It really wasn’t hard to see the reality of the economics surrounding the College Football Championship game this week. Once the smoke from the celebratory post-game pyrotechnics had cleared, you could easily distinguish the haves from the have-nots. On one side, there was the television network, the participating universities and their coaches, their respective conferences and the organization (strong word for them) that coordinates this colossal financial affair. On the other side were the players. You know, the ones who provided us with all the competition, drama and entertainment. With all the billions of dollars involved, surely those who left it all on the field in an effort to call themselves champion amateur athletes will get their fair share of the pie. I mean, it’s only fair, correct?
Welcome back to the charade known as the College Football Playoffs, brought to you by a slew of corporate sponsors who made more off the game last night than all the players combined. In the interest of full disclosure, I must clearly state that I, too, am part of this hypocrisy, having earned money for years in the television production environment that broadcasts these very games. I spent time in Phoenix this past week and will be paid for it. That in itself makes me no better or worse than those I am lambasting with this commentary. However, I am in favor of sharing my earnings with those who graced the gridiron in the name of Alabama and Clemson, as a thank you for lining the pockets of myself and the aforementioned, as they clearly did much more to deserve it than I did.
Let’s spare the “players get a free education along with room and board” argument and focus a bit on the staggering amount of money that changes hands without reaching the “student athletes.” You can also please refrain from the theory that this revenue paid to the respective participating universities and their conferences funds other non-revenue-producing sports. The fact remains there is more than enough cash to do all of this and still give the players a reasonable amount to boot. The championship-winning coach was paid just over $7 million this year, and his counterpart who came up on the short end of the stick in a great game was paid nearly half that amount. All the while, each participating player received travel expenses, meals, a commemorative sweat suit and backpack. Even split, eh?
Want to point to the claim that some of these guys will recoup it by playing in the NFL soon? That’s rubbish.
Many won’t take that next step, and even if they all did, how does that make them any less entitled to the loot they helped generate at the college level? Hard to fathom a curmudgeon like yours truly being the voice of reason here, but these clowns make it easy to do. You don’t have to be an attorney or a successful sports agent to understand all of this, but Donald Yee is both, and he recently penned an exceptional commentary for the Washington Post that sums up the solution for all the athletes being exploited. Yee, who represents Tom Brady and Sean Payton among other clients, states the players should’ve boycotted the game to force the principals controlling the bankrolls to the bargaining table. He also points out another travesty by highlighting statistics that illustrate the woefully disproportionate share of African-American athletes participating in football at the six largest conferences in the NCAA, who represent just 3 percent of the overall student body population. It doesn’t take a math major to compute the disparity in revenue sharing when the players get so little. And when you factor in these enormous sums of money are earned by highly skilled, yet unpaid, laborers, it makes one wonder why the players haven’t sought their day in federal court. How could they not prevail with such a lopsided arrangement being forced upon them?
One thing is certain: the financial ringmaster will continue to crack the whip on a lion that, for some reason, will not roar and express its displeasure. Until these young men come together and remain in solidarity, the business-as-usual approach will continue from those with their collective feet on their throats. It’s relatively simple: just pay us fairly or we don’t perform. Forcing those who hold all the cash that is made off their backs to the bargaining table will not be without sacrifice, but it can, and should, be done. Again, this is business, and business is booming. Sadly, the loot is not being spread around, and all it will take to get that process in gear is a refusal to take the stage on the biggest night of the year for college football.
Somewhere out there is a brilliant young man with the ability to lead off the field the way he does on it. Hopefully he will recognize the importance of financial equity and justice soon, and find that path just as significant as the one to the end zone. It will indeed be the biggest challenge he ever faces, but if truly committed to the cause, he can prevail and as a result, will be a game changer long after the cheering stops and lights are dimmed. While he may look at himself as an underdog, his victory will not be an upset, but rather a tilting of the scales and the beginning of a new era, one that recognizes him fairly and equitably.
Danny Bridges, who will appropriately donate the pay he received from the College Football Championship to charity, can be reached at (317) 370-8447 or at Bridgeshd@aol.com.
Danny Bridges is an award-winning journalist and a longtime sports columnist for the Indianapolis Recorder. He covers college, professional sports and especially all things IndyCar racing. He can be reached at 317-370-8447 or at bridgeshd@aol.com.
