Very sad that this is happening to what used to be a wonderful institution in this country - amateur sports. This is driven by nothing but money. I am all in favor of capitalism, but these are supposed to be STUDENTS first, playing sports at their institution as a recreational activity. You know. The "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" concept. When intercollegiate football got started, it was just a bunch of chemistry, business, engineering students getting together on weekends to have some fun. Then they graduated, got 'real' jobs, and contributed to society.
Athletic scholarships opened the door to what is happening today. Scholarships can be a very good thing if everyone remembers what they are. They are the compensation that the students receive in exchange for the use of their extracurricular (ha) time and athletic abilities. They get a free, or significantly reduced cost, education, in exchange for representing their institution on the athletic venue of their particular sport(s). Fair enough. I honestly don't know what is the average cost to of an undergraduate degree. I know what my wife and I paid to put our son through a modest, but good, public university. Something in the neighborhood of $25,000. Total. For all four years. "That's all" you say? Well, I'd love to have that money back. It ain't chicken feed, to me. But, yeah. A place like SMU runs something in the neighborhood of $30,000 per year. That's $120,000 for a four-year program. That's a lot of money to most folks. And, to walk away with a degree that will help ensure their ability to start a business, have a long, successful career in some business or trade, or develop/invent things to help America, and the world, be a better, safer place, most folks would gladly sacrifice their extracurricular time, and offer their athletic talents to accomplish.
But, today, many - not all, but many - of these people take a scholarship simply to put themselves into a better marketing position for the professional sports that seek top athletes. They use their institutions' athletic programs to strengthen their bodies, and sharpen their athletic skills. Most don't give one rats you-know-what about the educational opportunities the scholarships provide. Many are 'one and done' (especially basketball people). Even football people are getting to be 'two and out.' "What degree? Who cares? I got a big guaranteed bonus, and fat contract. Who needs a degree?" Graduate? Contribute to society? Too, too few.
So, to keep these people from leaving prematurely, these people are now going to get paid to play college sports. Yeah, I know, marketing their likenesses, name, yada, yada. Call it what you want. They are still getting paid to play. As if the value of the scholarship isn't enough.
And that is what has caused OU and UT to jump ship. They see that, in this pay-for-play landscape, the Big XII will not be able to compete with the SEC in terms of recruiting student-athletes (term used loosely), in this environment. So, if they can become SEC members, they would then be recruiting in a broader area, with greater exposure to people in the southeastern part of the country. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
It's all about the money. With Olympic athletes getting paid, and now NCAA people, amateur sports are on their death bed. I would not be surprised at all to see some high school kids showing up on TV, hawking cars, burgers, real estate - you name it. A state athletic association might try to fight it, but they'll lose.
Ironically, and sadly, I think the Supreme Court made the right decision, based upon Constitutional law. Would that all their decisions were made as fundamentally.
