Everyone in baseball wants to hire Theo Epstein. His precipitous career ascent from up and coming star in the Padres front office to 2-time World Series champion GM with the Red Sox is the stuff of legend. In fact, his life story is the foundation for my “dream” career path and I am not afraid to admit it.
But when you break down what Epstein has done in Boston, the genius doesn’t seem that overwhelming. In fact, the argument could be made that those who played the biggest role in turning the Red Sox from lovable losers to perennial favorites are the business people responsible for ensuring that Fenway is sold out each and every night (and yes, I realize that Epstein is involved in these endeavors, but lets face it, he’s firmly on the baseball side of things). By protecting this guaranteed stream of income, the business operations staff of the Red Sox has enabled the club’s baseball people to essentially create a “dream team” of free agent stars.
Sure, there are the hometown heroes like Ellsbury, Pedroia, Papelbon, and Lester, but the brunt of the Red Sox talent has come via free agency or the quasi-free agency that is the trade deadline. From Adrian Gonzalez to David Ortiz, from Kevin Youkilis (ok, stretching it, but still a trade acquisition) to Carl Crawford, the Red Sox have been able to climb the last hurdle and break the “Curse of the Bambino” not by a stroke of luck, but by the stroke of a pen more than anything.
But beyond the Red Sox, Yankees, Phillies, Mets and Cubs, most teams in baseball today have to think creatively. They don’t have the room on the payroll to sign a Daisuke Matsuzaka for $100 million only to see him spend more time on the DL than on the mound. They don’t have the guaranteed revenue streams to sign a hometown hero like Derek Jeter to multiple free agent contracts, arguably at a rate above what the market would demand. It isn’t that the front office minds in cities like Cleveland, Kansas City, Milwaukee and Baltimore aren’t as sharp as those in Boston, New York, and Los Angeles (ok, maybe the guys in Baltimore aren’t that bright, I will give you that), its just that they don’t have the checkbook in their back pocket ready to bail them out of even the slightest mistake or bad break. Simply put, anyone could do Brian Cashman’s job.
As the nation becomes more and more a matter of the haves versus the have nots, a trend almost certain to continue along with the decline of American manufacturing, the job of a small market GM will become increasingly more difficult to succeed in. Unable to count on 40,000 fans a night even when the on-field product is good, these GM’s are faced with the unenviable position of being one injury, one slump, or one missed opportunity away from a string of losing seasons and, in all likelihood, unemployment.
But while success in the small markets of today’s baseball landscape is not easily found and even less easily maintained, long-term success is not out of the realm of possibility. The Minnesota Twins have proven this, winning 6 of the last 9 division titles largely without the benefit of a new stadium or a plethora of free agent acquisitions. But even they found themselves unable both to sustain that success as well as to take it to the next level and win a title, their no-name pitching staffs unable to compete with the star-laden rotations of the Yankees and (in their day) the Athletics over a short series. Unable to climb that hurdle, the Twins (with the benefit of a new stadium) made the fatal mistake of resigning hometown stars Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, giving up the no-name bullpen that had become the staple of the Twins’ regular season domination throughout the decade. A few injuries later and the once strong Twins organization doesn’t look ready to contend anytime in the near future.
The Moneyball Athletics were able to flourish in a small market, in large part due to their unique approach to building a team and their groundbreaking reliance on statistical analysis over first-person scouting. But after dominated the AL West throughout the first half of the 2000’s, the Athletics organization has withered into a hopeless club whose only hope seems to be a new stadium and the potential tapping of additional market share in the Bay Area. While the A’s may not have made the mistake of sacrificing depth to keep beloved stars, they were unable to translate their knack for player evaluation into a knack for player development. The club also found out rather quickly that their Sabremetric approach didn’t translate as well to the amateur circuit as it did in the minor leagues, a problem come time where the loss of big name players to free agency netted the club nothing but compensation draft picks. A few poor drafts later the A’s seem relegated to fighting with the Mariners for 3rd place (out of 4) in the very AL West over which those two clubs reigned supreme throughout the first half of the 2000’s.
While seemingly every club has struggled with the realities of modern small market baseball, there is a formula for sustained success that can be had even without the benefit of the nine-figure payroll. It takes a tremendous amount of attention to detail, an excrutiating level of restraint, and a big picture attitude that is never set aside in favor of emotionally-charged attempts to increase the short term odds of a division title, a league pennant, or even a World Series championship.
First and foremost, baseball operations cannot accept the notion of the “hometown hero”. As difficult as it may be, small market teams have to convince their fan base to become emotionally attached to the team, to the team philosophy, even to the manager, but never to a player or group of players. Just as a farmer must fall in love the beef and not the cow (perhaps not the best of analogies to think about before a meal), a small market fan base must be convinced to accept the realities of seeing their jerseys become obsolete (there’s always a no-name replica), of childhood heroes moving on to greener pastures, of seemingly harmonious relationships with players coming to a sharp end the minute the clock strikes midnight on the eve of free agency. Instead of falling in love with the talent, fans must fall in love with the approach and show up at the ballpark accordingly.
The bottom line is that a string of four, five, six division titles in a row is just not within the realm of reality for many clubs. However, by staying focused on the process and on the long-term (with the support of a fan base willing to show up as much during the “off” years as during the years of contention), there is nothing stopping even the most desperate markets from supporting teams that are in a constant cycle of “one year away” followed by “true contender”, “division favorite”, and finally “World Series pick”.
That is the process that a small market team and its fan base have to accept. Those able to do so will not only find themselves able to rack up 4, 5, 6 playoff appearances in a given decade, but in the process will find perhaps as much joy in the “rebuilding years” as they do in the pennant chases.
For a while, the Twins had this formula down pat. Then they became frustrated with losing to the Yankees and chose to go all in by resigning Mauer and Morneau. This August 17th, I would bet any Twins fan out there would happily take another division series loss to the Yankees.
With the focus needing to stay on the long term process, on the meat instead of the cow, it is crucial that clubs turn free agency-eligible stars into two to three potential future stars each and every time that final contract year comes around. You have to be willing to trade away Lebron before “the Decision”, Manny Ramirez before “the Contract”, and Braylon Edwards before “the DUI” (ok, I couldn’t think of an example for the Browns).
When you boil it down, professional athletes are the commodities one needs to create a successful franchise. As a result, it is crucial that you do whatever necessary to ensure that you create more than adequate return on each and every investment.
As much as we like to criticize the Indians front office, they have done a pretty good job throughout the years of upholding many of the principals of this philosophy. While they made mistakes in signing both Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner (Fausto Carmona as well) to long-term contracts, they have learned from these mistakes and made sure that more recent talent has not gone to waste. Yes, the organization will be known as the first to trade away Cy Young Winners in consecutive seasons, but let’s not forget that the first of those two netted a starting left fielder and very promising leadoff hitter in Michael Brantley (in addition to the fate-to-be-determined first baseman Matt Laporta). Cliff Lee then netted a plus-defensive catcher, a potential third basemen (and trade bait), and another young arm still making his way through the system with plenty of upside.
The biggest move might yet prove to be the trade of beloved catcher Victor Martinez (to be replaced by Carlos Santana, a prospect acquired earlier from the Dodgers in a trade for another beloved star in Casey Blake) to the Red Sox for Justin Masterson and Nick Hagadone. Hagadone still has the upside potential making his way up and Masterson is, less than two years later, a true ace (Boston actually committed a cardinal sin of their own by refusing to relinquish favorite prospect Clay Buchholz, only to see Buchholz struggle with injury for a large portion of the time since. But as I said, mistakes can be overcome much more easily with the back pocket checkbook).
By refusing to let the emotion of losing Martinez, a homebred and deeply respected leader in the clubhouse, get the best of them, the Indians front office set the stage for contention much sooner than many could have expected.
That is why the Ubaldo Jimenez trade is so puzzling. No one expected the Indians to contend in 2011, including the front office. The long term plan had been to put the club in a position to contend during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, up to the point at which the contracts of Sizemore and Hafner would expire and the organization could once again re-evaluate its approach. The hot start the club got off to in April and May was a surprise, much more so than the precipitous decline that put the Indians in a position of desperation come trade deadline time. With a bright future ahead, there was no reason for the club to make a move to get back in the race this year. The plan to contend in 2012 would be left intact and the experience of a pennant race would do nothing but good for a team that simply needs time to learn how to win at the major league level.
Adding Kosuke Fukudome made sense. The outfield had been decimated by injury and the Cubs weren’t asking much for the disappointing former star of the Japanese league. Add in the fact the Cubs picked up the majority of the $4.7 million remaining on Fukudome’s contract and it was clear this was a solid move that helped the present without sacrificing even the slightest bit of the promise the club had for the future.
Then the front office goes after Rockies ace Ubaldo Jimenez. While Jimenez was at one time in the not-too-distant past a budding star, his stock was clearly in decline after he followed up a 16-1 start to 2010 (including an oft-noted no-hitter) with X starts in which he finished just X-X with a worrisome X.XX ERA. Rumors of health and/or mental game issues were everywhere. Yes, the contract was good considering the upside Jimenez still had at the fairly youthful age of 27, but there were plenty of signs pointing toward him being damaged goods.
Alex White, the Indians’ 1st round pick in 2009, was on the path toward Major League stardom. Drafted as a closer out of UNC, he dominated the minor leagues out of the bullpen and as a starter, eventually earning a cup of coffee with the big club that came to an end with a worrying finger injury that put White on the 60-day DL after posting a solid 3.60 ERA in his first stint at the major league level.
Drew Pomeranz, the club’s 1st rounder in 2010, was certainly less polished a commodity, but the upside potential for this flame-throwing lefty was enormous. After dominating the A level in less than a year of professional time, Pomeranz was promoted to AA just prior to the all-star break, continuing a rapid climb that seemed to have the former Mississippi State star headed to the majors sometime in 2012.
These two young phenoms were to be the catalyst of a future for the Indians organization that seemed destined to result in the return of playoff baseball to the corner of Carnegie and Ontario. With the division lead having slipped away and the Tigers starting to catch their stride, it didn’t seem time at all for the Indians to go “all in”, good contract or not.
But they did it anyway.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
The Breaking Point?
Add Miami to the list of major college football programs engulfed in scandal. Ohio State, USC, Alabama, Auburn: the list goes on and despite promises from the NCAA that a long-term solution is the number one priority, one has to wonder if that is in fact the truth or just a means of avoiding the real problem while they continue to profit off the system. Between the BCS and the charade that is amateurism in modern collegiate athletics, the NCAA clearly faces a situation that calls for some serious reform. However, as long as the schools that comprise the NCAA continue to profit from collegiate athletics, division one football more specifically, the impetus for this necessary reform will never reach critical mass.
When you break down this latest scandal involving the often-controversial Hurricane program, it seems that if the NCAA doesn’t view this as the breaking point, then no such breaking point will ever come about. Between the prostitution, the drugs, the drinking, the crime, the sex, this Miami scandal is about as bad as it could possibly get. Bounties placed on the heads of opposing quarterbacks? If that doesn’t ring the warning bells, then nothing ever will.
The cash, cars, and tattoos given out as USC and Ohio State are petty crimes compared to what has been going on at “The U” under the intentionally ignorant administration of President (and former UW Chancellor) Donna Shalala and former Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt.
But while many are rightfully placing the blame squarely on the laps of these well-paid and well-off administrators, the implication that this scandal justifies paying college athletes is so far off base it is almost not worth addressing. The fact that this is where the focus has gone is precisely why the national dialogue on college athletes has gotten nowhere.
The time is now for change, but the change is not the kind that’s been often bantered around on the airwaves and in the newsstands.
What the NCAA needs to do is remove the overhanging burden of revenue creation from the job descriptions of college AD’s. As much as football (and basketball, to an extent) has done for the academic standing of many institutions (remember when Boise State was a community college?), it seems we might be getting to a point at which the good football brings, namely money, is not worth the cost to the integrity of the American university system.
Need proof?
The University of Miami is an elite private institution. It features world-renowned Marine and Atmospheric Sciences program, a nationally-acclaimed medical school and hospital system, and one of the best jazz programs in the country. Situated on a gorgeous campus in the swank Miami suburb of Coral Gables, “the U” is a top-notch academic institution.
But the image of “the U” is far from this reality. Drawing upon the images of flashy football stars, scandalous behavior, and a seeming lack of interest in the academics of college shown by a group of players dead set on a beeline for the NFL, many of us less familiar with the University had developed a less than flattering impression of the school even before this latest scandal broke.
Unfortunately, many within the school’s administration have gotten caught up in this false perception, reaping every ounce of its potential monetary rewards. Case in point: while the school has raised undergraduate tuition beyond the $50,000 mark, University administrators continue to pull in checks in the upper 6 and even 7-figures with ease. In 2008 alone, Shalala took home over $1.2 million in compensation, much of it in the form of bonuses given as incentive toward the continuing growth of the donor pool, growth fueled in no small part by the contributions of crooked boosters like now-infamous Ponzi schemer Nevin Shapiro.
The iconic picture of this scandal, capturing Shapiro at a bowling event with former UM Head Basketball Coach Frank Haith and Shalala (staring down a $50,000 check sitting in her hands), should tell the story and give us a hint as to where we need to go next.
We need to take away the importance of those checks before they corrupt not only the collegiate athletic community, but the entire University system in our country.
Players don’t need to be paid any more than they already are within the confines of the rules and this scandal provides plenty of evidence for this point. However, there does need to be a serious crackdown on the compensation packages offered to administrators and athletic department officials who have taken advantage of the rules and profited enormously from the talents of the students under their authority.
Coaches are no exception either. While his team spent the weekend sulking over an upset loss to Morehead State, Rick Pitino spent the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament getting paid to serve as a studio analyst for TBS. That makes no sense but the answer isn’t to allow players to reap those same rewards, it is to crack down on coaches overextending the benefits of the head coaching position. If players are subject to the confines of NCAA-defined amateurism, then the coaching staffs have to be held at least to a similar standard.
In fact, these coaches and administrators should be held to a higher standard than anyone else. They are responsible for the corruption of the system and they should bear the burden of fixing up this mess.
Program-wide punishment will never serve as deterrence as long as those adults who perpetrate the violations are allowed to walk away on a golden platform, if they are even required to walk away at all.
The only way to start fixing college athletics is to hold each and every coach, administrator, and support staffer fully liable, personally and financially, for the integrity of their program. Whether they knowingly allow violations or not (because they should know even if they don’t), these individuals should face not only the automatic loss of their job, but a fine in the amount of 50% of the compensation they received from and through the university during the time that elapsed between the first proven violation and the time of their dismissal (not resignation, these must be firings).
Unless and until those involved are fired and have paid their fines in full (to a non-athletic scholarship fund at the University), the program in question will be ineligible to compete, period. If further punishment is deemed necessary, then it may be assessed, but for any major violation that is proven, this must be the absolute standard.
In addition, each and every paid professional proven to be knowingly (or intentionally made ignorant of) involved in the process will be barred from ever working for another division one program in any capacity. NO EXCEPTIONS.
That is a deterrent. It is certainly harsh, but it needs to be when it comes to the actions of the very individuals who have for years profited off rules they themselves continue to be in charge of administrating.
By making even those major violations in which the university is left out of the loop potentially destructive to the careers of school officials and coaches, programs will be left without the current option to “turn a blind eye” while also being put in a position in which proactive compliance is a must.
Programs will not only have to evaluate their actions, but also their personnel. Coaches with a history of controversy or corruption? Hire at your own risk. Players potentially connected to agents or prone to accepting illegal benefits? Do your due diligence and don’t recruit potential disasters waiting to happen.
Compliance in this world of strict enforcement would not be easy, but the costs of overlooking even the most minor of holes in the system would far outweigh the potential benefits available to a program from attempting to circumvent the system.
Instead of turning back the dials on NCAA enforcement, we have to turn them up and quick. Payment of players will make the actions of the Miami program more the exception than the norm and I know even Jay Bilas would agree that sex, drugs, and alcohol should not become an everyday part of the student-athlete experience.
When you break down this latest scandal involving the often-controversial Hurricane program, it seems that if the NCAA doesn’t view this as the breaking point, then no such breaking point will ever come about. Between the prostitution, the drugs, the drinking, the crime, the sex, this Miami scandal is about as bad as it could possibly get. Bounties placed on the heads of opposing quarterbacks? If that doesn’t ring the warning bells, then nothing ever will.
The cash, cars, and tattoos given out as USC and Ohio State are petty crimes compared to what has been going on at “The U” under the intentionally ignorant administration of President (and former UW Chancellor) Donna Shalala and former Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt.
But while many are rightfully placing the blame squarely on the laps of these well-paid and well-off administrators, the implication that this scandal justifies paying college athletes is so far off base it is almost not worth addressing. The fact that this is where the focus has gone is precisely why the national dialogue on college athletes has gotten nowhere.
The time is now for change, but the change is not the kind that’s been often bantered around on the airwaves and in the newsstands.
What the NCAA needs to do is remove the overhanging burden of revenue creation from the job descriptions of college AD’s. As much as football (and basketball, to an extent) has done for the academic standing of many institutions (remember when Boise State was a community college?), it seems we might be getting to a point at which the good football brings, namely money, is not worth the cost to the integrity of the American university system.
Need proof?
The University of Miami is an elite private institution. It features world-renowned Marine and Atmospheric Sciences program, a nationally-acclaimed medical school and hospital system, and one of the best jazz programs in the country. Situated on a gorgeous campus in the swank Miami suburb of Coral Gables, “the U” is a top-notch academic institution.
But the image of “the U” is far from this reality. Drawing upon the images of flashy football stars, scandalous behavior, and a seeming lack of interest in the academics of college shown by a group of players dead set on a beeline for the NFL, many of us less familiar with the University had developed a less than flattering impression of the school even before this latest scandal broke.
Unfortunately, many within the school’s administration have gotten caught up in this false perception, reaping every ounce of its potential monetary rewards. Case in point: while the school has raised undergraduate tuition beyond the $50,000 mark, University administrators continue to pull in checks in the upper 6 and even 7-figures with ease. In 2008 alone, Shalala took home over $1.2 million in compensation, much of it in the form of bonuses given as incentive toward the continuing growth of the donor pool, growth fueled in no small part by the contributions of crooked boosters like now-infamous Ponzi schemer Nevin Shapiro.
The iconic picture of this scandal, capturing Shapiro at a bowling event with former UM Head Basketball Coach Frank Haith and Shalala (staring down a $50,000 check sitting in her hands), should tell the story and give us a hint as to where we need to go next.
We need to take away the importance of those checks before they corrupt not only the collegiate athletic community, but the entire University system in our country.
Players don’t need to be paid any more than they already are within the confines of the rules and this scandal provides plenty of evidence for this point. However, there does need to be a serious crackdown on the compensation packages offered to administrators and athletic department officials who have taken advantage of the rules and profited enormously from the talents of the students under their authority.
Coaches are no exception either. While his team spent the weekend sulking over an upset loss to Morehead State, Rick Pitino spent the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament getting paid to serve as a studio analyst for TBS. That makes no sense but the answer isn’t to allow players to reap those same rewards, it is to crack down on coaches overextending the benefits of the head coaching position. If players are subject to the confines of NCAA-defined amateurism, then the coaching staffs have to be held at least to a similar standard.
In fact, these coaches and administrators should be held to a higher standard than anyone else. They are responsible for the corruption of the system and they should bear the burden of fixing up this mess.
Program-wide punishment will never serve as deterrence as long as those adults who perpetrate the violations are allowed to walk away on a golden platform, if they are even required to walk away at all.
The only way to start fixing college athletics is to hold each and every coach, administrator, and support staffer fully liable, personally and financially, for the integrity of their program. Whether they knowingly allow violations or not (because they should know even if they don’t), these individuals should face not only the automatic loss of their job, but a fine in the amount of 50% of the compensation they received from and through the university during the time that elapsed between the first proven violation and the time of their dismissal (not resignation, these must be firings).
Unless and until those involved are fired and have paid their fines in full (to a non-athletic scholarship fund at the University), the program in question will be ineligible to compete, period. If further punishment is deemed necessary, then it may be assessed, but for any major violation that is proven, this must be the absolute standard.
In addition, each and every paid professional proven to be knowingly (or intentionally made ignorant of) involved in the process will be barred from ever working for another division one program in any capacity. NO EXCEPTIONS.
That is a deterrent. It is certainly harsh, but it needs to be when it comes to the actions of the very individuals who have for years profited off rules they themselves continue to be in charge of administrating.
By making even those major violations in which the university is left out of the loop potentially destructive to the careers of school officials and coaches, programs will be left without the current option to “turn a blind eye” while also being put in a position in which proactive compliance is a must.
Programs will not only have to evaluate their actions, but also their personnel. Coaches with a history of controversy or corruption? Hire at your own risk. Players potentially connected to agents or prone to accepting illegal benefits? Do your due diligence and don’t recruit potential disasters waiting to happen.
Compliance in this world of strict enforcement would not be easy, but the costs of overlooking even the most minor of holes in the system would far outweigh the potential benefits available to a program from attempting to circumvent the system.
Instead of turning back the dials on NCAA enforcement, we have to turn them up and quick. Payment of players will make the actions of the Miami program more the exception than the norm and I know even Jay Bilas would agree that sex, drugs, and alcohol should not become an everyday part of the student-athlete experience.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Jay Bilas and The Epitome of Arrogance
Ok, so I didnt nail down a great title for this one but there are not many catchy ways of summing up the ignorance in Jay Bilas' recent ramblings about the need to "pay" college athletes (the quotation marks will make sense by the end). In an age where the cost of higher education is getting out of control and scholarship money is virtually non-existent (at least for those of us without a tragic story, a cure for cancer, or immigrant status- yes, I did say that about the DREAM Act), it is pure arrogance to start a campaign for additional compensation to the only group of students who continue to be comfortably compensated, revenue sport athletes. For the Bilas camp to argue that these student-athletes deserve a paycheck ignores the fact that they already do receive a paycheck in the form of a full academic scholarship, complete with more than adequate stipends for room, board, books, and materials. While Bilas and others have won many people over by arguing that participation in college athletics is a job and thus worthy of compensation, even this fails to recognize the arrogance inherent in the argument itself. So I guess after weeks of bantering on twitter with Bilas himself, its time to break down his argument and show the doubters why college athletes, especially those in revenue sports, are more than adequately compensated both for their time commitment and for their financial contribution to the school's coffers.
First of all, I cant say that I disagree with Bilas about participation in college athletics being a full-time job. Both as a basketball manager and as a sports writer, I have seen first hand the commitment required of student-athletes and greatly respect those who are able to balance their time in the classroom with their commitments on the playing surface. I would hire a student-athlete in a heartbeat for any job out there. So on that point, I have no problem with stance taken by the Bilas camp.
Where I diverge from the "pay em all" camp is that I feel they ignore the realities of compensation when it comes to the jobs college students, both athletes and non-athletes alike, are involved in. With their full academic scholarships, room and board stipends, book and material grants, and the numerous free meals and other items they quite legally receive, student-athletes figure to receive somewhere in the range of $45,000-$60,000 each year. How can Bilas say with a straight face that this is not compensation?
But other students are able to get "real jobs" and the time commitment of college athletics doesnt allow student-athletes the opportunity to take such jobs. I will concede this point as well, although there are many ways (sports camps, etc.) in which these student-athletes can work a bit on the side. That said, I think it is fair to say that they are unable to have a consistent job and thus need schools to fill in the gap.
Many people see this as the prime selling point. After all, revenue sport athletes are very much "employees" of the school, responsible for producing one of the main products a big time university sells to its students, alumni, and fans. But let's not forget that we arent talking about slavery here. The problem many people have is that they forget where most students throw the money they earn in their part-time jobs at school. Sure, their are some who use a job strictly for extra spending money, but the vast majority of today's undergraduates contribute to their own education by working themselves through school. For a big shot attorney and college basketball analyst (who went to, for free, to a school that charges its students $50,000-plus for a year's worth of tuition alone), this conspicuous omission is the epitome of arrogance.
The bottom line is that paying college athletes would only give them extra money to get in trouble, to pay for the booze, drugs, and fast cars that are the downfall of seemingly each and every flameout prospect. This money isnt going to pay for student-athlete's rent (that is already paid for), its going to pay for the Escalade, for the night at the bar, for the "bling".
We already pay our student-athletes a hefty sum, providing those of them in revenue sports a completely free education with all expenses (necessary expenses!) included. At a time when many students are deprived of this education because of those very expenses that student-athletes have taken care of, it is simply outrageous to call for additional compensation, money that would no doubt add to the troubles of college athletics.
Jay, if any student athlete wanted to give up their scholarship, they could go to the D-League, the UFL, or Europe and blaze their own trail. The allure of college athletics is that it gives student-athletes the opportunity to get a free education while continuing to pursue their passion. If a few of them find themselves not too interested in the "student" part, they are more than welcome to take their talents elsewhere. But I challenge each and every one of the wannabe Jeremy Tyler's out there to find another job that pays all their expenses, pays for their degree, and all of that just for playing a game they love. If they dont want that job, there's a line stretching as far as the eye can see of young men and women more than willing to take it from them.
First of all, I cant say that I disagree with Bilas about participation in college athletics being a full-time job. Both as a basketball manager and as a sports writer, I have seen first hand the commitment required of student-athletes and greatly respect those who are able to balance their time in the classroom with their commitments on the playing surface. I would hire a student-athlete in a heartbeat for any job out there. So on that point, I have no problem with stance taken by the Bilas camp.
Where I diverge from the "pay em all" camp is that I feel they ignore the realities of compensation when it comes to the jobs college students, both athletes and non-athletes alike, are involved in. With their full academic scholarships, room and board stipends, book and material grants, and the numerous free meals and other items they quite legally receive, student-athletes figure to receive somewhere in the range of $45,000-$60,000 each year. How can Bilas say with a straight face that this is not compensation?
But other students are able to get "real jobs" and the time commitment of college athletics doesnt allow student-athletes the opportunity to take such jobs. I will concede this point as well, although there are many ways (sports camps, etc.) in which these student-athletes can work a bit on the side. That said, I think it is fair to say that they are unable to have a consistent job and thus need schools to fill in the gap.
Many people see this as the prime selling point. After all, revenue sport athletes are very much "employees" of the school, responsible for producing one of the main products a big time university sells to its students, alumni, and fans. But let's not forget that we arent talking about slavery here. The problem many people have is that they forget where most students throw the money they earn in their part-time jobs at school. Sure, their are some who use a job strictly for extra spending money, but the vast majority of today's undergraduates contribute to their own education by working themselves through school. For a big shot attorney and college basketball analyst (who went to, for free, to a school that charges its students $50,000-plus for a year's worth of tuition alone), this conspicuous omission is the epitome of arrogance.
The bottom line is that paying college athletes would only give them extra money to get in trouble, to pay for the booze, drugs, and fast cars that are the downfall of seemingly each and every flameout prospect. This money isnt going to pay for student-athlete's rent (that is already paid for), its going to pay for the Escalade, for the night at the bar, for the "bling".
We already pay our student-athletes a hefty sum, providing those of them in revenue sports a completely free education with all expenses (necessary expenses!) included. At a time when many students are deprived of this education because of those very expenses that student-athletes have taken care of, it is simply outrageous to call for additional compensation, money that would no doubt add to the troubles of college athletics.
Jay, if any student athlete wanted to give up their scholarship, they could go to the D-League, the UFL, or Europe and blaze their own trail. The allure of college athletics is that it gives student-athletes the opportunity to get a free education while continuing to pursue their passion. If a few of them find themselves not too interested in the "student" part, they are more than welcome to take their talents elsewhere. But I challenge each and every one of the wannabe Jeremy Tyler's out there to find another job that pays all their expenses, pays for their degree, and all of that just for playing a game they love. If they dont want that job, there's a line stretching as far as the eye can see of young men and women more than willing to take it from them.
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