have effectively become a circus that undermines the value of higher learning. By providing full-ride scholarships to athletes, solely on the basis that they will generate revenue for the institution by participating in athletics, schools do a disservice to those students who have the grades but lack the financial means or arbitrary athletic ability to attain a higher education.

Ryan Jeffries

I agree with Pedro, the schools do give the short end of the stick to students without athletic ability comparatively, as a student with potentially worse academics will be admitted to the university over a student who has better academics but is not going to be playing a sport. However, on the other end of the spectrum, it completely unfair that student-athletes in revenue earning sports don't get any sort of compensation outside of their degree.

Jose Garcia

I understand what Jackson is arguing and I find myself agreeing. The way I see it no one would like it if they went to work at a restaurant and saw their hard work paying for the meals of other while they were paid in food. It is and unfair reality that these kids are losing sleep and risking themselves to deal with the inequality.

John Keller

Victoria makes an excellent point about income-generating athletes subsidizing the sport experience of non income-generating student athletes, also the racial makeup of those two groups. There is an assumption which I question, however. That is her apparent belief that those basketball and football players would succeed in their studies and graduate in much higher numbers were the demands of their sport more in line with those of the non income-generating sports. I’m not convinced this is true at all. A great many would never be admitted to school at all were there not such a high demand for their talents. And in many interviews I’ve seen with many such athletes, of either race, it is rare to see any who might get the itch to be the next great historian or chemist.

steve

completely agree he is ignoring the boycotting the male sports, most of the system seeks revenue check out more at games and sport

Angela Winkler

I think Jackson's experience gives her criticism even more legitimacy. Although she herself benefited from being a student athlete, she is in the perfect position to see that other athletes do not get the same experience. While the Division 1 athletes are getting a free degree and depending on the school/package, being compensated for their athletic ability, the time spent should also be included. So if athletes are expected to spend more than 500 hours a year on their sport, they should get paid. It's equivalent to having a salary worker get the same salary for working 40 hours a week but making another salaried employee work 100 hours a week for the same pay.

Cindy Rios

She didn't want to support a system exploiting football and basketball players so "non revenue" athletes like her can both play and study. I agree with Angela Winkler. She was in the position herself to see the different experiences. She was able to see how they believe basketball and football players should get paid like a full time job and others shouldn't because it's a different sport. However, they still expect them to be in the athletics of their choice while studying and most likely working another full time job on top of that to make up for it.

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