Top 10 Pro Athletes that Enjoy Mary Jane

10.)  Kenny Brit a receiver for the Tennessee titans, this guy is way to clean cut. Most definitely doesn't look like he smokes bud. It is said to be that he hasn't had very many run in with the cops but once he was stopped and searched and the police for weed in his possession. Can't give the clean cut guy the benefit of the doubt


9.) Carmelo Anthony doesn't surprise me, in the picture here he almost looks stoned. The weed smoking explains why at times he stays at the other end of the court trying to catch his breath. Get your smoke on melo, your stats make up for it.


8.) Randy Moss's lips are blacker then Whoopi Goldberg's of course he smokes weed. The weed doesn't effect his spend nor his hands. Explains some of his instability with being able to choose a team. He may just be looking to find which state he can play ball in with the best Mary Jane.


7.) Bill Walton, I don't even know what to say about Bill. I think he had to smoke in order to have something to do with his money cause he wasn't snazzy enough to get a woman. The guy is a monster!


6.) Mike Vick has had his issues, back and forth to court dealing with all of the scrutiny. Vick had to smoke to keep from stressing himself out.


5.)  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar smokes bud because he is prescribe medical marijuana and so is everyone else that likes weed in California. Supposedly he has had chronic migraines in the past, I think the migraines only came when he had no weed to smoke on the road.





4.) Michael Phelps is a well known pot smoker, when he won those medals and society found out his secret everyone disliked him, but when the Olympics came back around he regained his fans.


3.) Santonio Holmes in 08 he missed the season opener for possession of weed, he is largely known to be a weed smoker and he is proud of it. that big contract allowed him to get the best of the best product.

2.) Tim Lincecum, knowing nothing about him or his career. The hair explains it all, total hippie and its all good the baseball salary will keep Lincecum with a fine supply.


1.) Ricky Williams is one confused guy, had a bang out season with the dolphin then decides he is going to Canada to play football so he can enjoy marijuana. One must respect his wishes because it wasn't about the money only. He had a joy and a true love for weed, but the weed may have been a cause to his issues outside of football and a effect to his performance when he returned to the NFL.

Lee, Amber  2012 Bleacher Report "Top 25 Athletes Who Smoke Pot"
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1152611-25-elite-athletes-who-also-smoke-pot/page/26

Puerto Rican Contributions to the Great Game of Baseball

A couple of years ago I was attending the Puerto Rican parade on the north side of Chicago, the Humboldt Park area. One of the floats was dedicated to the Roberto Clemente High School baseball team due to a championship they had won. Not having much of an interest on any diversity in baseball, I was intrigued as to who this Roberto Clemente character was and why he was so great that he influenced this team carrying his name to be amazing athletes. Looking up a bit more information on Puerto Rican players, I found that Puerto Rico was home to many baseball players. 

Puerto Rico's early contribution to baseball was Roberto Clemente Walker, who was born on August 13, 1934 in Carolina, Puerto Rico. He began his career by signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers fresh out of high school. He played for the minor league team, the Montreal Royals and then went on to play with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He then moved on to the Pittsburgh Pirates and was put on the map in 1955. He also participated in the 1971 World Series, he is remembered as a great right-fielder and had an amazing hand in baseball. He became the first Hispanic to be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as well as the first Hispanic to reach 3,000 hits with 240 home runs.

Carlos Delgado was born in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico on June 25, 1972, after being sought after by numerous teams he reached out to Blue Jays. It was not until 1993 that he made his debut, although, he did not play a full season until 1996. Soon after that his potential was shown and he exploded as a baseball player. Over the years he played with Toronto, Marlins and the Mets. His statistics were outstanding and impressive.

Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez is one of the players which I probably have heard about the most. He was born in New York City in 1975 and began his career at a young age, 18. Baseball ran in his blood due to his brother and his father both were involved with baseball. At the age of 4 he moved to the Dominican Republic with his family and later came back to Miami. In 1975 Rodriguez was playing with the Seattle Mariners and later on went to the Texas Rangers and New York Rangers. His careers was on a this line once he was accused of using performance-enhancing drugs but even with that he still went on to help the Yankees in their 2009 World Series. 

World Cups? Family Feuds!

When speaking of the FIFA World Cups  the first thing that pops into my head are watching the soccer games with my family growing up. Coming from a Mexican background, soccer was a huge part of my life. There never fails to be soccer games during the week on television during week or at least one discussion a day about which team is playing against who, and who was going to be the winner. A simple conversation criticizing a player's move could end up in an aggressive argument ending with "tu no sabes nada" (you don't know what you're talking about). When the World Cup comes around the corner, these discussions will go on nonstop for about six weeks: beginning two weeks before, during and after the tournament.

Due to my Mexican background, there was always a sense pride whenever Mexico won a game, a huge party-like celebration happened during and after the game. The most anticipated game of he whole tournament was always the Mexico vs USA game. This game was super controversial due to the big question "Who are you rooting for?!" There was a huge sense of betrayal, almost guilt, if one answered "USA". This decision has a lot to do with the pride that was held due to not only the U.S's performance, but the importance given to the sport as well. Soccer, as learned in class, has nowhere near the importance or the respect that any other sport has. Football, baseball and even basketball is almost a way of life, of which soccer has no part of. In other parts of the world soccer is a lifestyle to be respected, in Mexico the most popular sport on the street just happens to be soccer. As an example of how intensely this sport is dug into the Mexican lifestyle, during home games in Mexico City's Estadio Azteca,  not only is the stadium filled to its capacity but the whole city is paralyzed and a city-wide party takes place, somewhat like when any Chicago team wins a championship but many times worse.

The upcoming FIFA World Cup is to be held in Brazil, a long anticipated tournament in which every four years every country unites to the sweet sounds of a ball being kicked across the field and a stadium roars with excitement.

Say No To Drugs! Well Maybe Just This Once

Drugs in sports has always been a hotly contested issue and is not exclusive to any sport.  Whether it's baseball, football, the Olympics, even the more recent sport of cycling, drugs have become a natural part of the sport of sports.  According to CSMonitor.com, "Though science has made significant leaps forward in its ability to catch drug cheats, antidoping efforts are only as successful as the programs that enforce them. And if there is a lesson from the past decade, it is that from cycling to baseball, it takes a serious scandal and a threat to the very integrity of a sport to get officials to crack down." (http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2013/0213/Drugs-in-sports-Who-is-winning-the-doping-war)  What this means is that even if there are sophisticated and easy ways of finding drugs in sports, the effort to actually find them is lacking.  Furthermore, it takes a great deal of pressure on the sport in particular to get officials talking!  We see it in all the major stars of our lifetime (Sammy Sosa, Hulk Hogan, Lance Armstrong, hell even Arnold Schwarzeneggar) and almost have become desensitized to the fact that drugs do exist in the world of sports.  It takes a great deal of media attention to even think about an effort to stop drugs in sports, why is that?

Now drugs has always been taught as a bad thing to do as a child, but what if it wasn't?  What if drugs were actually the reason why sports are as exciting and as dynamic as they are now?  The thought of drugs being intrinsic with sports may be a hard pill to swallow (no pun intended) but the fact of the matter is that there is no such thing as a "clean" sport.  Not everyone is a born superstar athlete so there are those who take the liberty to give themselves that extra push in order to reach that pinnacle.  Is that a wrong choice?  If you were given a chance to enhance your performance in any aspect of your life, wouldn't you take it?  So why is it a crime when used in a professional sport?  A website that I found (http://sportsanddrugs.procon.org/) actually lists the pros and cons of using drugs in a professional sport.  Each question categorized and linked, the answers by professionals, sports enthusiasts, and sports fanatics alike are listed and are able to be up for debate.  After reading through a few answers, I realize that the opinion of drugs in sports is actually not as one sided as I had previously believed; people actually think drugs are a necessity! Whether your opinion on drugs in sports is positive or negative, drugs will always be a staple in any sport.  The question is, what side are you on?

East Germany Doping Scandal

There have been many cases of doping scandals in the world of sports.  More and more athletes are getting caught or simply coming forward confessing of using illegal performing enhancing drugs.  One of the biggest doping scandals in history was the East Germany doping scandal that went on from the late 1960’s to 1980’s.  This started when the Berlin wall was built to divide Germany from east and west.  East Germany wanted to increase their athletic reputation. The state began to carry out a plan to get the best athletes for the Olympics and bring home the gold. 

            The state recruited more than ten thousand German athletes.  Most of these athletes were from ages thirteen to sixteen years old.  In the documentary, The Great Olympic Drug Scandal, one of the former Olympic medalist says that they were treated like real stars but unfortunately they had no idea about the plan they were about to execute. 

            This program was officially called State Plan 14.25(cbc.ca).   The officials, coaches, and doctors that were part of this program were to produce gold medalist by feeding their athletes performing-enhancing drugs.  The athletes were fed these drugs with or without their consent.  Many of the athletes were young girls who had not even reached puberty.  These girls were fed testosterone, which helped them with muscle building, made them stronger, and have more endurance.  They also gave the athletes anabolic steroids, which have similar effects as testosterone in the body.  These drugs had more impact on woman than on men, so the girls were the first ones to start seeing changes in their bodies as a result.  Katharina Bullin, an Olympic medalist says that they were given different vitamins and supplements after their intense training, which included the drugs.  These were administered with the vitamins so the athletes would not suspect that they were being drugged.  The coaches would tell their athletes to speak up for any physical problem.  The coaches wanted to be seem trustworthy but in reality they wanted to be aware of any side effect that would affect an athlete in winning in the Olympics. These drugs guaranteed gold medals, so the coaches were so desperate that even gave their top athletes double dosage of testosterone. 

As steroids started to get more popular all around the world, the program became more intense.  They increased their dosages and furthered their research to get the best results from the steroids.  At the Olympics, East Germany’s athletes were the top in every sport.  Unfortunately, with all the medals came the side effects of the drugs.  The girls started to see changes in their bodies.   They started to grow excessive facial and body hair.  They started to gain weight and became aggressive. Their voice began deepened and were not allowed to speak to the media so no suspicions would arise.  A former athlete claims that her hands became bigger as well as her nose.  A lot of these changes were reported to the doctors, but they were not allowed to tell the athletes the reason for their body change.  Some of the girls started to question the changes and the “supplements” they were being fed. Many of the athletes that kept asking questions became dishonorably discharged and stripped from their medals.

Dr. Rainer Hartwich, who is an expert on steroids, suspected there were drugs involved due to the sudden winnings and big number of top athletes that all happened to be from East Germany.  It wasn’t until after the Berlin wall was removed ending communism that the systematic doping came to an end.  Soon after, the entire plan came to light.  Sadly it was too late, the damage was done and the athletes were severely damaged.  There was a wide range of side effects from depression and eating disorder to damage of vital organs such as the heart, liver, and womb.  Many of these athletes had premature death.  Many of the women claim to have miscarriages and even cancer that was triggered by the steroids.   On the documentary, two of the athletes that tell their story claimed that they were affected for life due to the steroid abuse.  One of the former athletes, Heidi Krieger, claims that her body changed drastically because of the testosterone that she felt she could no longer live in a woman’s body.  A couple of years later had a sex change and now is Andreas Krieger.  Another former athlete, Katharina Bullin, says that she stopped wearing feminine clothes because she was publicly humiliated and confused for a man all the time.  Her body and face features became similar to a man’s.  Due to the large muscles, her bone structure on her legs got so distorted that she’s still not able to walk right. 

Out of all the people that were directly involved in the program only seventeen people were convicted for illegal doping.  These included doctors and coaches.  Only a small number of these people served time and the rest were simply fined after damaging the lives and health of more than ten thousand young athletes.  

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/indepth/drugs/stories/top10.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGV35u35UM4

http://www.withoutthejuice.com/statesponsored-doping-east-germanys-sinister-scandal/

Funding for the poor Athlete

     "The NCAA Student-Athlete Opportunity Fund is intended to provide direct benefits to student-athletes or their families. The fund shall be used to assist student- athletes in meeting financial needs that arise in conjunction with participation in intercollegiate athletics, enrollment in academic curriculum or that recognize academic achievement." (GatorZone) 

       Issues finically concerning college student athletes will continue, unless there is a possibility for the athletes to make enough money to fund their lives without having to worry about finical needs. The reality of he situation is that if a student athlete is going to be paid and they will be able to live without finical worries, can they still be considered students. The history of college age students is that they are usually finically strapped. The struggle of not being able to have the extra spoils that are wanted is a part of future success with finances, because they have lived with less and there is not a need for more. 

       The Student Athlete Opportunity Fund allows students to receive funding when the funding is needed. In order to qualify for the funding assistance the student must be below standards of life. As a student everyone lives below the standard of life so this raises the argument that students that are not athletes should also receive funding to assist when they are finically strapped.

         “Targeting needy athletes looking to cover clothing, emergency travel and educational and medical expenses. An original $3 million-a-year allocation rose to $10 million 1996-97, then to a little more than $10.4 million in 2002-03. It's projected at almost $10.9 million this year.” (Wieberg, USA TODAY)

            From 1991 when the fund was originally started the three million dollar put aside to aid students in need rose to 10.9 million with in 10 years. The question is where is the money coming from and why is the amount continuously rising? I believe if the amount is able to rise, because there is money for the NCAA to pay athletes.

USA Today: Wieberg, Steve

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/college/2003-12-23-ncaa-athlete-welfare_x.htm

Gator Zone

www.gatorzone.com/compliance/pdf/student.../opportunity_fund.pd

Are Steroids Worth the consequences?

               

In the last 20 years we have seen a great number of famous athletes that have been accused or convicted of using illegal performance enhancing drugs while participating in sports. Before 1991 it was legal for athletes to us performance enhancing drugs, because these drugs were not popular and the harmful side effects from them were not discovered yet. Since 1991, these drugs have been illegal to purchase or possess under federal law and were banned in sports within a few years of the law change. After many allegations during the 1988 Olympics about steroid use, the government decided to outlaw the drugs and other sport organizations followed.  Many of us can remember in the mid-nineties when many athletes in the MLB were accused or caught using performance enhancing drugs. According to ESPN, the following MLB players have been linked to the use of performance enhancing drugs in the late 90’s seasons: Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Mark McGwire, Manny Ramirez, Rafael Palmeiro and Gary Sheffield. All of these players have accomplished something great for the game of baseball and many people were discussed to find out their childhood heroes were actually drug abusers. On top of that they were all breaking the law as well. During the great “Home Run” race of the 90s, these players had attracted so many young players that looked up to them as some of the game’s best athletes.  I wouldn’t want my children to inspire to be like someone who breaks the law and uses illegal drugs. The pressures to compete along with other factors, burden these professional athletes to the point that they turn to illegal substances for assistance. A perfect example of this would be Lance Armstrong. Lance was considered to be the best bicyclist in the entire world after he won 7 tour de France titles for cycling. As many of us have heard in the last year, Armstrong admitted to using steroids and other performance enhancing drugs during his participation in the Tour de France races. He had also encouraged all his teammates to use the drugs as well. He was stripped of his 7 titles and he was forced to surrender his famous Livstrong charity. This story is extremely unique because Armstrong became a hero to so many people who have struggled with similar health and athletic barriers. What makes Lance Armstrong’s story so different is the fact that he was able to beat cancer and prove that he was able to succeed no matter what obstacles needed to be overcome. His courageous story along with his unbelievable cycling accomplishments makes him a perfect role model for all athletes, in any sport. The thing that was so upsetting is that Lance disappointed thousands of fans and young athletes who looked up to him and he made people re-think about all the positive encouragement that he generated during his career. Armstrong always stressed that no matter what happens, if you keep on working toward something you can achieve it. To find out that he “cheated” or was “dishonest” the entire time is like a slap in the face. Many people were upset and disappointed to hear Armstrong admit to using drugs during all his Tour de France victories. The question that everyone has for these athletes is “Why?” What is the reasoning behind their actions? Does the outcome from using the drugs outweigh the impact it has on the sport and young fans? These drugs can help the athletes perform better and help them build their reputation but when it is exposed then it can totally destroy everything they have worked to accomplish. Like Armstrong, who lost all his Tour de France titles, his reputation, and his Livestong charity, that he worked so hard to build. So the big question is; Is using steroids worth all of the consequences for athletes?   

 http://personal.psu.edu/cjb5120/seventhassignment.html

http://espn.go.com/mlb/topics/_/page/the-steroids-era

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sCTDftgx8U

African Americans role in Sports Today

Once upon a time it was rare to see an African American playing a sport. Dating back to segregation, the process of integration was a long and hard one. Slowly, African Americans were thought to be seen as much more than 3/5ths of a person and more like an American. Even though they were allowed to drink from the same water fountains, attend the same schools and dine in the same restaurants some institutions were much slower to change. One in particular the institution of sports, both recreationally and professionally. African Americans like Jackie Robinson were given opportunities to play on professional teams where they were not only the only black but in most cases the only minority. Race and sports in today’s time are quite different. It is not rare to see a number of minorities on sports teams and also being the stars of those teams.

In class, we had a thorough discussion about the book Friday Night Lights. One of the most interesting situations that occurred in the book involved the African American player Boobie. Boobie, a very good African American football player on the high school’s team and unexpectedly was injured and was more than likely not going to continue to play. Boobie’s contribution to the football team allowed the citizens of Odessa County to look at him as a “black” person and not label him a “nigger”. It is safe to say all other African American students who attended the school were labeled as “niggers” just because of the color of their skin. But since Boobie assisted the team in football wins (which was the main focus of the citizens) he was considered an equal and treated with much more respect. The town wanted to win and they felt they needed Boobie to do just that. African American student-athletes were not focused on and no one cared about their plans after high school, it was as if they were invisible whenever they were off the field.

In today’s time it is the total opposite. First, African Americans are the face of the National Basketball Association (NBA). They are no longer worried about how people label them, they are paid equally if not more than white players and they keep their respect once they leave the court. Second, African American NBA players like Michael Jordan, Carmello Anthony, Dwayne Wade, Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose, LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal (just to name a few) make a huge societal impact off the court as well as on the court. They all have or had endorsements for their own shoe or clothing line. They are the faces of products like Gatorade and Powerade. Finally, most of them have created non-profit organizations to benefit in-need communities. For example, Carmello Anthony travels to Puerto Rico every year and re-constructs damaged public basketball courts and makes them brand new for the people in that community. Whites are no longer the star of the show. There are plenty good white NBA players like Pau Gasol, Jason Kidd and Steve Nash (to name a few) but we don’t see their faces on commercials, we don’t hear about their clothing lines and no one is standing in line to buy a pair of their shoes. The fear African Americans had in the past about not being accepted by society is long gone now.

Links that relate to this blog:

http://hoopedia.nba.com/index.php?title=First_African-American_NBA_Players

http://www.biography.com/people/jackie-robinson-9460813

Olympics and Sports

How popular are the Olympics? I mean seriously who actually talks about the Olympics prior to the January of the year we know the Olympics will be held in? I know I don’t. I’m sure most people don’t either. The only thing I really thought was interesting about the Olympics was the year Jamaica had their bobsled team in the games. Which I only learned about from the movie Cool Runnings .The 2012 Olympics were quite interesting for a two reasons: the very handsome Michel Phelps announced he had participated in his last Olympics and Gabrielle Douglas.

In class we talked a lot about gymnastics and the hard work little girls put in to be the “best”. In the book, Little Girls in Pretty Boxes we discussed how intense the training was and how the little girls were mostly not allowed to have a childhood. Those children in the book lived at gymnastics practice. Injuries were seen as minimal and did not excuse the children from training. A child after the age of 16 is considered “past her prime”. Most sports teams believe they train hard but the sport of gymnastics has them all beat.

In correlation with Olympics the film, Fists of Freedom highlighted a very important movement in the African American community. In the Olympics games of 1968 two African American track runners (Tommie Smith and John Carlos) won gold and once they took the stand on the podium, they shot their fists in the air. This gesture was later seen as the symbol of “Black Power”. Smith and Carlos are still known to this day for their brave action on that day at the Olympics. From this you can see and remember African Americans place in sports were in the back. If they were good, then maybe they got a little more recognition. Also, African Americans are mainly known for their speed in track and their talent on the basketball court. African Americans are not thought to be fast swimmers, ice skaters or efficient gymnast. Hence the reason Jamaica’s bobsled team was tormented so badly. But in 2012 Gabby changed all that.

Michel Phelps caught my attention after the 2008 Olympics, where he won all those medals and right after he became recognized by everyone including my favorite sandwich establishment Subway. But no one caught America’s attention in 2012 more than Gabrielle Douglas. Gabby was on the USA team in London where they won a gold medal and she individually won a gold medal for her routine. After that win, all of America was like, “Who is Gabrielle Douglas?” “Where did she come from?”and “Is she really black?” Before Gabby got back to America she already had endorsements worth over 100 million dollars. It is evident that African American Olympic winners can prove society wrong and advance in bobsled games and take home two gold medals in gymnastics. African Americans are no longer sticking to where society deems fit for them.

Links that relate to this blog:

http://gabrielledouglas.com/

http://www.thenation.com/blog/169069/fists-freedom-olympic-story-not-taught-school

 

Drugs and Sports

Drugs are illegal!!! Especially if you are a part of an institution like sports that consistently reiterate how the use of drugs will result in termination. So when does it start? When do kids start to see drug usage as appealing? Most people say it depends on the neighborhood children are raised in or the type of parenting they receive.

Student athletes in college have it pretty easy. They get to continue their childhood hobby and favorite past time as a young adult, get their expensive college tuition paid for and receive a monthly stipend. So why would anyone think to jeopardize that. Well, unfortunately the use of any substance while under a college contract is known for immediate termination also known as being kicked off the team. Most college players are tested for marijuana use. Alcohol consumption is not as frowned upon as marijuana, cocaine or steroids. My main problem with college sports programs is that they do not randomly test their athletes enough. Coaches warn their players on Friday about random drug testing that will take place the following Monday. So how efficient are these test? This warning and time frame allows for players to do whatever they need to in order to get clean of any substance. Regardless how consistently they do cocaine, marijuana or steroids there are some slightly efficient ways to flush them out of your system. Are colleges that concerned with having good sports programs to where they do not enforce their drug policy in regards to random drug testing the best way they can? I think they are afraid. What happens when the star player is randomly drug tested (without warning) and test positive for marijuana? That player must be kicked off the team and then there goes their season. I think college coaches are more concerned with their record rather than the drug free health of their players.

In class we watched a couple YouTube videos starring Lance Armstrong. The commercials we watched were Nike commercials and they targeted Lance’s ability to not allow his cancer and surgery to impact him in a negative way. Lance did not let his illness deter him of his dreams and he continued to be an award winning bicyclist. People could not believe how soon Lance returned to conditioning nor his drive and dedication and eventually started accusing him of consuming drugs. Saying things like, “there’s no way he could have had cancer and still performing at the level he is”. Lance continuously denied the accusations. Rather it is in person, on an interview or subliminally through a commercial. Lance Armstrong claimed to have not used drugs. Then one day his story changed, this caused a lot of drama. The fact he did consume drugs cost him a number of record breaking medals. Another professional athlete, Aaron Rodriguez, who played for the New York Yankees also ended up admitting to steroid usage. Drugs and sports are frowned upon no matter what level you play at. Rather it is in AAU, NCAA or professionally. Drug usage is not ok while playing a sport.

Links that relate to this blog:

http://www.biography.com/people/lance-armstrong-9188901

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/30/ncaa-college-drugtesting-_n_842524.html

NCAA: The Billion Dollar Industry Fueled By Free Employees

Should college athletes be paid; the never ending debate.  People all around the country fall on either side of the fence on this particular situation.  My opinion.  YES, they should be paid, and it isn't even a question.  The NCAA, and college sports in general, is a gold mine.  It also happens to be the perfect business plan.  You get a bunch of employees to work essentially for free, and then make millions upon millions of dollars off of them and their likeness.  Student athletes work unbelievably hard to play for their schools teams, that, when accounting for practices, traveling, and games, being a student athlete is equivalent to having a full time job.  If that isn't enough, it should also be noted that they are full time students as well, which at the minimum is twelve credit hours per week, putting student athletes at around an average on the low end of the scale, 52 hours of work per week. A common misconception is that athletes are paid, but instead of checks, they are given scholarships.  I used to believe this as well, but with a little bit of googling, its easily evident that scholarships aren't nearly worth the compensation deserved.  Next, I would like to quickly dive into each of these points.  First, we will start with argument that student athletes are essentially working full time jobs, and not being compensated for it.

According to this Sun Times article, it’s argued that being an athlete at a big time football/basketball program spends, on average, 43.3 hours per week(football), and 39 hours per week on basketball.  With the sport essentially equivalent to a full time job, they still have to make time for school, which at the minimum is 12 hours per week.  This puts the time spent per week by a student athlete at around 50-57 hours per week.  They are not paid for any of this, and if they want money they are told to get a job.  Really? Where in the world is a human being going to be able to fit enough time for a job into a schedule that consists of 40 hours of sports and 12 hours of school per week. This isn't even counting the time spent studying so that the students can continue to pass classes and participate in the sports, because in most programs it’s understood that with poor grades one will not be able to play or participate in athletic activities.  Whenever this argument is brought up, the typical immediate comeback is that student athletes are usually on full ride scholarships, which is enough compensation.  The truth is, that it really isn't.

According to a CBS sports article, it was “concluded that a Division I-A football player was worth $121,048 per year. That's a small fortune. But less than half the $265,027 a college basketball player is worth.” Those are astonishing numbers, and that is just the average. Players at the biggest schools are worth much more than that.  It was also found that most players on full scholarships are actually living below the poverty line.  To summarize, these people need to start being paid. This brings me to my last point, which happens to be the thing I have the biggest problem with.  The NCAA.

The NCAA is a billion dollar industry that doesn't have to properly pay its employees.  Furthermore, the NCAA goes to great lengths to make sure that these “employees”(student athletes) are not allowed to use their platform as an athlete to gain money. Michael Wilbon, one of my favorite writers, made a great point on this issue. To paraphrase, he states that a music or art student is free to use their talent to make money while still being a student, and nobody cares or asks questions.  If an athlete wants to do the same, and use their stature as a notable athlete  to make money, they get in trouble or even kicked off the team, and can probably expect some hefty fines.  This leads to athletes accepting money from agents, in a lot of cases because they are poor and they need money for their families.  Even Charles Barkley admitted to this.

The NCAA has a great business model, but unfortunately the only people being benefited is the NCAA. The athletes are treated as commodities.  Great for business when they perform well, and if they don't perform well or get injured, just take away that scholarship and give it to the next guy.  Who the hell cares if the kid cant afford school without it and has to drop out of the university.  It’s an extremely broken system, and it needs to be reworked.  Student athletes can’t continue to be exploited like this.

Should-college-athletes-be-paid?-As-much-as - Chicago Sun-Times. (n.d.). Retrieved from  http://www.suntimes.com/sports/colleges/7635972-419/should-college-athletes-be-paid-as-much-as-1m-says-new-report.html

College athletes really owe schools money? Then they must be paid - NCAA Football - CBSSports.com News, Scores, Stats, Schedule and BCS Rankings. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/21575106/if-college-athletes-really-owe-schools-money-then-they-must-be-paid

Charles Barkley: I Took Money From Agents in College | NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/sports/Charles-Barkley-I-Took-Money-From-Agents-in-College-103149774.html

Wilbon, M. (n.d.). College athletes deserve to be paid - ESPN. Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/6778847/college-athletes-deserve-paid

Trouble for Women's Sports if NCAA Loses Suit

Viewing college sports has been an American pastime for decades. Many regard college sports as the purest form of athletics, because without all of the contracts, bonuses and payouts, the athletes are allowed to focus on the heart of the game, competition. It is true that television coverage of men and women's athletics is increasing through NCAA.  It is also true that watching men's college events on television is significantly more popular and receives double the coverage than women's. But right now, the NCAA is currently in a legal battle that could change the very face of college athletics, and ultimately lose that special competitive spirit that student athletes are known for. The O'Bannon vs. NCAA licensing case has been an ever-growing thorn in the NCAA's foot since 2009. Ed O'Bannon, a former Cincinnati student athlete, was one of the first to file this lawsuit stating that his likeness had been used in commercial, video games, promotions and other footage without his consent. To Ed O'Bannon and others, "The plaintiffs argued that the NCAA violated antitrust law by failing to compensate former student athletes for using their likeness in a variety of forms." (Landes, Baran). As the thorn grew, so did the the number of people involved on the case. The still ongoing case more recently had begun to include current college athletes in the same violations. If the NCAA loses the case, set for early 2014, it would mean that students athletes are now going to be individually compensated for media income the NCAA receives through television, video games, etc. Current athletes would not be paid during their time in college, but athletes would receive a trust fund after their college years for compensation. All funds to athletes wouldn't be equally divided either. It would depend on the revenue the department brings in. Ever since the activation of the Amendment Title IX in 1972, Women's athletics has been thriving in the NCAA with exponential growth, but this licensing case could prove to be the most disastrous for female student athletes in the NCAA.

      

How would gender affect the NCAA if this case brings the financial change it is looking for? Because gender plays a big role in Media and the NCAA, I believe the women's athletic program would suffer greatly from this change in more than one way. The money coming to the athletes would come directly from the revenue of college athletic departments, creating a smaller budget for their programs. If this new compensation for NCAA players takes effect, the two major compensations would come from television and video games, bringing a huge disadvantage for females in the NCAA. The O'bannon v. NCAA article states, “the appropriate allocation of broadcast and video revenue between student athletes and athletic departments is 50-50, while video game revenue is split 2 to 1 in favor of athletic departments" (Landes,Baran ). Given that men's sports generate much more air time on television, it would mean that their ratings and popularity would bring in more revenue than women's sports. While the video games industry is big business, it does not seem likely that women's sports would benefit from it at all. NCAA video games only target male consumers, with males always on the cover. All of this money now going to athletes has to come from somewhere and it does the athletic departments. "It all comes down to who brings in the big bucks, and who doesn't. Women's sports are a drain on almost all athletic department budgets" (CSNBBS.com). The money needed then could be even harder to find to fund women's programs because due to being not as popular, money just wouldn't come their way. Consumer Popularity would matter greatly in the funds athletic departments receive, and women's sports revenues don't nearly equal the men's. I'm sure if this happens to the NCAA, Women could also just plain lose interest in sports, seeing popular male athletes reap the benefits while the workload would still be equal. Overall, the O'bannon vs. NCAA lawsuit would be the worst possible outcome for women's sports, which right now, is still gaining popularity. If money becomes divided between players and departments, for women, it would be like having the legs sweep right from under them. It would be a slow, crippling blow to the entire NCAA.

Sources

Landes, Phil. Baran, Peter."O'Bannon v NCAA: Potential Financial Consequences of a Student- Athlete Trust Fund".Winthropintelligence.com.4.Feb.2013

"O'Bannon Suit, If NCAA loses, 50% Revenue to all players?"CSNBBS.com. 2. April.2013

Steroids: The Notorious Drug

Men and women can both be excellent at playing sports, but when it comes to who does it better and why, any biased person would jump in to the men defense. Why do people in general consider men to be better athletes? Is it because they tend to be stronger (well, not in general, but that’s what society makes people think) or is it simply because they are men? Well, it is not! Instead for many years society has made us believe that it is because most men know the sport, love the sport and feel pressured to do good in the sport. Pressure can cause athletes to do a lot of things, and when you’re recognized for your good plays, you never want to lose that recognition, so what happens…. drugs happen. Athletes fall into the use of drugs and the most popular one… STEROIDS!

A Steroid is a drug used to enhance the performance in your body while at the same time treating a variety of medical conditions. This drug has been banned from the use of any athletes and within sports like the NBA and NFL (to name a few) because it tends to help the person taking it pump up and perform better within their sport. But why do men athletes have a higher percentage of taking steroids in comparison to female athletes? Some of the biggest notorious steroid users in sports history are mostly men, with one women somewhere down the line.

Alex Rodriguez was considered one of the best baseball players in baseballs history, he was so good, he even got to sign one of the largest contracts in the history sports with the New York Yankees, until in 2009, when he admitted the use of steroids from ’01-’03 and got caught in ’03 after he being drug tested.

Another heavy hitter in the steroid history is Mark McGuire, became well known for his home run streak that took him to the top of the list of best MLB players, but when the fans and the people surrounded him and started watching his plays, they then began to question the use of steroids, which he denied, until early 2011 when he came clean to everyone and admitted to using steroids for over a decade.

As mentioned before and to everyone’s surprise, women athletes do to use the drug to enhance their performance in their sport, in October 2007, Marion Jones a well known female track and field athlete, competitor in the Sydney Olympics in 2000, three gold and two bronze medalist winner, admitted to the use of steroids and was stripped down from all her medals. Jones had for many years denied the use of the drug, until she admitted lying to federal prosecutors who were already investigating her case.

Regardless of the reasons and of who uses the drug, this should not be allowed for anyone to use. This drug and any use of other drugs should definitely be banned from sports in general, if the athlete is good, he/she should be good without the use of any substance.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4816607

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/155381-top-ten-notorious-steroid-users

http://www.abovetheinfluence.com/facts/drugssteroids

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/12/sports/baseball/12mcgwire.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Drug Abuse in the NFL

         The Detroit Lions drafted had the second overall draft pick in 2003. The Detroit Lions drafted Wide Receiver Charles Rogers from Michigan State, and signed him to a six year contract that was worth over 50 million dollars. 14 million was guaranteed of the contract that he signed with the franchise. The lions could have drafted Andre Johnson who turned out to be a major dominant Wide Receiver for the Houston Texans. The Lions could have easily taken Carson Palmer and solved their Quarterback problems for decades even though they had drafted Joey Harrington a year before with the 3rd overall draft pick for the 2002 NFL Draft. When the Lions selected him when General Manager Matt Millen was available, the city of Detroit was happy. He was a former Michigan high school standout in high school for track and basketball. His home town was Saginaw, which is less than an hour away from Detroit. It couldn't have been a better scenario to play for your home team. Charles Rogers added after he was drafted, " I thought by me coming to Detroit I could get fans what they were missing, a winning program, a winning team."

     When an organization does draft research and scouting on a player, they always look at the physical aspect and not always the mental part. The General Manager of any organization is supposed to look up a player history of any type of encounters the player had with the law. Charles Rogers had red flags surrounding him during the draft process. Matt Million highly ignored them. Rogers was tested twice positive for marijuana early on at Michigan State. There was a test that indicated excess water, which the NFL considered a possible masking agent in Rogers' system. Rogers was seen by the NFL as an explosive threat down the field who was highly compared to Randy Moss. He had the size of 6 foot three and ran a 4.34 at the combine. That is considered thundering speed for a wideout. Lions hoped he would be part of a compliment to the former Quarterback Joey Harrington. His first NFL season started off good until he broke his left collarbone in practice against cornerback Dre Bly. His season was ended after that injury. He started off really well catching two touchdown passes against the Arizona Cardinals in his first game. The next season he came back stronger and was ready to make a comeback during the 2004 season. The season opener against the Chicago Bears, he dived for the ball that was intended towards him. He fell awkward on his other right shoulder, and broke that collarbone. His season was once again cut short. The next season he was not seen as the same player. He gained weight to get stronger but he lost his speed. Matt Millen said something didn't look right with him. He was slow getting off his brakes and not looking the same promising player like he once did. His season also didn't look promising because he was suspended for four games due to drug abuse.

    According to Millen, " He fell victim to a far stronger addiction, the toughest one to overcome... and that is peer pressure." Rogers downfall in his NFL career could be seen as the blame on a number of different things. Injuries made him depressed and he admitted when he broke his collarbone the second time, he was depressed and abused his drug prescriptions. Lack of discipline, immaturity also came to the table. Rogers just didn't how to deal with failure. He couldn't cope with it. When he came back for his third season after back to back injuries, he couldn't cope with how his first two seasons being drained by injuries. Being away from the team and meetings, he started smoking marijuana daily. Rogers noted that, " I was like in disarray." He looked average in his third season. Something looked clearly wrong and it was the impact of drugs that he was using. During his fourth season, he was cut by the team right before the season started. The new coaching staff just wasn't impressed with him. His speed wasn't the same anymore and his attitude just looked bad for a team that was rebuilding. His last stint with an NFL team was in the summer of 2006 during the preseason. Ever since then no team gave him a contract. Nick Saban his former coach, gave him a tryout with the Dolphins. Unfortunately, he was not impressed by his workout. That was it for Charles Rogers. His NFL career was cut short due to injuries and lack of discipline.

Bibliography

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=090814/rogers

http://blog.mlive.com/its-just-sports/2009/08/interview_espns_jemele_hill_ta.html