THERE is no denying the vast difference between student athletes - particularly those in the big money sports - and the rest of the student body. Student athletes, like the rest of us, are expected to attend class and maintain good grades. At the same time, they have the added pressure of a huge time commitment, wide visibility and the scrutiny that accompanies it, and, for the best athletes, the allure of the professional sports arena.
The NCAA often is criticized for a lack of interest in the concerns of their athletes. Recently proposed changes, however, show growing concern for the pressures student athletes face. The proposed changes should be accepted, so long as the NCAA is sure to maintain the distinction between amateurs and professionals.
The NCAA Management Council, a group that recommends changes to colleges and the NCAA, recently proposed several modifications to NCAA policies. Included are modifications to the definition of amateurism, a refinement of academic standards and changes in the amount of money athletes can earn. Given the pressure put on athletes, schools and coaches to field winning teams, and the amount of money involved in college athletics, the Council should be commended for their recent recommendations.
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The most dramatic of the proposed changes are those to the meaning of "amateur" within the NCAA. Cedric W. Dempsey, the president of the Council, proposed changes that would have allowed professional athletes to participate in college sports for a limited period of time, as well as allowing college athletes to enter professional drafts and win prize money for sports competitions.
These alterations, particularly the one allowing professional athletes to participate in the college arena, could have altered college sports drastically. Instead of recruiting high school athletes, colleges would be tempted to recruit minor league athletes. The integrity of amateur athletics would have been seriously compromised. Fortunately, the Council did not pass all of Dempsey's suggestions.
Should the Council's recommendations be approved, athletes will be allowed to enter professional drafts before becoming full-time college students without losing college eligibility, so long as they do not sign with teams or agents. They also will be allowed to accept prize money for competitions so long as that money does not exceed the amount "actual and necessary" for competing in that event. Whatever that means.
The proposal allowing high school athletes to enter professional drafts without eliminating the possibility of playing in college, although controversial, is in the best interest of the athlete. It could mean an increase in the number of athletes declaring for professional drafts, then changing their minds if they are not happy with the outcome. This could complicate the draft process and lead to even less continuity on college rosters. At the same time, it allows athletes greater freedom in exploring the possibility of professional sports without the irreversible commitment they now must make. The amendment is meant to, and would, ease pressure on high school athletes to bypass college in favor of professional sports.
The proposal blurs the line between amateurs and professionals, but because accepting money from agents or teams automatically cancels eligibility, it avoids the pitfalls of Dempsey's original plan.
In many respects, big time college athletes work for universities. They generate large amounts of revenue but never see any of it, except in the form of scholarship money. The proposed changes to the NCAA's amateurism standard, combined with a proposal to eliminate the $2,000 cap on the amount of money an athlete can earn, gives athletes increased freedom within a system that often is regarded as arbitrary and ignorant of the needs of athletes.
In addition to expanding the definition of amateurism, the Council's proposals stress the importance of the "student" in "student athlete." They propose to give eligibility to high school athletes with lower Board scores, should they have high grades. This change would decrease the significance of the so-called cultural bias in standardized testing, often cited as a factor in low scores among the urban youth colleges recruit.
More importantly, the proposed changes would increase the amount of yearly progress an athlete has to make toward a bachelor's degree in order to remain eligible. This proposal would help to ensure that college does not become effectively a farm program for professional sports.
The Council has done well with its proposals. They acknowledge the complicated relationship between amateurs and professionals in sports in America. They also emphasize the importance of academic involvement. It would be in the best interest of the NCAA, its schools and its athletes to accept the proposed changes. At the same time, the line between college sports and professional sports grows ever thinner and it is the responsibility of the NCAA to protect that boundary.
(Megan Moyer's column appears Fridays in The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at mmoyer@cavalierdaily.com.)
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