Division One Athletes To Begin Receiving Annual Salary Based On School’s Revenue

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana –

The National Collegiate Athletic Association has announced an unprecedented change to its rules, when the organization officially announced today that all division one athletes will be paid a salary based on the revenue created by their respected sports and schools.

The NCAA Labor Revenue Act (NCAA-LRA) will go into effect January 1, 2016. This is huge news for college athletes involved with the top college programs in their sport. For example, basketball players for the University of Kentucky could bring home as much as $50,000 for one season of basketball, according to NCAA-LRA Chairman Bob O’Dell.

“We believe this is a fair arrangement. The top programs, such as Ohio State, Alabama, Kentucky, Louisville, Oregon, and Notre Dame, just to name a few, bring in millions of dollars in revenue every single year based on the performance of their sports programs. This is a new age, and we must give back to the student-athletes what they put in,” O’Dell said.

Many division-1 athletes have fought for years with the belief that they should see some of the money that they help bring in to their respective schools. The University of Louisville basketball program, which is endorsed by ADIDAS, has been the number-one revenue earner for college basketball for several years running. The money earned by the program went straight to the university, used for whatever use it deemed necessary.

Kentucky head coach John Calipari says that it is about time. “We have technically been paying these kids out of our pocket for several years. We appreciate the fact that our boosters and alumni have made sure our basketball players have been driving around in nice cars and sporting bling, but the university itself should have to pay also,” Calipari said. “They make millions, and it’s time they shared the wealth.

CLEVELAND, Ohio –

The outspoken, flamboyant, controversial Cleveland Browns rookie and second-string quarterback, Johnny Manziel, has guaranteed that he will take the Browns to the Super Bowl this season, something that has never been accomplished in franchise history, and that this feat will earn him the Most Valuable Player award.

When asked about head coach Mike Pettine’s decision to start veteran quarterback Brian Hoyer over him for their highly anticipated season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Manziel told reporters on Friday that he will be the starting quarterback by week 3 and stunned the locker room with his comments.

“I guarantee I will take this team to the Super Bowl this season. To shut up all the haters I will take home the MVP award, bring the Lombardi Trophy to Cleveland, and take my happy ass and a few beautiful women to Disney World. Write that in your little article,” Manziel said in a state of frustration when Louisville Times reporter Quen Caudill asked him about the situation. Manziel had been fielding questions all week about Coach Pettine’s choice to start Hoyer this weekend, and apparently decided to throw the press a bone.

Manziel, aka “Johnny Football,” broke several NCAA division 1 FBS and SEC records last season at Texas A&M and was considered a leading candidate to win the Heisman Trophy as a Sophomore in the weeks before the 2013 season. Florida State freshman quarterback Jameis Winston would eventually be named the Heisman Trophy winner after leading his Seminoles’ to a National Championship.

Manziel’s eligibility for the 2013 season was under question after reports surfaced that he had signed autographs for money in January 2013. On August 28, 2013, the NCAA reached an agreement with Texas A&M to suspend Manziel for the first half of the team’s game against Rice. Many believe it cost him his chances to be a legitimate Heisman candidate while Louisville Cardinals QB Teddy Bridgewater moved up the board in popularity past him. Manziel anticipated being taken in the top 10 during the 2014 NFL draft and slid all the way down to the 22nd pick by the Browns.

When asked about Manziel’s comments, anticipated Browns starter Brian Hoyer seemed to take the high road and showed absolutely no animosity toward Manziel.

“This is the NFL. We are all very excited about getting out there and playing ball. Football is a very emotional game and when you work so hard to be named a starter and don’t quite make it, it is a tough deal. Johnny is awesome, he will be a great quarterback someday. I ain’t mad at the dude, he is a gamer, he wants to win and he wants to be a winner. I totally understand where he is coming from. He only expects the best and wants to be the one to bring it.”

Head coach Mike Pettine seemed to be a little frustrated with Johnny Football’s pre-mature comments, and wasn’t afraid of holding back in his comments.

“I tell ya what, he is a rookie, hell he is still an immature kid. That boy has a lot to learn I can tell ya that. I love the kid but he can be a loudmouth, I think you all know that already,” Pettine said, the entire press pool laughing. “He is frustrated, he just wants to get out there and play, that crap he said about the Super Bowl and winning MVP, I will talk to him about that. It won’t happen again I’ll tell ya that. Brian Hoyer earned the right to start this weekend and in my opinion, it’s no contest. Maybe Johnny just had to, you know, go to the bathroom, and his words were misunderstood.”