A good compromise is to keep the sports, but to have just as stringent scholastic requirements for the athletes as for everyone else. If great athletes who plan on going pro don't have the ...necessities to get into school and keep their grades up, then they should go straight to the pros. And if the NBA and NFL feel cheated that they lost their unofficial "minor leagues," then they should create their own, like MLB has.
Moronic thugs who have no intention of learning anything outside of their chosen sports should not be in school.