Should Notre Dame Pay Athletes?

A hot topic surrounding college football is payment of collegiate athletes, so should Notre Dame pay athletes?

I was curious to see what you thought. The gut-reaction to this was as overwhelming as a headline questioning whether to bench starting quarterback Ian Book. Sometimes it is important to read the entire story.

Fair Pay to Play Act vs NCAA

On September 30, 2019, California passed a bill, known as the Fair Pay to Play Act. This will allow athletes to receive compensation for their names and likeness, just think of endorsements, autographs and so forth. Effective in 2023, the law enables college athletes to hire an agent and generate income for their own brand.

Currently, the NCAA prohibits college athletes to receive any compensation outside scholarships. The NCAA is a non-profit organization that regulates student athletes at 1,268 North American institutions and conferences.

The California law prohibits the NCAA from punishing athletes who do receive compensation. Disqualification from competing in championships was expected, but the bill also has a provision to protect from this. The story line to follow is how the NCAA responds or adapts to these new laws.

To clear up the confusion, Fair Pay to Play does NOT include payment for on field performances. Payment would come from outside sources, not within the universities at this time.

Poll of the People

Naturally, I thought this topic would generate some buzz in the sports community, so, I decided to run a public poll among Notre Dame fans. The poll was about the possibility of Notre Dame’s paying athletes. As I have learned more about the Fair Pay to Play Act, it is not as lopsided as some of the main stream media presented it to be.

Should Notre Dame pay athletes for their names and likeness was the question.

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Only 27% of fans believe the players should be compensated, while the other 73% opposed the idea.

Fired up fans supplied ample evidence in support of their opinion. These comments ranged from the argument that the education they receive is payment enough, through perhaps the most important point of bringing back the NCAA football video game.

EA SPORTS, It’s In The Game

Side note:

It could be argued that this very topic of compensating players is what destroyed the collegiate football title. The ruling of ex-UCLA PG Ed O’Bannon vs the NCAA came down in 2014. Subsequently, this is when the popular NCAA video game saga came to an end.

On a national scale the topic is starting to gain momentum in other states such as Colorado, South Carolina and even reports from Florida, as if Miami hasn’t been doing this for years.

The law could open the door for the return of NCAA video games. Finally.

The Irish Conundrum

But back to the topic at hand.

Since Notre Dame is a FBS Independent, this could have major implications to the brand itself. More so than schools protected by a conference. Notre Dame is one of the most profitable businesses you will find, and that is why it is a difficult topic to digest.

I believe Notre Dame’s response, or lack of, will set the precedent as they will be directly impacted by the decision.

Much like the sale of alcohol in stadiums, I think this another wait and see approach to the issue before pushing the envelope for Notre Dame.