It’s not just about the athlete. It’s about their passion and mentality to work toward a better game.
For one thing, college is always a big transition for students, but it’s even bigger when sports are involved.
“College sports are faster paced, more intense, and you’re playing against people that are very skilled,” said field hockey alum Brittan Muir, who graduated last spring and now plays at CNU.
A survey done by Michigan State University shows that only 3 out of 4 American children will play a sport during their childhood, and 20 percent will go on to play in high school. Of those who play in high school, 6 percent will participate at the college level.
Most of the time athletes in high school lose their love for the sport they play. It may be from school, stress, or just lack of time.
Time is the biggest aspect that comes with the transition from high school to college sports. As the athlete moves up it requires more and more time and dedication. That concept can drive away high school students from the chance of playing in the future.
Motivation is a notion that many athletes have trouble finding. When an athlete approaches the transition between high school and college sports, they need all the motivation they can get.
There are a few athletes that work very hard and go on to show the country and possibly the world what they have to prove. And that motivation helps the athlete achieve the ultimate goal– to be the best of the best. This is what an athlete will receive in college.
Besides the results from the sporting events or the awards the athletes may receive, they can develop into a stronger person from when they began.
Health and PE teacher Jennifer Davies played two sports in high school through college: field hockey and softball. Davies was always in the starting lineup for softball and had a sports scholarship handed right to her. But in field hockey she wasn’t always the best, and she realized that. Therefore, she pushed herself and worked her way up to the top. Yet she got much more than the continuous love for the sports- .
“[College sports] taught me to be faster, and stronger. [They] taught me to be humble,” said Davies.
When an athlete is closing up their high school sports careers, like Davies and Muir once did, they made sure that they were noticed, remembered, and that they became the athlete they wanted to be.
As Hall of Fame quarterback, Joe Namath once said, “If you aren’t going all the way, why go at all?”