A proud 19-year-old quarterback jogs triumphantly to the locker room behind his teammates, as thousands of fans scream with joy after a huge victory. He gets to the locker room to rest after an exhausting game, prepared to sign dozens of autographs, and see his name all over SportsCenter. This game he helped sell over 50,000 tickets, and thousands of dollars in concessions. Despite all the young man has accomplished, he won’t receive a dime for any of it.

On October 30th, House Bill 3904 passed overwhelming through the Illinois House of Representatives, by a margin of 86-25. The bill would allow college athletes in Illinois to receive endorsements, and to be paid based on their image and likeness. It also bans punishment from the NCAA for any type of endorsement deal. If passed, the bill would take effect in 2023.

The bill is sponsored by State Rep. Emmanuel Welch of the 7th district of Illinois, which includes areas such as River Forest, Maywood, and Hillside. The bill was first filed on September 30th and has Co-Sponsors such as Rep. Michael J. Zalewski, and Rep. Thaddeus Jones. The bill is based on a similar bill that passed in California called the Fair Pay to Play Act, which was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 30th.

“Colleges, Universities, the NCAA, athletic directors, they’ve all made billions off of these college athletes,” Welch said. “Why not allow college athletes to profit off their own likeness and image?”

Welch has been passionate about the rights and privileges of students for years. After attending college at Northwestern University and playing for their baseball team, Welch attended John Marshall Law School. Following this, he worked as a partner for Sanchez Daniels and Hoffman and served as President of the Proviso Township Board of Education for District 209. In 2018, Governor J.B Pritzker appointed Welch to join the Educational Success transition committee, which is responsible for education policy in the state of Illinois.

Welch reflected on the lasting impact this bill could have for college athletes. “This bill will change lives instantly—it’s a game-changer,” said Welch. “These college athletes are going to be able to make money, and they’re going to have money to spend in these local college towns. They are gonna be able to support local restaurants and local businesses like car dealerships. They are gonna make us be able to uplift our economy.”

The NCAA had long held the position that college athletes should not be able to receive any money whatsoever but have shown signs of a policy reversal in the last several weeks. According to money nation, the organization has made an average annual income of $814 million since 2006, voted unanimously on October 29th to begin the process of allowing college athletes to profit off their name, image, and likeness.

The NCAA’s change in opinion comes in the wake of California’s law allowing endorsements for college athletes, as well as over a dozen states such as New Jersey and South Carolina who are working towards adopting similar laws. The NCAA has also dealt with lawsuits like that of former Villanova defensive back Trey Johnson, who in November sued the NCAA and many of its member schools for violating minimum wage laws, by refusing to pay college athletes like employees.

Upper School History Teacher Daniel Greenstone, who also teaches the high school elective Sociology of Sports, expressed his concerns with the NCAA treating all college athletes as non-professionals. “The NCAA has operated under the idea that for decades that its athletes were amateurs,” said Greenstone, “and in many sports that’s true. But in the revenue sports, which include men’s basketball, football, some women’s basketball, and maybe baseball, that stopped being true long ago.

Greenstone expressed his frustration in putting college and professional sports in completely different categories. “These are not amateur sports,” Greenstone said. “They are worth billions of dollars to the universities, and some of the adults employed in that industry make millions. The only amateur about it is that they refuse to compensate the players. I think that is a real case of exploitation.”

According to fansided.com, college sports programs raked in $14 billion dollars in 2018 through ticket sales, television contracts, apparel deals, and merchandise sales. Last year, former Duke University basketball standout and current NBA rookie Zion Williamson was at the center of this debate, considering how much attention and popularity he attracted to the NCAA. David Berri, a sports economics and professor at Southern Utah University, found that if Williamson had a similar player revenue share percentage as the NBA has, he would have made over 5 million dollars in the 2017-2018 season.

Senior and Varsity Basketball Captain Oliver Manilow reflected on why college athletes should be able to receive financial support in college. “For top tier Division athletes,” Manilow said, “it’s a good start for their careers to be able to receive endorsements, considering many of these athletes will be looking to join the pros after college. It is important for college athletes to be paid for the service they give to their teams and the sports world.”

In addition to kick-starting their professional careers, athletes could also use the earnings to purchase basic necessities that they may not be able to afford otherwise. CNN reported in 2014 that former University of Connecticut basketball star Shabazz Napier remembered nights he had gone to bed hungry, and former Tennessee star running back Arian Foster recounted taking money from boosters, a potential NCAA violation, to help pay for food throughout college.

Athletic Director Bobby Starks commented on how this new policy could change the mindset of Parker athletes interested in college athletics. “I think if people see that not only do they get an athletic scholarship,” Stark said, “but there are more opportunities to be had, that will make being a student-athlete at a university more attractive to high school student-athletes.”

Although Parker hasn’t produced athletes in recent years who have risen to the level of receiving endorsements or profit, many have received athletic opportunities in college. Parker ‘18 grad and Williams basketball player Marc Taylor, and Parker ‘19 grad and Notre Dame track athlete Jack McNabola are just two from the last two years. As the policy on this issue shifts state by state, college athletes around the country may finally see the chance to make a dime off all their hard work.