Michigan Football: Capitalism and competition; time to pay players
Harbaugh weighs in on the matter
Inevitably, coaches would be asked their thoughts on the issue and being such a polarizing figure, Jim Harbaugh wouldn’t be an exception.
“I think the fair thing to do would be not to restrict players to have to stay in college for three years,” Harbaugh said.“They can turn pro at any point. They can be drafted after their freshman year, they can be drafted after their sophomore year, they can be drafted after their junior year, their senior year. I would also make a rule that if they weren’t drafted, they could return to college. I think that would also be very productive if someone were to leave after their freshman, sophomore or junior year and they didn’t finish their degree, they would have the ability within a certain timeframe to come back and to finish their degree.”
Harbaugh, who’s been vocal about his frustrations regarding rampant cheating in college sports, doesn’t want (not surprisingly) an influx of cash when the NCAA can’t or won’t prevent the boundless bankroll used, largely, for nefarious purposes.
Jim’s not wrong in his assessment, but maybe a bit misguided. As Harbaugh said later, he’s under the assumption that the money would be siphoned from the individual college.
“I like the fact that there’s 38 sports on campus. Always have felt that way,” Harbaugh added. “I like that guys and girls can participate in athletic competition and receive a college scholarship. You talk to Warde Manuel and what the athletic budget is, I know what it is here and what it is was when I was at Stanford. They spend every dollar. It’s going to non-revenue sports and revenue sports.”
Most of the media has concentrated on NIL laws and not about additional compensation in lieu of, or in addition to, large shoe contracts, for example. Could there be a system where universities also spread the massive wealth they receive from television contracts, among their other forms of revenue?
Surely, some could afford setting aside some coin to aide the young athlete who is working his or her tail off even with the knowledge that a career in their chosen sport is highly unlikely. Smaller colleges, however, would almost certainly go bankrupt and others would do away with sports altogether.
It’s a complicated subject, so to get some better perspective, we spoke to a parent of a Division I athlete, who, on the condition of anonymity, spoke about the grueling hours, why the athletes should get paid, and who should sign the check.