Jim Harbaugh is encouraging his players to pick up summer jobs. He believes this will promote responsibility and give student athletes extra money. Players Khalid Hill, Shane Morris and Maurice Ways spoke during a Sound Mind Sound Body high school camp session about Harbaugh push to have players get summer jobs. The Detroit News brings us the details.
“(Harbaugh) talked about being more responsible because he said when he was here he got a chance to work at GM in a plant,” Hill said Friday. “He was like, ‘Why don’t you have the same opportunities?’ because we always talk about us guys not having enough money to support ourselves. We get that little rent check to support us for our rent, but why not have a job where you can have your own spending money so you don’t have to worry about somebody giving you something? So why not be more responsible for yourself and take accountability for it? That’s why that was a high point of him saying we should have a job.”
Two takeaways; If the NCAA and Michigan would just pay players they wouldn’t have money issues and considering the players do have summer jobs aka summer workouts maybe some compensation for those wouldn’t be a bad idea. And that leads to my second takeaway which is the demands of the student athlete increasing since Harbaugh played and what effect that has on them being able to hold summer jobs. Its similar to the guy saying he payed for college off of summer jobs but ignoring the cost increases and pay not keeping up of modern times.