The Student as AthleteThe student-athlete is a term often used to describe a member of an institution's student body as well as a member of the one of the school's sports teams. This is not a label that includes students who play recreational sports in their free time; this term is used for students who split their time between athletics and academics. In the early days of intercollegiate competition and still today, the governing body of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) wanted athletes to maintain their amateurism. Being an amateur means, remaining unpaid, why compete and achieve a c. Athletes had to come from the student body and off-campus recruiting of athletes was prohibited. The problem with the NCAA's many rules and regulations in the early days was that they expected schools to police themselves and uphold a certain morality, but without checks and balances, corruption was sure to occur and it happened. Beginning in the late 1920s and continuing into the 1940s, great athletes were "sponsored" by alumni to play for the school team. Alumni usually just paid the athlete's tuition and this was usually considered a loan but was rarely repaid. In 1948, the NCAA passed new legislation called the Sanity Code that allowed institutions to pay the tuition of "outstanding" athletes. provided they can qualify academically. The Mental Health Code would last for about ten years, then it would be replaced by a new financial assistance program very similar to the one used today. This package allows a school to pay for an athlete's tuition, room and board, and other costs like books, etc. in exchange for the athlete's services. For many reviewers, this was considered middle of paper, even if they didn't produce it right away. Underclassmen will continue to leave early as long as there are NBA teams that want them and as long as college basketball continues to perpetuate the myth of the amateur athlete. College basketball has moved from amateur competition to multi-million dollar tournaments and will continue to gain momentum. bigger and bigger. The student-athlete is no longer a student and has increasingly become an athlete. Admissions are relaxed and agreements are made to obtain the best basketball players in the country. Non-student athletes are criticized when they go pro, even though they are probably doing the right thing by not perpetuating the myth of academics and athletics. College basketball has become a multi-million dollar industry, whether schools admit it or not, and it is the student-athlete who is played..