Athletic scholarships

[TobusRex]

Explain your answer.

[brycemus]

I had pretty solid academic scholarships, but even the incredibly small athletic scholarship I received was enough to make me decide to wrestle in college.  without it I would have gone off and swam at USD or skipped college sports all together and gone to Iowa. 

[TobusRex]

I'm a big fan of college sports so I generally support them.

[buck]

I voted no.  By eliminating the athletic scholarship, and replacing it with need-based financial aid, we could de-professionalize college athletes, reestablish athletic departments as part of the educational institution, and be able to use the term “student-athlete” without snickering.

[TobusRex]

I voted no.  By eliminating the athletic scholarship, and replacing it with need-based financial aid, we could de-professionalize college athletes, reestablish athletic departments as part of the educational institution, and be able to use the term “student-athlete” without snickering.

Valid points all. If you accept the premise that universities exist for the prime purpose of education, especially if you accept that not all taxpayers approve of particular sports yet their tax dollars help support public institutions. Consider a taxpayer in Alabama who dislikes football...how would he feel about Nick Saban getting paid 7 million a year to coach the sport (all on the taxpayer dollar)?

I recognize that supporting athletic scholarships is counter to the intent of a university, but I enjoy the sports enough that I don't care.

[buck]

The NFL and NBA don't care because they have a free minor league under the current system. 

[mspart]

I voted no.  By eliminating the athletic scholarship, and replacing it with need-based financial aid, we could de-professionalize college athletes, reestablish athletic departments as part of the educational institution, and be able to use the term “student-athlete” without snickering.

Nice Buck.  That is very thought provoking. 

mspart

[RYou]

I voted no.  By eliminating the athletic scholarship, and replacing it with need-based financial aid, we could de-professionalize college athletes, reestablish athletic departments as part of the educational institution, and be able to use the term “student-athlete” without snickering.

Okay, so you are in the Notrer Dame boat.  Notre Dame doesn't issue athletic scholarships, only academic financial aid. 

Interesting that the Big 5 power conferences have voted to offer the full cost attendence.  Notre Dame being a privaye school can do likewise and is not requires to state  publicly what the added value is.

[lkwdsteve]

I voted no.  By eliminating the athletic scholarship, and replacing it with need-based financial aid, we could de-professionalize college athletes, reestablish athletic departments as part of the educational institution, and be able to use the term “student-athlete” without snickering.

Nice Buck.  That is very thought provoking. 

mspart

What is the European model?

[lkwdsteve]

I voted no.  By eliminating the athletic scholarship, and replacing it with need-based financial aid, we could de-professionalize college athletes, reestablish athletic departments as part of the educational institution, and be able to use the term “student-athlete” without snickering.

Valid points all. If you accept the premise that universities exist for the prime purpose of education, especially if you accept that not all taxpayers approve of particular sports yet their tax dollars help support public institutions. Consider a taxpayer in Alabama who dislikes football...how would he feel about Nick Saban getting paid 7 million a year to coach the sport (all on the taxpayer dollar)?

I recognize that supporting athletic scholarships is counter to the intent of a university, but I enjoy the sports enough that I don't care.

Speaking of taxpayers, I was taken by surprise with the news that a university can buy insurance for an athlete who forgoes the NFL draft and stays an extra year at the college. The insurance was available if a player was projected to go very high in the 2014 draft. This is the case for Oregon cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu.  It kicks in if he is drafted in a lower round than 3.  The Cleveland Browns selected Mr Ekpre-Olomu in the 7th round..  So besides what the Browns sign him for, he gets a reported three million dollar insurance payoff. I'm not sure how much Oregon taxpayers paid for the premium, but it's all OK according to the NCAA.

[lkwdsteve]

As I said this was a big surprise to me, and has me wondering if Cardale Jones may have been enticed with a similar injury insurance benefit to keep him on campus. Pundits were calling him a first or second rounder given the meager QB crop this year.

[RYou]

The NCAA put together the insurance program and it's available to any school. The school athletic department pays the premium.  There are qualifications, not every player will qualify.  It's available for most sports, though only those that have big income players are risk will opt for the coverage,  Football, basketball, track and field, hockey and baseball are the typical sports though there have been a few enrollments for golf and tennis. 

[lkwdsteve]

The NCAA put together the insurance program and it's available to any school. The school athletic department pays the premium.  There are qualifications, not every player will qualify.  It's available for most sports, though only those that have big income players are risk will opt for the coverage,  Football, basketball, track and field, hockey and baseball are the typical sports though there have been a few enrollments for golf and tennis.

To be clear. the Oregon cornerback, it was agreed by the insurance company, projected to be a top 15 draft pick in the 2014 draft. The deal was that if he stayed and played another year at Oregon and THEN wasn't taken in the top three rounds of this year's draft, his insurance would kick in and go to the player. So when you say "big income players at risk" you DO mean big income players at risk of leaving for the pros immediately. Correct?

This insurance exists to keep players on campus.

[RYou]

Correct, it's a retainer program to cover the potential large loss of income in the event of an injury. Ifo Ekpre-Olomu suffered season-ending knee injury in December during practice for Rose Bowl.  He couldn't work out at the Combine or the Oregon Pro Day and that is why he drated far below expectation. The player must sustain a dibilitating injury or the insurance does not payoff.

Teams also insure the preformance bonuses coaches are paid.  It costs about 7% of the total season end bonuses to be paid, typically top 10 ranking, top 5 bowl games and national championship.

Here's another one.  Big booster wants to make a big donation, but over time, say 10 mil a year for 5 years.  Athletic prorams will take out term life policies to cover the premature death of the booster and pay for it with a chunk of the cash he donates.

[lkwdsteve]

While we recognize that taxpayers could be footing athletic scholarships, bet you didn't know that we are contributing to the profit of insurance companies.