The Oklahoma Sooners football will have to endure a two-year
probationary period, the loss of two scholarships in each of the next two
years, and a forfeiture of all games during the 2005 season for the violations
of three players during the summer of 2006.
One of the three players who violated NCAA rules included
the starting quarterback at the time, Rhett Bomar, who reportedly received
payment in excess of $18,000 for a job at a local car dealership in which he
only showed up to for 5 hours a week during the summer.
While the penalties and violations are pretty clear cut – it
got me to thinking about the unfair restrictions placed on NCAA athletes. Why
shouldn’t they be allowed to make what they are worth?
Consider the math: Bomar works 5 hours a week for 12 weeks
making a total of $18,000. Broken down that comes out to about $300 per hour.
Not bad pay, but did anyone ever stop to consider that he might be worth that
much. His mere presence at the dealership could help bring in an influx of
potential customers. To put it in perspective, the pay is roughly the same that
a local radio host could expect to make by making a similar appearance at a
local car dealership.
To answer my previous question - NCAA athletes are not
allowed to make money on the side because the Universities would rather take it
all. As an institution the NCAA acts as little more than a protector of the
Universities best interest.
Now, I’m not saying NCAA athletes should paid like professional
athletes, but perhaps they would stay in school longer than a year, if they
were allowed to capitalize on the skills they have worked to perfect for their
entire lives.
What if Greg Oden were able to sign a deal with Nike while
still playing at Ohio State? He might not be tempted to leave school after just
one year. The NCAA would benefit as well due to bigger names playing in their
league.
Posted by Allan at 4:39 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Greg Oden, ncaa basketball, NCAA Football, Oklahoma
Sooners, Rhett Bomar, Sooners Football, University of Oklahom
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