Yeah, I mean I think it's basically just a question of semantics. All the NCAA has to do is alter the requirements to meet their definition of amateurism. Professional vs. Amateur is sort of an arbitrary distinction, right? And further, who determines what their profession is, exactly?

Let's say, for instance, that Ben Roderick has 25,000 Instagram followers and 15,000 of them live in Athens. The owner of O'Betty's notices that and notices that Ben's in there twice a week and says "hey, I'll give you $500 to post that O'Betty's is your favorite spot in Athens."

Does posting that make Ben Roderick a professional basketball player?

I don't think so. I think it makes him a (vaguely) famous person who entered into a mutually beneficial business arrangement with a hot dog joint.

Maybe you're right.

But if you are, that's truly insane.

Think about that for a second -- Ohio University makes an agreement to provide $100,000 worth of education, equipment, lodging, training, coaching, food, etc. in exchange for Roderick to play basketball and earn them money. He can appear in commercials for Ohio University basketball. He's plastered all over Ohio University's social media accounts. He can do radio shows to drum up interest in ticket sales. He can shake hands with potential donors. Ohio University can sell his jersey. And he only gets said education if he's playing basketball at a level deemed acceptable by his coach, an employee of Ohio University. He has to go to practice for a certain number of hours, travel across state lines to represent the university, and cannot under any circumstances earn outside income.

All of that's amateurism.

But if O'Betty's -- who has nothing to do with Ohio University or basketball -- pays him $500 for an Instagram post THAT makes him a professional basketball player?

That's crazy, right?

Ohio University can capitalize on his basketball skills to whatever extent they can manage, but the moment the University isn't involved the rest of the world has to pretend he's not a famous basketball player and any capital at all results in his eligibility being stripped?

It's completely non-sensical.

All this is going to do is clear the way for boosters to directly pay kids for playing sports at their universities of choice. It's just going to widen the gulf between the haves and the have-nots. I don't see any way that the mids aren't going to be completely relegated to a separate second-class and I guess I'm okay with that. Time for the BBS and the BBC divisions. We are losing the arms race as it is and I'd just as soon we admit it to ourselves.

But when he gets a bag full of Ipads, a Playstation 4, an engraved Torneau watch, and a $425 Amazon gift card, that's. . .amateurism; just means he played in a bowl game.

It's such a ridiculous sham.

In that case, I've got a perfect workaround. Somebody should build a shuffleboard court in Athens, and a wealthy alum can just pay OU Basketball and Football recruits a few grand to play in their 'professional shuffleboard league.' They'll be pro Shuffleboarders, and amateur basketball and football players.

Easy.

College athletics has changed significantly in the past decade. There needs to be a solution where all athletes are getting an stipend, compensation, whatever you want to call it.

By the way, am I the only one to notice how much better this discussion improved the past few pages? Wonder why?

Spoke too soon.

Why should the NCAA get any portion of the money? I don't get that. If the player is getting paid, we've already crossed that threshold, so why would the NCAA get a cut? Does the NBA get a portion of LeBron's Nike contract? How about the NFL for Aaron Rodgers and State Farm?

If players can have endorsement deals, I would imagine the other piece of the puzzle would be that they would have to have agents, right? Also, there are NCAA teams that do not let their freshmen do interviews and have other weird rules. Could there be teams that don't allow players to have endorsement deals in their first year? Would school have any oversight on a player's endorsement contracts?

First off I agree that there is no justification for the NCAA to get a % of any student's endorsement.

I would think that,for this to work,there would have to universal rules on endorsement money,including "sharing" with teammates.

There are all kinds of things that would have to worked out.
For example team "A" wears Nike.A player's endorsement would be with Adidas.
Now what ?

Given today's "one and done" environment in basketball,I can't see anyone being
able to prohibit freshman endorsement deals.

The whole thing looks like one big quagmire.

What happens when a wealthy business owner and booster like T. Boone Pickens signs the entire team to a $100,000 a year endorsement deal for his business. How are other schools going to compete against that?

Or a fellow like Joe Sutton who sends 10K to every OU football player. How are other schools in the MAC going to compete against that.

And what is his connection to Oklahoma?