That's the question former newspaper sportswriter Corky Simpson asks in his Along the Way column in our Geezerville newspaper today...
He starts by pointing out that Div 1 revenue generating sports (football and basketball) are now virtually minor leagues for the NFL and NBA...
Schools are now allowed to set aside up to $20M a year to pay their student-Athletes to play those sports...
Schools can decide how to distribute that money, as to which athletes would be paid and how much...
However, as he notes, most schools like AU (and ASU too) don't have that much spare revenue with which to pay all those semi-pro athletes so what is going to happen, he asks..??
What is going to happen in the "Fun and Games" athletic departments of most schools once this comes on line..??
More succinctly, he asks..."How long will the community's unfettered admiration of its heretofore amateur college sports last?"...
I don't know what will happen at AU but I'm pretty sure that Sun Devil fans will stop attending football, basketball and baseball games if they do not win enough to justify the time and money spent to attend those endeavors...
No fan really wants to follow a Sis-boom-Blah semi-amateur team that is mediocre at best or do they..??
I'm looking forward to see how our newly designed athletic dept model and newly appointed AD are able to deal with this "seismic change" that is taking place in college sports these days...
Has our new athletic dept infrastructure been built to withstand a category 7 or 8 magnitude college sports quake that will hit the campus in the very near future...one that might significantly reduce fan attendance and booster donations as a result..??
Stay tuned...Go Devils!!!
He starts by pointing out that Div 1 revenue generating sports (football and basketball) are now virtually minor leagues for the NFL and NBA...
Schools are now allowed to set aside up to $20M a year to pay their student-Athletes to play those sports...
Schools can decide how to distribute that money, as to which athletes would be paid and how much...
However, as he notes, most schools like AU (and ASU too) don't have that much spare revenue with which to pay all those semi-pro athletes so what is going to happen, he asks..??
What is going to happen in the "Fun and Games" athletic departments of most schools once this comes on line..??
More succinctly, he asks..."How long will the community's unfettered admiration of its heretofore amateur college sports last?"...
I don't know what will happen at AU but I'm pretty sure that Sun Devil fans will stop attending football, basketball and baseball games if they do not win enough to justify the time and money spent to attend those endeavors...
No fan really wants to follow a Sis-boom-Blah semi-amateur team that is mediocre at best or do they..??
I'm looking forward to see how our newly designed athletic dept model and newly appointed AD are able to deal with this "seismic change" that is taking place in college sports these days...
Has our new athletic dept infrastructure been built to withstand a category 7 or 8 magnitude college sports quake that will hit the campus in the very near future...one that might significantly reduce fan attendance and booster donations as a result..??
Stay tuned...Go Devils!!!
