Why Ed O’Bannon Will Destroy College Athletics

3. The “Poor student-athlete” myth

Many proponents of paying student athletes say that these athletes make so much money for the schools and the athletes get nothing for their services. What the proponents don’t tell you is all the benefits that student athletes get.

– A student athlete grant-in-aid entitles an athlete to tuition and other fees as well as room and board. That room and board is paid to the student regardless of whether or not they live in the dorms. So at Mizzou, students pay $8,838 in room and board per year. That means those poor student athletes get $8,838 per year for living expenses. While that’s not a lot of money, it’s enough to pay rent and gas.

– Did I not mention food? That’s because at most universities a dining hall is provided for the student athletes for specific meals by their strength coaches. Most are at little to no costs to the athletes. When they are away for sporting events, they get travel, food and lodging provided at no cost.

– An education. As mention before in this article, rising education costs is making education harder to attain. Having a degree is worth something. Not to mention the benefit of not having to pay student loans (which have doubled in interest) for the rest of your life.