The college football industry had a good year in 2016
It was a great year for college football yet the people who made it great, the players don’t see any money from playing. Money flowed into the industry.
College football is supposed to be an extra activity yet it seems as if workouts are part of the job. The next question that should be raised was this was a voluntary workout or that the players understood that voluntary doesn’t mean voluntary. These are student-athletes who have a scholarship, a chance at an education and are the stars of the college football show who risk their health and yet not get paid for their labor.
These facts that are true about the college sports industry. College
football players cannot organize and form a labor association
according to the National Labor Relations Board and the adults who
hold office in the Ohio legislature made sure teenagers and young
adults putting for their bodies on the line for Ohio State University
cannot be considered school employees and therefore cannot be paid.
Another true fact, a student-athlete can lose a scholarship at a
coach’s whim. And the colleges and universities who use the
student-athletes on the field are not responsible for long term health
care for the players even though injuries suffered on the playing
field might not become evident for years after the player leaves the
school. The college presidents, chancellors, trustees don’t seem to be
too interested in players health. Coaches are getting paid big salaries, athletic directors apparently get bonuses based on performance or how well the teams do. Television networks pay billions for the rights to games from big time conferences. It seems an awful lot of people have their hands in the
college football revenue pie yet the stars of the show cannot get a
dime. The public just wants to be entertained and the players should be grateful for the opportunity to give it all for the school.
The SEC gets a lot of TV money.
