College athletics is a multi-billion-dollar industry where university executives, coaches, and TV networks make millions off the physical toll of student-athletes, who are the only reason the product exists. Denying college athletes a direct share of the revenue they generate isn't protecting 'amateurism'—it's standard corporate exploitation under the guise of tradition.

College sports is already a full-time job—athletes put in 40 to 60 hours a week between practice, film study, travel, and games on top of a full academic load. A scholarship covers tuition and room, but it doesn't pay rent, cover living expenses, or compensate them for the billions of dollars in TV rights and ticket sales they generate. Think about it this way: a regular college student on a academic scholarship is still allowed to hold a job, run a business, or get paid for their skills. We don't tell a computer science major on a full ride that they aren't allowed to earn money coding. Expecting athletes to sacrifice their health for a multi-billion-dollar industry while capping their compensation at tuition isn't 'preserving college spirit'—it's wage suppression.

I appreciate you acknowledging the revenue side—because that’s the heart of the issue. The reality is that college sports became a massive, high-stakes business decades ago, long before we started talking about paying players. A scholarship is definitely a great opportunity, but it shouldn't come with a gag order on an athlete's financial worth. Expecting players to manage a full-time athletic schedule on top of classes isn't ruined by fair compensation; it's made fair by it. Allowing athletes to be paid—whether through revenue sharing or Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals—doesn't take away the student experience; it just ensures the young men and women putting their bodies on the line finally get a fair piece of the pie they’re baking.