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Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Defending NCAA
Here we go:
I agree with Mr. Wiley and Mr. Howard that individuals should be entitled to a piece of the revenue they help to generate for their schools. But who is really generating the revenue? Is it the student-athletes, or is it the brand name that the school has built over time?
The major sources of revenue from college football and basketball come from ticket sales, alumni, and TV money. How much of these particular revenue streams result from the fans’ connection towards individual student-athletes…or the fans’ connection towards their school?
Well, most season ticket holders for collegiate sports have had their tickets for years…despite the constant turnover of players every 3-4 years.
Say no more.
I’ll say more. They have that on the expectation that their schools continue to get the soldiers to play on the field. What do you think would happen if a league called the Major College Football League were to come into existence, and all the top college players were paid to go there (and also forcing those college athletes to now pay their way into college)? Well, every player that would get paid more than what tuition costs (i.e., the cost of the scholarship), would jump ship and join this new league, reasoning that they can take that money and pay for tuition themselves. And the leftover money is for them to do what they want.
Indeed, this is exactly what happens in Canada, with the Major Junior Hockey League. High school students, college students, school dropouts, guys coming from Europe: whoever. There is a clear separation of hockey leagues and school affiliation. It works.
And, I would bet that, in time, the student body would follow the talent, and not their school brand. If you see the top 1000 players in college in this new league, and then your school has all the guys who weren’t good enough to join that league, the talent disparity would be noticeable, and the difference in quality play apparent.
But, we don’t need my bullsh!t opinion about this: there’s a planet out there. Surely, other countries separate athletics from academics. Aren’t soccer players part of academies? Does the Oxford soccer team have a big draw? How do Swedish hockey players join leagues?
I’d like reporters to do this work, to investigate, to present evidence and data.
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