Some college teams are run as business. I have a friend from High School who played for a major D1 team. He was directed to certain courses that would keep his grade point up and provided tutoring. Yes, there are some who take hard academic courses and graduate with honors, but they are few and far between. My friend had little time except for practice, travel for games and rest. Even in the off season the work outs were intense and offered little time for studies.
The skills of these kids is the basis of a multi-million dollar industry, they are “hired” via a scholarship and expenses to labor within that industry, while working far more than an 8 hour day. Some D1 sports like football and basketball are in reality feeder teams for professional football and professional basket ball.
The “Student Athletes” are absolutely not amateurs. It is time to recognize that at least for certain D1 college sports that they are professional sports teams and pay the athletes for their work and sacrifices.
—” Yes, there are some who take hard academic courses and graduate with honors, but they are few and far between. My friend had little time except for practice, travel for games and rest. Even in the off season the work outs were intense and offered little time for studies.”
One of the many fun things my old friend mentioned was his first meeting with the COACH.
He shows the COACH his proposed schedule and is quickly told it would never work and assistant Bob will take care of it.
Bob tells him he should work his schedule around a list of instructors that are “FRIENDS OF THE TEAM”.
And to attend classes wearing team sweats so there is no mistake.
He said he only attended about HALF of all possible classes.
With all the help coming into the final semester of the last year he realizes he must pass every class to graduate on time in four years.
Still, he had one very questionable class, public speaking.
His fraternity brothers were a big help in tutoring and loaning him ties, sports coats, and collared shirts...
One day his prayers were answered!
The instructor was very late to class and announced that his friend, Professor Smith had been in a terrible car accident and in need of blood donations.
Any donors would be appreciated and helped after class.
That did the trick.
Although drafted into the pros, he had a solid offer to start as a teacher in the fall.
He said that he didn’t have the full skill set for the pros, most like him would play for a few years in Europe for further development.
Ten years of teaching were the best of his life, but his soon-to-be former wife demanded that he find a real job with a full paycheck! I do not recall the pay but not very much, in the late 1960s or early 1970s. in a few years, teacher pay jumped in the area.