I'm not anyone to decide, I'm stating an opinion. One you can agree or disagree with. What's the difference between a student that plays football and one who acts? I'm not sure, but I know what's the same about them - they both have a 99% chance of making a living doing something else. I personally don't think all UConn students should fork over $30M a year so a couple kids can make the NBA/NFL.
University sports should be self-sustaining. They shouldn't have to suck funds from elsewhere. You do remember how long this board made fun of Rutgers for doing what we are now reduced to doing, right? If college sports are truly "big business" like you say, being profitable or at least coming close to breaking even shouldn't be an issue, now should it?
If our country didn't have a cumulative $1.4 trillion in student debt (1/10 that of outstanding mortgage debt last I checked), I wouldn't much care. Compare the per capita student debt numbers to any other advanced country, it's a joke. The reality is when students with no ability to pay in the near-term are given loans for however much the school is going to charge them, then the school has little to no incentive to cut costs. This isn't just a UConn thing, this is nationwide and it's a bad situation.
You are throwing a lot of darts....
Why should sports be self funded? Lots of kids benefit from the athletic program besides just those that go pro: sports medicine, student managers, coaches, etc. Should club sports be banned as well?
What about the marketing bump the university gets from the athletic success that translates into more applicants and better acceptance rated?
The overall cost of running the university is in the billions. Athletics are a small piece and they do generate revenue to help offset the cost. I would venture to say, dropping uconn athletics wouldn't have a positive impact on the schools overall budget, and would likely hurt the academic reputation in the long run (indirectly).
If you don't like the student fees, why attend Uconn? My guess is because you live in CT and realized that in state, uconn is a great value even with those fees? I'm guessing you had other choices..
The student debt is an issue and will eventually be addressed. The notion that some schools are charging 240k so a kid can go make 30k/yr doesn't make sense. Add to that the for profit schools whose only goal is to sell student loans, you definitely have a bubble.
We're getting to the point where a 4 year degree isn't always the best financial option. Many kids would be best served in a technical or vocational school.
I think you'll begin to see some non-competitive schools go away as they struggle to convince students to pay their tuition and provide discounts to better students.
In the end, none of this is due to college athletics. It's about universities doing big business under the umbrella of non-profit.
