Turn on your television on almost any Saturday afternoon and it is not hard to find a college sport being played in front of thousands of spectators eagerly cheering their favorite team on. College sports in the United States is a multibillion dollar cash cow with proceeds being split between the NCAA(National Collegiate Athletic Association), network television agencies and the schools that make up the many conferences that are the backbone of the NCAA. In an article titled “Time to pay college athletes? Buzz building toward changes” that appeared in The Americas Intelligience Wire, Neil Ostrout lays out his case that many people are getting rich off of the hard work of these young adults. In this essay I will argue that Ostrout’s points are valid and help make the case that college athletes are getting the short end of the stick. Ostrout’s basic argument can be summarized as follows: 1. A player can receive a scholarship worth $40,000 a year, but many people say that isn’t enough. 2. NCAA sports fans spend lots of money every year on their favorite jersey, while the money for that players name and number is split between the manufacturer, the NCAA and the school that the player goes to while the athlete is left out. 3. In 2004, UConn brought home two national championships in basketball and subsequently grossed over$1million in athletic merchandise sales. 4. The issue of everybody but the athlete being able to cash in on his image while they represent a college team is liable to be addressed in the future and corrected or the NCAA will be forced to stop using them. 5. Players run the risk of losing their NCAA eligibility for signing endorsement deals while in college. 6. Recent scandals have surfaced where athletes were found receiving goods and services in violation of NCAA policy while mainstream opinion is that no foul was commited. 7. Former UCLA basketball star Ed O’Bannon is a plaintiff in a case stating that NCAA athletes are forced to give up their name and image in order to participate. 8. O’bannons case is seen by some as a threat to amateurism and there are fears that some of the major conference schools will break off from the BCS and form their own league. 9. Many university presidents as well as NCAA president Mark Emmert are against paying athletes. 10. Television stations pay billions of dollars a year for the rights to televise college sporting events giving more credence to the notion of paying athletes. 11. Several coaches have proposed things such as paying for items such as living expenses or a small allowance for games played and the option of allowing athletes and their parents to contact legally recognized sporting agents. 12. A former star athlete and lawyer Jay Bilas wonders why athletes are barred from earning pay when a music student can cut a record deal and a drama student can take a part in a movie. 13. Bilas suggests allowing players to receive endorsements deals as athletes which wouldn’t cost the universities any money.