Dick DeVenzio

In the following viewpoint, Dick DeVenzio argues that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) should not bar college athletes from taking payment for participation in their sports. DeVenzio asserts that there is no valid reason why these athletes should not be paid, and he contends that the existing NCAA policy limits college athletes’ economic opportunities. DeVenzio is an author and a former high school and college basketball player.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to DeVenzio, why is it strange to make student- athletes sign statements that they are involved in college sports as an avocation?
2. In DeVenzio’s view, why should athletes in non-revenue-producing sports not receive the same benefits as athletes in revenue-producing sports?
3. What was Martin Luther King Jr.’s litmus test for the morality of laws, as stated...