I can tell you right now, a degree combined with that kind of marketing exposure and the support system for your future is far more valuable to legit NFL prospects than any kind of minor league system would be. The trade-off for making $60k a year for 3 years in some farm league that nobody watches is a horrible trade compared to being a star player at a major university. Maybe it would benefit the guys who aren't surefire pros, but the debate typically has been around the stars.

The optics issue is how much the schools make, there needs to be way more restrictions around how you're allowed to spend money, especially for public institutions. Unless you decouple athletics from the university and get rid of the tax protections.