Should college athletes be employees of their universities?

I've been in the equipment room eight years. I see these kids at 5 am when nobody's watching. The anxiety, the depression, some of them barely holding it together. Employees get health benefits and mental health coverage through their job. Athletes get whatever the training room offers while they're eligible, and good luck after. I'm not an economist, I just lace cleats, but it seems backwards that the people generating the money get thinner support than the staff folding their towels.