Stephan James and his newest film National Champions explores a decades-long debate that has shadowed the NCAA and college sports: recognizing college athletes as employees.
James portrays LeMarcus James, star quarterback for his college team that will be participating in the NCAA National Championship game. Merely hours before the game is scheduled to start, James calls for all players from his and the opposing team to boycott the game in an effort to highlight the financial inequality student-athletes face in comparison to coaches, commissioners and NCAA figureheads.
Stephan James on The Man Behind the Boycott
James knew that it took a specific type of person to take on an institution as formidable as the NCAA.
“For LeMarcus, this wildly talented young athlete, for him to be able to take on the burden that is the NCAA in this sort of David versus Goliath type of thing,” said James. “For me, this guy was gonna have to be a guy that came with a lot of poise, head on his shoulders. Someone who could wrap his head around not only his fame, his relevancy, and popularity on the field, but could understand how that could, in turn, provide a platform for him to speak about things off of the field.”
The David versus Goliath metaphor is not far-fetched. The NCAA is a billion-dollar industry that makes money off of ad revenue, ticket sales and viewership, with 90% of its revenue coming from its annual March Madness basketball tournament. CNBC reports that 2019’s tournament alone brought in well over $1 billion.
“I think it’s always a really, really cool thing when you can do something that’s entertaining and important at the same time,” said James. “It brings just a different level of intensity and focus and purpose to the workday.”
Life for Student-Athletes
The NCAA underwent a rule change earlier this year that allows college athletes to make a profit off of their name and likeness. Student-athletes were not able to profit from businesses that had nothing to do with the NCAA and were unable to sign endorsement deals or even take full advantage of the social media influence of many athletes who at times have hundreds of thousands of followers on their pages.
Athletes from across all college sports immediately took advantage of the rule change and signed deals with shoe brands, phone companies, autograph signings, social media accounts and more.
The move, however, does not treat student-athletes as employees and does not regularly compensate players. In other words, unless a student-athlete has the business ties or relationships to sign one of the aforementioned deals, they could still very likely receive no payment for their services, including no health insurance once their playing days are done.
It is viewed among some that scholarship to play sports is enough compensation for athletes. This is misleading and does not paint an accurate picture.
A 2019 survey reveals that 14% of student-athletes attending a division 1 school are homeless, while 20% who attend a two-year college are homeless.
One must also consider the ever-rising cost of living, the already staggering cost of higher education, and an inflation period stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic that is still continuing. On top of these financial burdens, student-athletes are still required to attend class, study, pass, and dedicate time to their sport that can be the equivalent of a full-time job. The kids simply do not have the time or resources to gain employment without it interfering with other aspects of their lives that they’re expected to give time to.
National Champions stars Stephan James and JK Simmons. It is directed by Ric Roman Waugh and written by Adam Mervis. See it in theaters today.
