College Sports and the National

¶ … college sports and the National College Athletic Association (NCAA). Specifically, it will discuss NCAA benefits to college players and why these benefits should increase. Student athletes who play college sports receive certain benefits from the NCAA for playing. Most receive at least some scholarship money from their school and/or the NCAA, but the NCAA provides other benefits, as well, such as nutrition programs, life skills programs, and safety programs. However, student athletes should receive additional benefits because of the unusual circumstances of their athletic programs, and because college sports are on the increase, and that means more schools are getting more money to spend on sports, and some of that should go to athletes themselves.

Many people think that student athletes receive enough benefits already, but that simply is not the case. For example, many student athletes, especially in some of the less popular sports, like golf and swimming, do not receive books and other expenses as part of their scholarships, and textbook prices have risen tremendously in the past few years. This puts a hardship on these students, and it can lead to fewer students playing sports, even if they receive an athletic scholarship - they cannot afford the additional costs, and so, do not play. The NCAA should guarantee these side costs for athletes, so they can afford to play and attend college.

In addition, some people think that many college athletes receive "full-ride" four-year college scholarships, but that is not true. All athletes receive scholarships that are renewable every year, and so, that gives the school the chance to cancel a sports program and the athletes have no alternative, and no more scholarship. The NCAA should guarantee four-year scholarships for players with the proper grade-point averages and academic requirements, and they should ensure that colleges cannot arbitrarily cancel college athletic programs, leaving athletes without scholarship money or a team to play on.

In addition, one of the biggest threats to college athletes is the threat of injury. If a student athlete is seriously injured, it could mean the end of their playing career, and it could also mean the end of their professional sports dreams. However, the NCAA does not supply student athletes with insurance, they have to purchase it on their own, and this is wrong. The NCAA gets money from advertisers and it also gives a great deal of money to colleges for their athletic programs. Colleges get income from advertising, as well, and this money should be used to set up insurance funds for athletes. Many athletes cannot afford their own insurance, and if something happens to them, they are out of luck. The school is not, they have more team members. The NCAA is not, they have other athletes they can give scholarships to. The athlete is the one who suffers, and who may not get the best treatment because of income and lack of funds. The NCAA and schools should pool together funds to create insurance programs for athletes, and they should spend more money on this than on some other programs like nutrition and well-being. Health insurance is one of the most important issues facing athletes, and it is not being addressed.