Upsets are common for NCAA basketball during March Madness. But perhaps the biggest upset of all, according to Linfield College economics Professor Randy Grant, is the issue surrounding player compensation.
Grant, who was recently interviewed for CNBC and Marketplace, says that the NCAA has a vested interest in keeping compensation as it stands currently.
“As long as people keep paying for the product the NCAA will keep doing it because it’s been a great financial model for them,” he said.
The real stars of the NCAA’s March Madness are the student-athletes said Grant, and “they’re not getting their cost of attendance fully covered. And given the work demands for practice and games, they lack the time to pursue the education.”
Read the full article, “For players, March Madness is no cash cow” and listen to the interview, “Who wins March Madness? The NCAA.”
Grant is the co-author (with John Leadley and Zenon Zygmont) of “The Economics of Intercollegiate Sports” published by World Scientific. The new edition includes a chapter covering the Penn State, Ohio State and Oregon NCAA violation cases. He was also featured in 2015 in the International Business Times.
Learn more about the Linfield Department of Economics.
