Study: College athletes denied $6.2 billion over four years

Louisville Cardinals players celebrate on the bench against the Syracuse Orange during the final of the Big East Men's Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 16, 2013, in New York City. / Elsa/Getty Images

Football and men's basketball players at top sports schools are being denied at least $6.2 billion between 2011 and 2015 under National Collegiate Athletic Association rules that prohibit them from being paid, according to a new study.

The study, from the National College Players Association and the Drexel University Sport Management Department, found that the average football player at an FBS - or Football Bowl Subdivision, is the highest tier in college sports - school had a fair market value of $456,612 above and beyond the value of their scholarship. The average men's basketball player had a fair market value of roughly $1.06 million over four years, not including his scholarship. (That figure is even higher at Bowl Championship Series schools: $714,000 for the average football player and $1.5 million for the average men's basketball player.)

The National College Players Association is an advocacy group seeking greater protections for college athletes as well as an increase in the caps on scholarship money.

"These players are being unfairly treated," Ramogi Huma, president of the National College Players Association, told CBSNews.com. "For players to be denied over a million dollars in fair market value, and for the NCAA to continue to resist simply increasing scholarships $3,000 to equal the cost of attendance is ridiculous, and it goes to show how tone deaf the NCAA is."

UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley, an economics major, described the NCAA as a "cartel" in a news release.

 "America's economic system is supposed to operate on free markets," he said. "This is a lesson on how damaging it can be when a cartel stifles a free market and, unfortunately, college athletes are the ones on the losing end. It's not right."

Under NCAA rules, players cannot be paid for their efforts or given gifts of any kind. Players who violate the rules can be suspended or otherwise sanctioned. An antitrust lawsuit now before the courts, which faces a crucial hearing in June, is seeking to bar the NCAA from interfering with the market for players' compensation. That could allow players to claim a portion of the revenue brought in from selling broadcast rights, as well as other revenue sources. 

CBS Sports and Turner Broadcasting are currently paying the NCAA more than $770 million per year to broadcast the "March Madness" NCAA basketball championship, which kicked off this week. CBS Corporation is the parent company of both CBS Sports and CBSNews.com.

The study, which used public information to determine the athletes' fair market value, found that basketball players at the University of Louisville are being denied the most money - nearly $6.5 million each. Louisville is one of the top seeds in this year's NCAA tournament. 

The NCAA maintains that the athletes are students and, as such, should not be paid beyond the value of their scholarships. "The NCAA is not exploiting current or former student-athletes but instead provides enormous benefit to them and to the public," Donald Remy, NCAA Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, said in a court filing last week.

The study, "The $6 Billion Heist: Robbing College Athletes Under the Guise of Amateurism," was first reported by CBSNews.com and USA Today.

IN DEPTH: March madness? NCAA fights full-court press on player pay

[bonzothemonkey]

Certainly college athletes at the highest level deserve to have enough money to live at a "decent" level as they move toward graduation, but to put a million dollar price tag on the talents they bring to their university is just asking for troble with a capital T. After all the overall cost of education is already skyrocketing! Think what would happen if colleges were now actually forced to cough up huge payments to maintain these sports programs. The cost of attendance for all students would explode and very well could bring an end to university athletics as we know them today!

[inspector62]

Maybe instead of paying the players how about paying the taxpayers. We could use all that money to provide a world class education to our children.

[mcxo]

Instead, let's do away with athletic scholarships all together. End the sham of the "student athlete." Let the NFL, NBA, etc develop their players in minor leagues. (and pay them) College sports should be for juniors and seniors with respectable GPA's. Play regionally, traveling by bus, no player names on jerseys. The "product" on the field won't be nearly as good, so ESPN et al won't want to pay to cover them. Problem Solved.

[bonzothemonkey]

I love watching my "March Madness"! So let's do nothing that would destroy such a wonderful sports contest! Increase the athletes' stipend if it must be done but otherwise leave college athletics alone!

[Xthes]

***?! They're supposed to be getting an education. If they want to get paid for playing let them go dance with the big girls.

[riphamilton-2009]

....yet parents often continue to spend thousands of dollars per year on each child for equipment, personal coaching/training, travel team fees, etc. it's about status.

[taxpayingvoter]

I was a student athlete so I guess it is not retroactive, just for the kids now. Millions of student athletes dealt with no money for years, why do the kids now get paid.

[freeamerica31]

The problem here is college atheletic competition is suppose to be for amateurs. The schools have turned it into a big business.

I don't want players being payed for college atheletics. Most atheletes go professional and those that don't usually are taken care of some way. However their are some who are hurt while playing and should be compensated for medical expenses based on the injury and ensured a full ride even if they can no longer play. Compensation should be limited to college sports taking in money and not Title IX applicants.

If we pay college players then that player goes professional, shouldn't the player be made to pay back all funds and a percentage of his salary commensurate with the additional training he received free of charge while attending the school? I can see two different sides to this situation however I believe the only side that needs to be covered are those players injured or can't finish college due to whatever reason.

Ensure the injured players are compensated for their medical bills for life and compensated with a one time payout for pain and suffering of a sport ending injury (insurance) if there was evidence of professional ability. Those unable to finish school might be better suited to a technical school or other training vice college and maybe assisted with small business loans if qualified.

[hypnotoad72]

Lots of people are denied lots of things, and not just because they can't throw a ball into a hoop in 20 seconds's time.

[fmrpioneer]

I understand the resentment of the players and the clear arrogance and hypocrisy of the NCAA. But this could open up a whole new can of worms. How will individual compensation be determined? Will they all have agents? What will happen to the collegiate sports that are currently subsidized by the money makers? Should baskball players get paid but not wrestlers or gymnasts?
This could get really messy and potentially bring down most college athletics.

[fred8780]

The days of the totally amateur athlete are long dead. College players who have suffered a career ending injury have never been fairly compensated and too often didn't even have their medical costs reimbursed. Everybody profits from college sports except the kids at the bottom. Its time for this to change.

[littlebuddyd]

I totally agree. It's time for the NCAA to step aside on this issue. Look what happened to Kentucky this year. They lost all their players to the NBA. I would like to see the study of how much money a university made on a player that wound up injured and out of play forever. Did they pay for their future lost wages. Workers comp should be involved here somehow.

[hypnotoad72]

I agree. The workers are what make the companies profitable so it seems pretty sad and selfish to deprive them of reasons to work... unless the owners crack the whips to go along with the inflation...