Morehead State University - Raconteur Yearbook (Morehead, KY)

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tiltis hard to say whether weire ioverpaidi ior underpaid? Those were the words ofUniversity quarterback, Chris Swartz, after he was asked if he thought col- lege athletes received special treatment they do not deserve. , , iiItis true that we get tuition, books, and meals paid for, but itis still hard on us because we have all that extra time to put inf he said. iiSometimes we put in eight or nine hours a day on football alone? Swartz said the extra time he must spend with the team is the biggest difference between him and the average college student. You have all that free time when youire aregular student. As an athlete, you have the pressure to excel in the classe room as well as on the field? Such is the rationale University athletics departments use to jus- tify handing out full scholarships, as well as other amenities, to their student athletes. til donit think people realize the time that goes into it? said Lady Eagle basketball player Kelly Stamper. tiltis just continuous. Thereis no free time. College has- ketball is a fullatime job? Many football, basketball and volleyball players at the Univer- sity are awarded full scholarships based solely upon their athletic prowess. Many athletes who are not on scholarship obtain other forms of financial aid, although administrators insist that the amount of this aid is not influ- enced by the studenfs value to a sports team. iiAs an athlete, itis almost like being a commodity m- an asset to the school? said Roddy Peters,.an Eagle basketball player. iiAs long as we bring in funds for the school, then I think the school should pay for our education. Peters said he agrees with National Collegiate Athletic Association rules which forbid-monetary awards or material gifts to athletes beyond the cost jtfffColqulmun of their education, hut he would be in favor of Spons 160 I! is estimated that alhletes miss up to llm of their classes because oftrm cl time, So illia Rt-nllroi a senior guard from ML Sterling. durin r tl lmnanirmingham game in Fthiruury 3. PHOTO BY: college athletes receiving a salary as long as every l Athletes 0r Students.p , athlete across the ,country were paid the same f amount. L ' L ' Athletes may receive other benefits. Some are assigned better quality housing, and all are tempov : rarily forgiven for missing classwork when their team are travelling. ; , ,, Some argue that giving college athletes such spe- cial treatment is not consistent with the goals of an academic institution. US. Representative Thomas A. Luken tDemocrat-Ohiol, in an article appearing in a 1987 issue of USA TODAY magazine, wrote that the way college sports have evolved is distort- ing campus life for student-athletes. iiThe fact is that lcollege athletesl aren,t students ' 111 every sense of the word, he said. iiThey some- lmes donit live with regular student body. Their ousing may be superior in some ways . . . but it is profoundly inferior in a more important sense; segregation from other students. The ath- letes are denied the rich social and academic experience that comes from mixing with a broad range of students? The University did away with separate housing for the football team in 1986 with the closing of Downing Hall. But the basketball team still occua pies the first floor of Alumni a Tower, Which is more luxurious than the other floors. The floor is carpeted and includes a large television lounge. The doors to the basketball floor are locked at all times, offering more secu- rity than the average student ' enjoys. tA few of the rooms on the floor are occupied by non- athletesj L a y L It has been estimated that some college athletes miss 11p to 40 percent of their L classes because of travel to and from away games. The universities must consequently prOVide a way , for the student-athlete to make up the work he or she may miss. Our University is no exception. L a uIf we have to miss a test, we get an excuse for i that? Swartz said. iiUsually the teachers under- L stand. We gryeto make it up before we leave, or as , soon as we get back? a Stamper said missing classwork is 9116 ohthe 1c University olLAlue

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The experience of playing competitively in High School gives some golfers, like Mike Fields, a ju- nior from Morehead, an edge on the college teams. Fields was one of five players to advance to invita- tional tournaments. PHOTO BY: Kevin L. Goldy Early morning practice and long hours on the course are parts of the everyday life of golfer Jay Cameron, a sophomore from Clearwater, F1. The team practices daily at 6:30 am. PHOTO BY: Kevin L. Goldy gal; 159

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.L-higgest problems with being involved in college sports. iiYou get behind and youire always trying to get someoneisrnotes. Alot of peeple think we get especial treatment, but itis really a burden? i Swartz'said athletes usually do not take unfair ;;advantage of the make- -up policy Maybe some- have to make it up sooner 01' later. It s best to get it finished 5 f Luken wrote: ulvlissing so many classes would he a serious problem -- if college athletes were really 10111111 students. HeweVer, athletes at many univer- , gsities aren t expected to perform 111 class. They re at ekiiicollege to make the college look geod to sports fans -. especially the affluent alumni SteVe Hamilton University director of athletics, gsaid it is not unfair for athletes to receive large 'scholarshlps in cohtraSt With a non athlete who must struggle both to get good grades and to pay the irbills. 71511101111111inifsunfair on'this-basis: these peo- ple have shown they have the ability to do some- 11111111 better than the average person ii Hamilton ,Wsaid. iiIn this country, 1 if you have the skill and iiiiahihty, you are reWarded for it I11 addition to the restrictions on awarding cash material g1fts to the athletes Hamilton said the uggathletes are not permitted to have an outside job, iexcept fo1' during Christmas hreak They receive 110 113.1121 t1';1ps t11 the school except for one recruiting , ijv151t But some schools violate that rule, big time Because of the number of athletic scholarships a Ljoollege may award 15 limited by NCAA and confer- i$131101: rules,m many Studehtaathletes must pay their iiactually try to find reoruits whOse family income Wand high school grades would be most likely to earn crult said Hamiltou, Who is also the University 3 imjhaSehall coach The best person you can recruit is ,1 a poor, smart kid because he 3 going to get loans and 53gra11ltsl really go after those kids who are poor But these athletes do not receive preferential EiEitreatment when financial aid aWards are deter- ; mined, he said They don t discriminate. They idon 1 give an athlete aid just beeause he s an ath- 1;;lete, ;; ,, I ; Jim Morton the University 5 asSOCiate ditector of 1:;finaecialeid staid athlete 3 financial aid applications 1 do not receive special attention. iiWe donit do that ?iEOthdfthi-ng. We need to besensitive to all-student needs and treat all students equally? Morton added that not only do coaches not pres- surehis office into finding more aid for recruits, the coaches often are not aggressive enough in helping the student-athlete find the financial assistance. TA coach will ask the athlete to hand the financial aid application to him and then the coach will lay it on his desk for three, four, five weeks, and itis late. Instead of doing that, the coach should tell the athlete to hand the application directly to this office by such and such a time . . . The more you treat the Istudent-athlete like a student, the more you are accomplishing the goals of the academic commu- nity. Hamilton said that if the University is going to continue to draw competitive athletes, it must be able to offer those athletes as much as other univeru 'sities do. iiThe kind of aid you get is going to influence where youire going to go. You can,t get all the kids you want all the time because you canit olfer them enough. If we find a good player, and we want him to come here we try to give him aid Hamilton said Non-athletes on campus have varying opinions on whether or not athletes are treated too well. Sherri Timberlake, a junior radiokelevision ma- jor from South Shore, said it is important that the Universityis athletic teams remain competitive and - she agrees that athletes deserve full scholarships. iiThat is some peopleis only way of going to col- lege ,, Timberlake said nIf youire really smart, you get an academic scholarship. Why not give athletic scholarships to people who wouldn t otherwise be able to go to college? Lori Philps, 11 Louisville senior majoring in spe- cial education, disagrees Heck 110,1 don t think Iathletesl Should get fullscholarships.Ith1nk maybe ,, they should get their dorms paid for, but not food. I also think they should have at least a 10-hour per ; week workstudy as part of their scholarship? A male student from south-central Kentucky, who requested anonymity, said he thinks athletics are stressed too much on some campuses, but not at 'Morehead. He does think, however, that there should be fewer athletic scholarships awarded. TI thiuk some athletics here think theyire Codis gift to this campus? he said. uThere should be more academic and need scholarships. They should give more to people who have good grades and people who need the money. ii mwcaemw Feature 161