t
H
\
L
. r 1
ii t
t V
i
it
Just about everybody in the country knows that dollegas
make a lot of money out of football and that this is done
by paying good football players. But few of th«- millions
who stream through the turnstiles each fall know mOe|.
more than that about football subsidisation. Very few)
know how*it started or why it ia allowed. }
This knowledge is available, thanks to the records of
a complete cycle of subsidisation as experienced by several
American universities. To appreciate this conflict between
academic ambitions and rewards and athletic ambitions apd
rewards—the old business of brain vs, brawn, in short* •
it is necessary to undersUnd both sides of the question.
There are some schools where the school rests in\ the
shadow of the stadium; but there are others where ’the
stadium rests in the shadow of the school. Which of these
situations is the most acceptable is definitely a matter of
opinion. Chancellor Bowman of Pitt University says the
latter is exactly where the stadium belongs. The contention
i is set forth in many schools in the South and Southwest
that the former is the better method.
. We have often wondered why there should at times
such a fibre of conscientious objections among the leading
universities and colleges of the U. 8. There are any number
x>f these institutions which built their magnificent stadia
as a direct financial result of more {iighly paid teams. In j
the case of one prominent Eastern school, an elaborate
and over-arobitioil% building v^progrofn drained away the
resources of the University. This fact caused intense dis
satisfaction among the alumni When questionetf as 'to the
method of replacing the finances, the officials were quite
positive that the financial surplus from the football season
would help greatly. •;
Football subsidisation began Tor a very simple reasoq—
the game caught on. Public interest attracted bigh-presstirc
press coverage, which straightway produced even more pilv
iie interest. The .football converts in the stands became
violent partisans, clamoring for victories over traditional
rivals. The direct result was the hiring qf big-time conches.
In these enlightened days we don’t havf^to ask anyone to!
find out why a stellar cast of athletes always appears about
a year after a famous coach has been hired at some uni
versity. / •' l
Every university has a business manager whose duty,
it to schedule money games. Kvery big game this managed J
adds to the schedule makes the coach's job tougher, but tha
job is not so tough as long as the university provides enough
finances for superior materiaL And during this go Idea pge
' of football the athletic policies are usually coldly realistic.
To- pay these stadicUn debts it is necessary to schedule the
money games. To play money games it is necessary to get
Grade A material. Most universities have a high-pressure
organization which forms a sort of “go-and-get-’em’* bri
gade. These men cover tbe football front like hungry travel
ing salesmen—and they have something to sell.
The money that colleges pay football players is rridsip *
i discussed. Subsidization is a form of collegiate bootlegging.
but the only real crime is to gdt caught at it. The players-
\ are cUutioned to reveal nothing of their financial take. Th<*
colleges simply claim the thing doesn't exist. In spite of
this, word gets around because the boys talk to family and
friends, ahd college-footbsll-talent scouts make It their bus
iness to find out what the competition, ia paying.
In order to fully understand this situation, let’s con
sider the cuae of one particulur university—the University
* of Pittsburgh. This is the only case that I know of where
the actual figures on the money paid to the players are
available. Here is the record.
i» • ’ :i' ■ > 111
i
’P t
OtL\\
1924-I'JST—During this period the playura were paid
<*•> *n individual basis, depending upon their iprtstig* and
personal demands. A few received as high as 9100 per month,
plus tuition and books. The average payment, plus tuition and
books, was $S5 a month for ten months. Out of this the
Sajrm were to take care of their own board aaijl room. In
addition, there were probably individual gifts by alumni or
business men to certain players. i j
192H—For one year Pitt adopted a flat rate df $800. to
b - paid in ten installments of fifty dollars each, plus tuition
and book*.’
1929-1932—The rate was raised to $960, In ten pay
ments of $65 ench. plus tuition and books. This was to be
lui oeitablished figure. When the depression came, this scale
produced an unexpected result. Board and room in Pittsburgh
became much cheaper. The players, profiting by the defla
tion, became fairly well-to-do. Some of tbop married Some
of (hem grouped together in apartments and lived in com
I ;ii at iv. opulence. ': '-J
- Salaries were cut to $400. or forty dollars a
month, plus tuition and books. This was designed to put
Pitt practically on the “BRT” basis—board, room, ami
III
Be Subsidized?
BY 4. D. LEACH
\
THK BATTALION