The Kournikoving of College Sports

The NIL era is a test of whether an unjust system can be blown apart and improved as a cultural product for its scrambling. Ultimately the demolition had to happen, nostalgia be damned. College sports partisans may have been loath to admit it, but, yes, it was unfair to deprive stars of earnings just because “amateurism” made for good marketing. At the same time, I can respect that college sports is a massive institution, built up over decades, that many people derive joy and connection from. Additionally, I can understand that unfairness to stars happened within a system that enriched the lives of many athletes, people who weren’t being exploited when they had the best times of their lives in front of cheering crowds. In shaking things up, you can imperil an institution that’s benefitted legions, since it rests atop a veritable Jenga structure of noble lies.