Many people believe that college athletes have it easy, and who wouldn't think that? Free education, free life; being able to travel and play the sport that many people wish they could still play. Student-athletes can also choose their classes earlier than a regular student and have the opportunity to be excused from classes to attend games and special events. The life of a student-athlete seems like an appealing thing to many people; especially those who are not scholarship student-athletes or on a varsity team. The increasing cost of attending college has forced young athletes to work just as hard to receive a scholarship to play a sport, as they may come from poverty where they could not otherwise afford to go to school, which is beneficial to them. Understand that college is a place where academics come first and everything else comes second; this includes athletics. But are these athletes being treated fairly and given all the things they need to succeed in life, let alone in college? If you or anyone else knows a college athlete, especially one on scholarship, you would think it's easy for them. Free classes, free room and board; in the meantime, you have to work part-time and pay for your studies. But in reality, these people earned what they got, because many of these students did not come from wealthy families. According to USA Today, 85% of college athletes on scholarship live below the poverty line. So, by receiving a scholarship for athletics, it gives them a chance to improve their own quality of life and as humans we deserve to at least have some self-esteem. Athletes are provided with ample accommodations while attending school, in addition to going for free; they c...... middle of paper ......ecks and be treated like a farm system for the NFL, NBA or MLB. If these athletes started getting paid now, at the college level, then the major leagues of these sports would suffer greatly and lose market value and money. Perhaps a final solution to players not getting paid or receiving certain benefits is that head coaches at some universities should not be paid an average of $2 million per year for coaching, in some cases more than the presidents of these universities. (Chicago Tribune) Major progress could be made by simply merging so that athletes are not paid whole dollars, but receive benefits in which they would not have to worry about starving, losing their scholarships due to from injury or poor play. I think it would make the world a better place for college athletes, where schools and players would benefit..