College sports is more than just fun and games. It's big business worth billions of dollars for those involved. This is indeed evident again in another huge deal struck just last week. Nike and The Ohio State University have agreed to a contract extension worth $252 million over 15 years. Ohio State will receive $112 million in product from Nike and at least $103 million in cash under the terms of the deal, which is set to take effect with the 2018-2019 season.
While everyone stands to profit -- Ohio State racks in the cash and the products, and Nike reaps the rewards with massive publicity and builds a reputation for supporting higher education -- there is one group that is left out of the equation: the athletes.
Remove the athletes and you remove the profit. Without the athletes, there is no college sports. There are no huge sponsorships from big companies like Nike. The coaches with their million dollar-contracts have no one to coach. There is no revenue in ticket sales. There are no retailers and vendors setting up shop in the stadiums. TV networks aren't profiting from advertising. Without the athletes, everyone loses. Therefore, it's time we include the athletes in the piece of the pie they so deserve. It's time we start paying the athletes what they deserve: real cash.
Many people like to make the argument that the players are receiving a free education. Indeed, that is true. But a college education, while certainly commendable, just isn't enough. What about the college athletes who don't go to the NFL or NBA? What happens to them? Where do they go? After four years of driving immense profits for everyone else and putting their bodies through the grind of athletics at the highest level, what's next? A college degree isn't enough in return. It's time to stop ripping these kids off and start paying them real money, because again, without them, there is nothing.
What if Ohio State took that $103 million in cash from Nike and started a player's fund? Between the millions of dollar from Nike and other companies, combined with all the revenue that college sports generates, this can be done. Similar programs at other schools could be put into place as well, because the Ohio State deal is far from the only one out there. In the last year alone, Nike has also signed a 15-year, $250 million renewal with the University of Texas at Austin and reached an 11-year, $169 million deal with the University of Michigan. It's not just Nike, but other companies fork over big bucks to these schools as well.
Don't get me wrong: I'm never one to support giving people something for nothing. I wholeheartedly believe in capitalism. But in this case, the players have been getting the short end of the stick forever, and it's time to do more for them. It's time to support and help them as they move on into their real lives after college, because for many, sports is all they have.
As a former collegiate and professional athlete myself, I can tell you that the childhood of an athlete who wants to play in the NCAA and the pros is far different from the childhood of other kids. It's the school, time in practice, competitions, time in the gym, team meetings and more. Of course, raising money for these kids isn't about their past, it's about their future and what's next after school. And because most of these athletes don't know anything else besides sports, it's a drastic change at age 21 to have to take on something else.
Just like social security helps support our aging population in their golden years, a similar system to support the college athletes responsible for creating so much wealth for others is not only needed; it's the right thing to do. Not only is it the right thing to do, it's very realistic. When you allocate a small percent of the enormous funding these schools receive, it is very doable. The problem is a lot of people like to say it would be too difficult to devise a fair system. But after all, if all our so called "systems" that we have in place today were in fact fair, there wouldn't be that many systems in place. The first step in this case is making the decision to do the right thing, even if that means starting slow and building it up.
The point is when you put all the facts on the table, we're taking full advantage of these kids. Essentially, you could call them slaves. Work you tail off and make everyone else rich, but then once you've served your time, good luck because you are on your own. The only fair solution is to start paying college athletes.