I am surprised by the judgments that Megan Ellisor wrote regarding student athletes.  First, I want to explain that I am probably the oldest undergrad at N.C. State and have some classes with athletes who, in my opinion, are good students in addition to their rigorous athletic schedules.    

Ellisor’s first offensive comment states “Most college athletes who participate in either football or basketball are doing so simply as a stepping stone to earn a bid to join professional leagues.”  Wow!  Who says?  

The football players I know are smarter than that—they are committed to attending class, participating and adding valuable perspectives to academics.

  Then to reinforce her biased opinion she quotes Mark Emmert with the draconian NCAA who has let college athletics sink into a cesspool of exploitation of the very students who are condemned by she and Emmert. Neither have much credibility, in my book.  

She further states her prejudices with this hateful diatribe—”But many athletes already have scholarships, and if they value their education, they should appreciate that they are even getting that much.” 

Good lord—what a mean and ugly thought because unbeknownst to Ellisor, athletes spend a lot of time in the sports for which they are awarded scholarships.

 I’m not the dumbest person on the planet and personally, I would have extreme difficulty balancing a course load of 12 semester hours with the arduous and time-consuming schedule that athletes bear.   

Then to further dig into her argument, she communicates her view about how wonderful universities are to offer athletes the crumbs they give athletes. Her justifications smack of the same archaic rhetoric of the NFL regarding the health care of retired players. 

I have seen college sports evolve from being truly amateurish to becoming the minor leagues for professional sports and becoming a part of the entertainment industry.

The NCAA is evil by continuing to broadcast its deceitful platitudes while sleeping with big money in the entertainment industry.

They, and other blind forces, have vapor-locked your brains into believing the same lies and hatred that non-critical thinkers, who haven’t a clue, think about people whom I have the utmost respect for—student athletes. 

It is high time they be paid a stipend in addition to their scholarships.

Lastly, I would much rather have a football player work for me instead of a rabid, extremist person who does no research before she writes a narrative that is so offensive and insulting.