SCHOOLS SPEND MILLIONS TO TUTOR PLAYERS

The Chicago Tribune has a good story today about the multimillion-dollar academic centers that most universities with big-time football programs have for their student-athletes, and it’s the kind of story that explains how even “amateur” athletic programs can burn through so many millions of dollars a year.Illinois spent $6 million on its tutoring center, Michigan spent $12 million, LSU spent $15 million and Texas A&M spent $27 million. Because of Title IX requirements, the universities open these tutoring centers up to athletes from all their intercollegiate sports, but let’s be honest: Football is the reason these schools spend millions. And that doesn’t sit well with everyone on campus."These athletic tutoring palaces perpetuate resentment and stereotyping on campus,” the Tribune quotes former Notre Dame football player Allen Sack, who is now a University of New Haven professor, saying. “A student who is not an athlete will say: ‘I’m working nights to get through school, why don’t I get free tutoring? That the athletes do perpetuates the image of a dumb jock who couldn’t get through school without special help."No matter how bad the economy gets, it seems that big-time football programs can always find money to renovate their stadiums, give their coaches big contracts, and build palatial tutoring centers. Everything except pay the players.