Pay College Athletes

Re “The Wrong Message for Black Male Athletes,” Dec. 23: NCAA Division I colleges depend on sports, particularly football, as a major source of income. Look at what a school receives when it is in a major bowl game. Coach Jimmy Johnson once told Michael Irvin, when they were at the University of Miami: If you want an education, go to Harvard; you are here to play football. It is nearly impossible for a high school student with a 4.0 grade-point average to get into UCLA, but the rules are different for a skilled athlete. One way or another, they will find a way to make him eligible.

End the hypocrisy; pay these guys. They are there for one reason -- that is, to produce revenue for the university -- no more, no less.

Tom Warner

Hacienda Heights