Even the waterboy gets paid! NCAA football is a billion-dollar-a-year empire in which coaches, executives, school presidents, board members, athletic trainers, athletic directors, sports managers The equipment, Waterboys, towel boys, ball boys and even team mascots all receive a share of the revenue. . Everyone gets paid, except the athletes, who don't get a cent. That's because it's against NCAA rules to compensate college athletes with anything other than an athletic scholarship; anything else, and it is considered an improper benefit, thus making an athlete ineligible if they accept it. The NCAA defends its “no salary” rule by asserting that all its student-athletes are “amateurs” and not employees; therefore, they are not legally compensated. The debate over whether or not student-athletes should be paid is particularly troubling in the sport of football, as NCAA football is the most popular and profitable of all college sports. The NCAA's disagreement over whether or not to pay its players is currently leading the association to fight a lawsuit filed by former UCLA basketball star Ed O'Bannon, who is suing sued for compensation on behalf of former Division I football and men's basketball players. The lawsuit challenges the NCAA's use of student-athletes' images and likenesses for commercial purposes (PBS .org). In recent months, the debate has shifted more toward whether or not current student-athletes should be paid, particularly football players, who, like former Texas A&M star quarterback Johnny Manziel, provide the athleticism and entertainment that make NCAA football the million-dollar empire it is. East. So should college football players get paid? If there's an argument to be made for college football...... middle of newspaper...... PN, Fox, While NBC, ABC Down. " SportsBusiness Daily. paid exactly that much.” Businessweek.Com (2014): 1. Business Source Complete Web, April 8, 2014. Mitchell, Horace and Marc Edelman “Should College Student-Athletes Be Paid? 2013): 17. Business Source Complete, April 8, 2014. Mitrosillis, Teddy: “I Really Believe College Athletes Should Be Paid.” FOX Sports on MSN, January 29, 2014. Web April 7, 2014. “The NCAA. Lawsuit. » PBS, March 29, 2011. Web, April 8, 2014. PR, Newswire. « Economically speaking, college athletes should not be paid. Newswire US July 23, 2012: Regional Business News Web April 8... 2014.