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| Sports Nut The Most Evil Thing about College Sports Athletic scholarships are no guarantee of a four-year education. They can be yanked after one year, for any reason. Posted Thursday, May 17, 2012, at 11:50 PM ET  Last week, ESPN agreed to pay the Atlantic Coast Conference $3.6 billion to televise its athletic events through 2026-27. The ACC will earn those billions thanks to the free labor of Duke basketball players and Miami football players. Is there any rational argument that these unpaid performers shouldn't get a chunk of that TV cash? Back in September, Sports Illustrated's Seth Davis tried to mount such an argument. In response to Taylor Branch's Atlantic polemic "The Shame of College Sports," Davis wrote that it's "indisputably untrue" that college athletes aren't paid. "Student-athletes earn free tuition, which over the course of four years can exceed $200,000," he wrote. If you buy that star athletes are compensated with a valuable education, consider this complicating fact: An athletic scholarship is not a four-year educational guarantee. What few college sports fans—and not enough college recruits—realize is that a university can yank that scholarship after one, two, or three years without cause. Coach doesn't like you? He's free to cut you loose. Sitting the bench? You could lose your free ride to a new recruit. Some schools have recognized that one-year scholarships, renewable at the school's pleasure, are morally indefensible. The majority of Big Ten schools, as well as Auburn and Florida, announced earlier this year that they've started giving incoming athletes four-year guarantees. But if you think the nation's sports powers are disposed to do the right thing, you don ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Lithwick: Why Does the GOP Think America's Women Can't Be Trusted? Will the Supreme Court Force PACs To Expose the Names of Their Donors? College Athletes Should Be Guaranteed Four-Year Scholarships. Anything Less Is Indentured Servitude. | Advertisement   |
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