State Rep wants to pay college athletes

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WDTN) - State Representative Clayton Luckie has introduced a bill in the Ohio House that would allow schools to offer everyone from the quarterback to the field hockey back-ups thousands of dollars a year.

He says he did it in part because of what's going on with Ohio State University and its punishment for players receiving hundreds of dollars for selling memorabilia.

The bill includes all schools, even those in Division III. It would offer up to $8,000 for Division I athletes, $6,000 for Division II and $4,000 for the other divisions.

He says the schools would determine how much of the stipend to give out and which sports teams would get it.

He tells us the money would come from the schools themselves and their conferences' TV deals.

Luckie says aside from the stipend, the bill would also allow players to get paid for attending charity events or other functions.

2 NEWS asked him why he thinks scholarships aren't enough.

"I feel it's hard for students who have to come home and who can't work and have to study all the time," Luckie says about athletes. "Everyone in that arena where they play is getting paid."

Recently the NCAA approved a $2,000 stipend for Division I athletes, but some schools have complained that they can't afford to pay that amount.

Luckie thinks it's too low anyway.

Luckie says he knows the bill clashes with the NCAA's guidelines but he thinks other states will pass similar bills forcing the NCAA to make changes.