The Evolution of Athlete Scholarships

The first college recruitments for student-athletes started in the 1880s as college football started to evolve from a fun and easygoing activity to a serious and profit-oriented sport. At first, compensation for college athletes would come from fraternities and alumni. They offered incentives such as assistance with employment, gifts, favors, and free room and board at the home of a team supporter or coach. This would be offered to encourage certain athletes to choose their school and improve their performance.

After a few years, there were a few attempts at trying to offer athletes scholarships, Kibilko says, "The first attempt at reforming the scholarship system came in the 1950s, but it was a weak effort that took a back seat to the two main issues facing collegiate sports at the time--television and radio revenue, and the rise of professional sports, most notably football and basketball” (Kibilko). The NCAA validated athletic scholarships to attract qualified student-athletes to their sports programs. Associations that were implemented at the same time along with school administrators appointed rules and regulations to help student-athletes from being exploited. They also did this to clearly state how much compensation can be given and in what manner.

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As time went on and the NCAA grew, they determined that there would be three different divisions. “In 1973, the NCAA split its membership into three distinct divisions: Division I, Division II, and Division III. Under the NCAA rules, Division I and Division II schools can offer scholarships to athletes for playing a recognized sport. Division III schools however cannot offer any athletic scholarships. The general rule is that larger schools compete in Division I and the smaller schools are usually in Division II and III” (History).