Athletes should stay in school before relying on false dreams

Thursday, October 29, 1998

COLUMN: Students can't spurn college education in hopes of going pro

Thank you for attending class today. Please prepare yourselves for a reality check.

Every high school athlete does not get a college scholarship. And even more importantly, every college athlete does not go professional. I repeat, every college athlete does not go pro.

Actually, I can take it further and say that every athlete with a scholarship to a university is not a shoe-in for the pros either.

Now, by no means is this an attempt to discourage anyone from having dreams. It is moreso an attempt to encourage the aforementioned athletes to have more dreams than just professional sports participation.

This definitely needs to be discussed because there are too few realists out there and too many agents and coaches and family members giving athletes a false sense of security.

I'd like to discuss what an athletic scholarship does for a student. Yes, a student.

The scholarship gives the athlete an opportunity to do a few things. First and foremost, the "free ride," as it's affectionately called, creates revenue for the respective school that the athlete attends. The money comes in because universities get money from apparel companies and the NCAA for being vehicles of advertisement. This makes the universities more interested in seeing its students succeed athletically.

The second incentive that a college scholarship brings is a national (and sometimes international) stage to showcase an athlete's talent. While not every facet of every program gets television coverage, all programs get some kind of print exposure. And even the smallest schools get football and basketball highlights on ESPN and Fox Sports. This, in turn, gives each program some of the exposure it seeks.

Further, each university has a sports information department that exists solely to be the liaison between the school's athletic department and the world. It's in this department's best interest to make everyone look good, so its workers are pretty intent on making athletes and coaches appear to be every bit as valuable and interesting as they are believed to be.

Finally, there is reason number three for an athletic scholarship being a positive for a student. This reason is education.

Academics are important because life is about learning. One can learn in so many environments but with academics there is the added feature of structure. An education broadens one's knowledge on topics that they might not have known about.

Additionally, the knowledge and training that an athlete can get from school will help that person succeed when they enter the work force. Of course, that's if they enter the work force.

Getting a college education that will help one throughout their career is essential. With said education, students can feel confident that without actively participating in sports after college, they will still be able to get a job and be able to support themselves at a comfortable level.

And while athletes at most universities are required to go to class and tutoring or risk suffer suspensions and reprimands, the absolute necessity of having a plan of action after sports is not stressed enough.

Life is about balance. For an athlete, it needs to be about maintaining consistency between academics, athletics, social life, family time and personal time. Though this is not always understood, it is still one of the most valuable lessons to be learned while away from home, at college.

Some get that message and some don't. There are students out there that would, without a second thought, do anything for the opportunity to get a free education. And they cannot because they are not athletically gifted. Yet, there are those that are using school just as a means to get national exposure for free. That is not a terrible thing if that person winds up making it professionally.

The thing is, however, that the situation winds up being very costly if an athlete's professional scenario doesn't pan out. If college is not taken as seriously as a person's athletic participation, that individual could wind up completely empty-handed.

Compared to the number of athletes that play collegiate sports, very few players get drafted. Henceforth, if one does not fall into the category of one of those chosen few and they also did not get the most out of the education handed to them then they have let themselves down.

When considering the three major sports, less than one percent of Division I athletes turn pro. Within the individual sports, the numbers fluxuate, but it is very evident that more than 99% will not make it to a higher level.

What needs to be stated is that once the dance is over for Cinderella, there will be no glass slipper for Prince Charming to retrieve.

In the real world, after the university has given an athlete what it can give her or him- the chance at an education- and the athlete has given what they can give- all pertinent years of eligibility and revenue opportunities- the relationship very well could be over.

There are exceptions, but that is the whole point of this piece: one must approach being a student-athlete as if they will not be the exception. Having the reverse thought process will surely set one up for disappointment.

For example, if an athlete is expecting to go to school to play sports as a tool to get a free education, then the sky is basically the limit. If pro scouts begin knocking on the athlete's door then that winds up being an added bonus because they were already prepared intellectually through education.

Conversely, if the flip-side happens, with a person being a student in their spare time and being in school just to see how fast they can become a professional athlete, there is no room for error. There winds up being no opportunity for surprise; there is only room for a huge letdown. He or she winds up considering his or herself a failure.

Avoiding this pitfall just takes planning. Once the fact that most great players will not make it to the professional ranks sinks in an athlete's head, which can spark unparalleled academic success.

It's not necessarily a good thing if an athlete needs his or her sport to make them feel complete. An athlete is a package, so to speak. And one must be aware that the contents of this package will shift and change. That change will not necessarily be one of instant fame and fortune. Accepting this is what makes them a more complete person.

Through my years as a journalist, IŒve encountered persons on both sides of the aforementioned coin. There are three people in general that represent the most extreme cases for me of establishing a plan for life after athletics.

The first athlete plans to enroll in medical school immediately following undergraduate studies. This athlete feels she can make the most of this opportunity presented to her by her school and get as much knowledge at no cost as possible. She plans on being a physician, not really caring too much whether she makes it in the WNBA or the ABL.

The second athlete went through college "knowing" that they would turn pro. Now that their eligibility is up and they are undrafted in two sports that they stood out in basketball and football- they are completely lost. This athlete is clueless because he did not even entertain the thought of "not making it." He was guaranteed to become pro, yet he is not pro, he did not finish his education and he does not have a job.

Finally, the third athlete is one that did not even excel in college (or play at all, for that matter) and he still believes that he belongs in the pros. He feels that he was shortchanged by his coaches at the university level- not given a chance to show his talent to the world.

And while that may be true, realistically he should understand that one year of high school football and four years of standing on the sideline as part of the football team (and not playing) will not quite cut it for pro scouts. But he will not grasp this, because so many people have told him that he is "good," that he is "exceptional," and he "should be playing on Sundays (which means playing in the NFL)."

What makes this case so bad though, is the fact that this man actually got his education; he actually got his degree. Does this even enter into his thinking? No. He feels that he belongs in the NFL and that's the bottom line. At what point doe she decide that his dream will not come true? He does not know. He claims he will "never get a job." But what about his family? What about him living comfortably? Dreams unrealized can result in lives unraveled.

Now as I stated earlier, there is nothing wrong with dreaming if that's what it is- dreaming. But once the dreams are all you believe, that is when the problems set in. Such is the case with the second and third athletes I mentioned and others like them.

Therefore, since they will not wake up from their self-made pro fantasies, I would just like him to have nightmares once in a while. Maybe a nightmare about not making it professionally. Hopefully that would snap them back into reality.

It would be for their own benefit.

Just a little food for thought.

Class dismissed.

A. CinQue Carter is a journalist determined to bring a news element to sports. Forward questions and comments to Theory@Bigfoot.com.

A. CinQue Carter

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