The blue devil isn’t a liar, March sadness exposes the root of all evil.
One of the shining lights of the covid outbreak of 2020 was the expose of the entertainment industry. Sports and mindless media aren’t essential, the majority of what we consume isn’t essential. Several leagues weathered the storm playing in low attendances to fulfill their t.v. contracts. The NBA even stopped midseason, then returned playing on tv with no crowds. The NCAA lost over $800 million in revenue due to canceled march sadness games in 2020 due to the covid outbreak. This year the NCAA wants to recoup, even at the expense of risking players’ and coach staffs’ health. Here’s 2021 March sadness, the exploitation of college athletes.
The red devil maybe a liar, but the blue one isn’t
Many Athletes like to inject religious symbolism and gestures into pregame and free throw shooting. So it shouldn’t be a problem here. The devil being a liar is a common phrase among people who call out false witnesses against them. The master of temptation, the devil comes in many shapes in sizes, red, blue, or green. The bible tells us that the love of money is the root of all evil. This is no more evident than with the NCAA’s decision to play during covid.
The temptation for profit was too much to resist. Of all the teams that could have contracted covid within their program, it had to be, the blue devils? Coincidence? No, it isn’t.
The NCAA brought in 1.1 billion in revenue in 2019, an industry that doesn’t pay athletes a dime. The NCAA lost roughly $700 million in media payments in 2020. As if the financial exploitation wasn’t enough of college athletes. Regardless of your thoughts on covid as a conspiracy, the capitalistic tunnel vision of the NCAA can’t be denied. College is supposed to educate and enlighten students.
Recently, powerhouse Duke University withdrew from the March sadness tourney for testing positive within their program.
While 25% of pro athletes get degrees, college athletes graduate at higher rates, 8/10. This is on par with their student peer graduation ratio. The problem is while scholarships help athletes receive an education, the college benefits way more than the athlete ever does. Especially if they don’t go pro. As a young adult, the status and fame of playing in a competitive school is hard to ignore. However 4-5 years of school is a very short window of life, the majority of life will be spent post-college.
Players are shipped out quickly to never be remembered almost every other year. Players are on athletic scholarships and should play but to risk covid is unethical. Those in the duke program, what if they’ve infected other people or family members. The NCAA isn’t ready to hold itself accountable and will place blame on individuals not following their protocol.
America had to implement child labor laws, raise the working-age at one point in time. The majority of the people thought it was acceptable back then because they were earning a living. Likewise, these athletes are taking dangers without even being financially compensated. The t.v. contracts that players play out pay for more than their scholarships.
NCAA is a machine that can’t slow down, there’s too much money invested in the short attention span of sports viewers. No matter how many safety precautions are taken there isn’t a 100% chance of no one catching covid. The NBA bubble was an anomaly with lesser teams and older players. To say that their playing for the love of the game is to keep fans caught in the mirage of sports entertainment. Players and teams are contracted to play because of t.v. contracts.
In conclusion, business has no ethics in sports, the fans are so brainwashed that a PR person isn’t even needed. The NBA used HBCU’s as a PR move for their all-star game. The NCAA on the other hand knows its fans are irrationally invested enough to ignore their moral compass.