Many people will argue that athletics are not an important part of a child and students career for many reasons. Most people who choose this viewpoint believe that it distracts the student from their academics, therefore damaging their future. The people who believe this agree that students should be studying instead of practicing their sport or playing in events. Therefore, why should athletic scholarships be given out? This would encourage students to practice even harder and longer to be able to achieve a talent good enough to be rewarded with a scholarship. Another reason people might be against athletic scholarships is because it would save the college money by not giving students free tuition. If the college did not give out athletic scholarships, they could save hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. This money could go to things such as academic tuition, building funds, or previous debts owned by the school.
Although both of these arguments are valid, I believe there are strong counterarguments to each one. What many people don’t understand is that athletics encourage more than just physical toughness. I have learned that athletics have taught me much more than that; they have taught me perseverance, how to be supportive, and that hard work pays off. Also, student athletes are well rounded and have knowledge of time management. Student athletes are forced work hard in their academics in order to stay on the team. If you receive under a two point five GPA, you are ineligible to play for the team. This results in student athletes having some of the highest GPAs in colleges. When people try and