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TYLER, Texas (KLTV) - It is no secret that college athletics are big business. In recent years, student athletes have been given the opportunity to be compensated when their name, image or likeness are used.

And there is always a furor over where the top college prospects will sign letters of intent to go to school. Wait, I said go to school. It is lost on many that college is supposed to be a learning experience, in classroom settings, where students learn a discipline. So yes, sadly, for some college athletes, the school part is lost.

On top of the student experience is the priority put on winning in athletics. Cue the firing of Texas A&M’s head football coach Jimbo Fisher. While the firing of a coach usually makes limited headlines the firing of Fisher is significant. The school must pay him the entirety of the balance on his contract – a whopping $75 million.

Fisher was brought on to win a national championship in the toughest conference in the nation and while he had a winning record, it was not good enough. $75 million guaranteed is the issue here. While the university says the money will come out of the athletic fund and the 12th Man Foundation, they will still have to raise revenue to cover the expense.

So, ultimately, it is costing students and families of students resources to cover the buyout. Resources that could go towards an endless amount of causes to improve the school part of the college experience. It is out of balance, for sure.