Sports

Star College Quarterbacks Should Be Making $2.4 Million a Year

  • Researchers see racial issue in universities’ sports riches
  • Starting quarterbacks and wide receivers lose out on millions
Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Clemson Tigers walks off the field after a game in New Orleans, on Jan. 13.Photographer: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

If college athletes were paid like their professional counterparts, how much would they earn?

That’s one question a paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research seeks to answer. A star quarterback like Clemson University’s Trevor Lawrence would probably reap $2.4 million per season, according to “Who Profits from Amateurism? Rent-Sharing in Modern College Sports.”