After a ruling Friday, the N.C.A.A. has lost the right to restrict colleges from paying student athletes. Should we pay certain student athletes?
Nate Kaeding, a former Iowa Hawkeye kicker and alum of the San Diego Chargers says it’s a tricky, “you’re going to have to be very careful with this. It could change a lot about college sports. I do think players should receive something if their likeness is being used.”
Paying certain players and not others... It's not a good idea. If there is to team, there is no game. - Les Jepsen
Just because the N.C.A.A. can no longer bar schools from paying athletes, doesn't mean anything will change right away. Bryce Miller, a sports columnist with the Des Moines Register, says this really creates more questions than answers. Which players would you pay? Why would you pay them, and what happens when sports that aren't revenue generating start to protest?
During this River to River interview, host Ben Kieffer talks with Kaeding, Miller and former Iowa Hawkeye men’s basketball center Les Jepsen, who was a part of the 1986-1987 men’s team that went 30-5.
Jepsen says it's simple - a scholarship to school is compensation enough. After all, student athletes are students first. Aren't they?