Being paid and being allowed to sleep and eat somewhere for free are two separate things. Hell, when I was in the military I ate and had a dorm room provided to me free of charge for 4 years but I still needed to be paid.
I get what you're saying but that scholarship isn't going to pay for a car, insurance, clothing, things for girlfriends, rent/mortgage because a lot of them are married with a kid or two., etc. Sure the scholarship frees up a lot of extra cash, but it's still not the same as actually being paid.