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The Role of Intercollegiate Athletics At U.S. Universities

During the early 1840s, student-athletes contributed actively to all phases of administration and control. Student Athletes were involved in the sporting process, made athletic procedures and regulations for universities and also played an important role in determining which sporting events would and would not happen on universities. Today, the kind of involvement on the part of the athlete is virtually unheard of, with the only remnants of student participation in athlete administration being programs in which student governments have some control over the distribution of free allocations to athletics. Furthermore, this movement today focuses on the role of intercollegiate sports in the United States rather than the contributions of the student athlete. Intercollegiate sports has definitely made in impact in today's world.

"The term intercollegiate athletics is defined as athletic contests between colleges. Colleges grant academic degrees upon completion of designed curricula. As college students, student athletes must attend classes; they must work to complete specific requirements in order to earn a degree; and they must have minimal academic success as determined and sanctioned by the NCAA if they are to continue participating in athletics. As their admission to college is based, at least in part, on academic credentials, athletes must be students. Thus, academic departments are directly involved in the application of athletics within a university: Student athletes must take academic courses. Subsequently, academic curricula influence student athletes. When academic and athletic departments have conflicting aims, problems arise that affect the entire institution.American society values the elitism of academics and athletics in a manner that provokes conflict for participants in both domains. In essence, athletic elitism is a metaphor for academic elitism: Athletic teams aspire to be national champions, while their affiliate academic institutions seek national rankings. However, the means by which coaches and faculty achieve national reputations can create conflict for student athletes attempting to exist in both environments. Although both aspire to excel, the different measures of excellence for academics and athletics necessitates compromise by those who are placed in both settings."

In today’s intercollegiate athletic environment, administrators have the unique challenge of balancing university values while attempting to maximize the revenues realized by their department. In an effort to maintain financial sustainability, several athletic directors have publically stated that the elimination of men’s non-revenue programs is the only way to balance their athletic budgets. It is clear that men’s nonrevenue sport teams will be facing declining financial support in future generations

" Division I institutions are required to have seven athletic teams for men and seven for women (or six for men and eighth for women). As well, there must be two team sports for each gender, and each gender must have a team in each of the three season (i. e., Fall, Winter, Spring). Excluding basketball and football, teams must play 100% of their minimum number of games against Division 1 opponents, and 50% of games above the minimum number must be played against Division 1 teams. Men’s and women’s basketball teams must play all but two of their contests against Division 1 opponents, and men must play at least one third of their games in their home arena. In Division 1, football is further sectioned into 1-A and 1-AA. Division 1-A schools must play at least 60% of their games against 1-A opponents, and demonstrate their ability to attract a high level of spectatorship."

Importance of intercollegiate athletics in the United States

"The principle of student-athlete welfare, for example, requires athletic programs to protect and enhance the physical and educational welfare of student athletes. It requires an environment for the student athlete that: (1) is well integrated with the overall educational experience,(2) values cultural diversity and gender equity, (3) is healthy and safe, (4) fosters a positive relationship between the student athlete and coach, (5) exhibits fair, open, and honest relationships on the part of coaches and administrators towards student athletes, and (6) involves student athletes in matters affecting their lives. Other principles for the conduct of inter-collegiate athletics include gender equity, sportsmanship and ethical conduct, sound academic standards, nondiscrimination, diversity within governance, rules compliance, amateurism, competitive equity, recruiting, eligibility, financial aid, playing and practice seasons, postseason competition and contests sponsored by noncollegiate organizations, and the economy of athletic program operations. Each principle, briefly defined in the constitution, provides the philosophical basis for extensive and often complex subsequent rules in the operating and administrative bylaws."

Exploitation of Student Athletes

"Most of the college athlete incidents in recent years that have been characterized as "controversies"—from Reggie Bush to Cam Newton to Terrell Pryor—center on issues related to whether college athletes are given an opportunity to receive fair market value for the contributions they make to the business of college sports. For college athletes to be held to the terms and conditions of a one-year scholarship that have been set by the very authorities who financially benefit the most and render the athletes involved voiceless in the process is a glaring conflict of interest.The power of the system to hold these athletes out for ridicule and disparagement while presenting them as subjects of moral outrage distorts the real impropriety here. The conditions of the athletic scholarship and transfer rules, prohibitions against agents, limits on due process, failure to deliver on the promise to educate, the unobstructed selling of athlete images, and the like are tools of exploitation that benefit college sport leaders while oppressing those who perform on the field."

Debate over paying amateur athletes

There is a huge problem clearly occurring in college sports. Coaches and universities continue to profit from the performances of amateur athletes in various sports, especially big time programs such as football and basketball. Even though the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) does not pay amateur athletes, these athletes do not profit from the revenue that they are actually making at their respected universities. "Amateur sports are characterized by using players who aren’t paid. Amateur players play for the love of the game. Supporting the university and your fellow students is all the motivation players should need. College football scholarship players already receive free tuition, room, board, medical treatment from team doctors, personal trainers, academic tutors, first pick on class schedules to eliminate scheduling conflicts, their own student lounge, etc. Whatever the proposed solution, the NCAA should revisit and re-evaluate the rules as they apply to university athletes. If the rules were applied uniformly throughout the schools, the financial side of the playing field could perhaps finally be leveled."

"The NCAA brings in millions of dollars each year in television, advertising and licensing revenue, and the schools benefit from ticket and merchandising sales and donations. Everyone seems to profit except the men and women who make it all possible by playing. Paying college athletes would present a myriad of legal issues for the NCAA and its member institutions. First among them would be the fact that by paying college athletes, whether by salary or stipend, the athletes would lose their amateur status and become employees of the institution that they represent. As employees, according to Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act, these athletes would be entitled to form or join labor organizations and collectively bargain. The National College Players Association already serves as an advocacy group for college players across the nation, and it is not a stretch to imagine that this group, or one like it, would take the next step and certify as a union given the revenue involved in college athletics. Already graduate teaching assistants at several colleges have formed unions so there is a precedent for this sort of activity among students on college campuses. Paying college athletes would also present issues under Title IX and the Fair Pay Act. Title IX dictates that institutions accepting federal funds must offer equal opportunities to both men and women."

"The average fair market value of top-tier college football and men’s basketball players is over $100,000 each. Even though a full scholarship covers the cost of full attendance, many are living below the poverty line,says the report, “The Price of Poverty in Big Time College Sport. “A national college athletes’ advocacy group and a sports management professor calculate in the report that if college sports shared their revenues the way pro sports do, the average Football Bowl Subdivision player would be worth $121,000 per year, while the average basketball player at that level would be worth $265,000.players at the most powerful programs are worth far in excess of even the average athlete. The report estimates that Duke’s basketball players are worth the most, at around $1 million each, while Texas’ football players top that sport at $513,000 each."

Damage to College Sports

Intercollegiate Athletics reported that big time college sports, which are sporting teams that produce most of the revenue for a university or institution, "do in fact cause more damage to the University, its students and faculty, its leadership, its reputation and credibility than most realize – or are willing to admit. Directly, it has been reported that the majority of universities subsidize their intercollegiate athletic programs out of general funds, thus funneling money that could be used for educational pursuits into sports. Although there is no one certain cause explaining how sports in America became institutionalized within the university, three societal forces have been identified that played a role: the growth of the entertainment industry and the commercialization of athletics, the increased competitiveness of college admissions and efforts to create well-rounded student bodies and the increased competence and specialization of pre-college athletic talent. Viewed retrospectively over the past 100-plus years of its history, intercollegiate athletics has moved from mainly providing an avenue for student athletes and fans to enjoy sports participation to predominantly focusing on increases in revenue and institutional prestige that can be generated through a high-profile team."