The Paying College Athletes Issue

University of South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier is advocating paying studentathletes a stipend of $3,500 to $4,000 per year. It sounds pleasant enough but, no matter the good intentions behind the concept, just won’t work. It may be true that the SEC can afford such payments but it isn’t likely that it can work for every other division 1 school. Football makes a lot of money and from a purely free market perspective it does not seem fair that the athletes playing don’t get a taste of that cash. However, these are student athletes and they are provided scholarships for up to five years that cover almost every expense. Because they are students as well as athletes (I know, I know but this isn’t a discussion comparing the ratio between student and athlete, however important), the money made from college football is effectively incidental. That money can be used to support other sports and sporting initiatives providing many other students with opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have.

The most important reason though, is relative economics. UNM’s (36,322 students) University Stadium holds 40,094, with an average attendance in 2010 of 21,338. The most expensive individual tickets are $27. The University of Michigan’s (42,716 students) Michigan Stadium holds 109,901 and it costs $100 to get on a list to “beeligible to be offered individual game tickets” (in English this means one pays $100 to be able to purchase tickets if they are available), which I think answers the average attendance question. Notice a difference? The UNM football program doesn’t make enough to support paying its players; no doubt it’s not the only division 1 football team in the country in this situation.

And what of the loss of completion stemming from football teams unable to compete under this change and is it fair to not offer the same arrangement to other sports? Paying college athletes is a contentious argument and there are serious arguments in support of it. However, on balance it would be detrimental to college sports and unnecessarily blur the line between amateur and professional.