Everyone seems pretty worked up about the fact that Heisman
trophy winning QB Johnny Manziel probably signed a bunch of autographs for cash
this off season. Due to the
“purity” of college athletics, players cannot benefit financially in any way
while they are playing for their college team. This is certainly understandable because Manziel as the face
of the Texas A&M football team was at least partially responsible for
generating $92 million dollars.
The University was kind enough to provide him with $17,456 per year in
tuition free Texas A&M education and on campus housing. That’s a pretty good deal. Well, for Texas A&M it is anyway…
As the face of the team and a Heisman winner, Manziel is trotted
out to every fundraising event you can possibly imagine. The NCAA and Texas A&M use him to
make money all day every day.
Literally every person he is involved with is making more money than he
is with the exception of the other dopey football players of course. Texas A&M Coach Kevin Sumlin makes
$3.1 million a year. There
are another 15 or so coaches (or whatever the position of Offensive Quality
Control is considered) that average $250,000+ a year. Meanwhile this 20 year old kid is going to get hung out to
dry because he sold his autograph for a few thousand bucks (which were probably
later marked up by dealers ten times what they paid him).
As the QB of a team that he led to the Cotton Bowl, Manziel
got some free meals in Dallas. The
university got $3 million dollars.
Coach Sumlin made an additional $100,000 bonus. Idiots that call sports talk radio will
remark on the “free education” Manziel received as his payment. The real “education” Manziel received
was seeing how he got fucked while everyone else around him got rich. He’s the one that can get a football
career ending injury on any play.
To suggest he is there to go to school is absolutely ridiculous. He is there as part of the NFL’s minor
league slavery market where young men risk their future health without pay for
the chance at an NFL golden ticket.
The NFL is going to have to pay up for the long term
injuries to its own players. Oh,
they will fight like dogs, but they’ll lose. This concussion suit is just the beginning of a real
Pandora’s box. It’s really not
asking too much for an industry which profits in the billions to pay for their
ex-employees with scrambled brains and useless limbs suffered at work. It’s just good business. The NFL is going to pay up. When are these college kids gonna wise
up? Sooner or later some shark
lawyers will turn on the Football Factory schools when some of these ex-college
football players with horrifying health issues band together in a class action
lawsuit. These colleges believe
they own you for life just because they let you sit in Psychology 101 with 300
other people. Hell, Warren Sapp is
suing Miami University because they are still making money selling his college
jersey.
I’m no Johnny Manziel guy. Manziel is undoubtedly a complete douche. There is no question. He’s not wrong though. If this kid got swept up in some small
change scheme to make a little scratch off his signature, so be it. The big question to me is why all this
media attention is being put on the kid selling a dime bag of weed when the
cartel is running wild right under their noses. Every one of the players playing football and men’s
basketball at the NCAA level should be paid at a level reflecting the revenue
they generate. Play the
season. Let the schools generate
their P/L statements. Let the
players have their representatives go over the books. Pay them their cut and move on. Fuck these ticky tacky rules. They are outdated and totally ignored by all the schools
anyway (except when it serves their own purpose for keeping the free labor in
line). These kids should unionize
and get paid.
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