Here, because I'm a nice guy (and by "nice" I mean reasonably informed and can cite sources from a simple Google search) I'll get you started:

http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/REV_EXP_2010.pdf

http://sportsologist.com/college-athletics-by-the-number/
A recent NCAA report stated that only 14 of the 120 athletic programs in the Football Bowl Subdivision made money. The Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) includes all BCS conferences (PAC 10, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, etc) so odds are your favorite athletic program is losing money.

12% of college athletic programs are profitable.


And, like I specifically said, teams are on the hook to provide transportation and accommodations for themselves in most (if not all) events. Happy that your team made it to a BCS game? Tell that to UCONN, who lost millions in ticket sales and lost hotel bookings because their fans don't care at all about football. The school received an automatic bid and was stuck with the responsibilities that go with it. Have you seen any of the articles about Alabama and LSU each having to foot over $180,000 JUST so that their marching bands and cheerleaders can attend the BCS Championship game this year? And that's at a "discounted" ticket rate of a few hundred dollars per person. The schools are on the hook for that.

For Big Ten teams, the conference splits all bowl money evenly between all 12 schools, which further dwindles any "profits" that they receive to help pay for their travel accommodations.


http://chronicle.com/article/22-Elite-College-Sports/127921/

Twenty-two elite athletics departments made money in 2010, up from 14 the previous year, according to an annual spending report released on Wednesday by the NCAA...

The numbers weren't nearly as rosy for everyone else. At the 98 other programs in the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A), the median deficit in 2010 was $11.6-million, barely changing from the previous year, while no programs in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) or at Division I programs without football operated in the black. At those programs, losses continue to grow each year.


So if you support paying players how are ANY of those 98 other programs in FBS, or ANY of the FCS teams are supposed to come up with money to pay when they're already in the red? I'm curious.

I'll hang up and listen.

That 12% profit doesn't take into account the huge salaries some staffs get.

Scholarships isn't the same as being paid. Someone on an academic scholarship is getting more value as they get paid to work towards a career. Being in a serious sports program works the student harder (academic + athletic responsibilities), plus athletes are less likely to go pro and get value from their scholarship.

Some sort of compensation for is not unreasonable, perhaps some sort of injury insurance at least.

 

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Eff em if they're too dumb for an academic scholarship then they don't deserve isht and the world will be better off when they're gone.

JeffPassan Jeff Passan
Andrew Luck's scholarship: worth $53,000. Justin Blackmon's scholarship: worth $20,000. Fiesta Bowl CEO's salary: ~$600,000. Nice system.

 

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Maybe they should have signed up for something other than "Human Kinetics".

I had a friend who took "Human Kinetics"... she got a credit for showing, playing volleyball and discussing the game. What a joke.

 

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No, but their scholarship money should be improved upon.

That wasn't my point.. Students on an athletic scholarship have a larger base workload by default, being on a serious team and studying. People on an academic scholarship only have the academic duties to worry about.

And there are student athletes who do actually try to do well... and lots of non-athletes who don't give a ****.

Study time = value = money.

 

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They are already getting compensated. Not only with free college but also with coaching, training and advertising. They get to be taught skills that can earn them a fortune if they play their cards right. They get the best coaching, the best training facilities and TV airtime.


Paying players will not stop the Reggie Bush's or Cam Newton's from trying to tap boosters for money. You can't pay them enough to be honest. They'll take money from the school and still tap the boosters for more money.


Also, there's the question of who you pay and how much. Do you pay the third string Safety as much as the starting QB? Do you pay the captain of the women's volleyball team the same as the starting point guard for the men's basketball team?

 

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Anon... They receive $500 USD a month to live on, no? I don't think that is enough. $1500 USD wouldn't be amiss, would it?