Love of the sport.

My son is a straight A honor student, perfect test score kid. He is very academic and loves school/learning, etc.

He truly has a passion for the sport. I thought he would have dropped it or the love would be diminished by now (Junior). I really didn't see him playing in college. But, at the end of Sophomore year he was very certain he wanted to try to play the sport in college. He really had a renewed passion and drive. He had many setbacks with injuries, disappointments, late growth, politics (oh the parent politics!!). I even didn't let him play Club Sophomore year, only high school and he practiced on his own and was literally begging to play. Made a high level team over the summer, great feed back from some college coaches. Growth-related injury, out all Fall season. Did PT, doing so much work on his own.

And now he is really much gearing up for recruiting this Spring into next Fall.

We have list of schools where he is focused on those spots. We are realistic, checking team rosters, competition levels, etc. But, he is sticking to the schools with good opportunity in his field of study and that are academically sound. We are in agreement that he won't go to a much lesser school just to play. He can play Club or intramural if that is how it pans out.

He's heard from his uncle and others that played D1 and knows the commitment. He's a kid that very easily seems to be able to handle intense outside time commitments while maintaining studies/grades.

Who knows? The point for us: he truly loves to play. As smart as he is, he could talk your ear off about every player who has ever played the game down to really obscure lower teams, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

At least for my kid, who is playing ACHA (club) hockey, the more casual/less structured environment of rec/IM/beer leagues is just not as much fun. So he makes the time demands of his sport (3.5 hours per night twice a week for practice and lots of weekend time taken up for games (home and away)) work. Socially, it has been great for him to get to know upperclassmen in a way that would have been difficult or impossible without being on team.

Beer league and rec hockey also don't have the skill level of ACHA hockey--which is very high depending on where you are playing and at what level of ACHA. There is a misconception out there that "Club" hockey is for kids who couldn't play D3 or whatever, but that's really not true.

Where is your DS playing?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

You obviously are not an athlete oh gosh

Thus why I asked. Thanks for participating.



Thanks to all for the answers. I don't know if my kids will be good enough, but they have the potential and seem to enjoy their sports.

How old are your kids? Which sport?

My nephew is a recruited athlete and he got accepted into a couple of Ivies because of it. One week after arriving on the college campus, he informed the coach that he would quit because he is going into pre med. No scholarship involved so there wasn't much the coach could do.

Love of the sport and team. That’s gotta be first or I don’t see how they make the sacrifices.

Anonymous wrote:In my case, it gave me the structure I needed to succeed. Without it, I was disorganized and aimless. Additionally, it built up my self confidence, character, gave me amazing friendships, taught me how to push myself, allowed me to travel and meet people from all over the world, treated my ADHD with rigorous exercise, and not least, it paid tuition. I had an amazing experience playing.

This is a good answer and similar to my take as a former D1 full scholarship athlete

OP - I think it is a good question to ask yourself. My nephew got a scholarship for D1 athletics, after a year he stopped participating. He questioned the commitment to his sport at a cost of other activities. He was not going to pursue sports in a professional setting after college. For him the cost benefit analysis didn’t pan out.

I was a college athlete in a non-scholarship sport; here is why I did it and I continue to think it was the best for me -

* Was accepted to multiple colleges that I wouldn't have otherwise gotten in to
* In my case, we still received many of the fringe benefits of the school being D1, even though we weren't NCAA affiliated (being able to register first, access to trainers, PT, nutritionists, swag, focused study hall time, etc.)
* Came into a large university, which was out-of-state, with an immediate group of friends and peers, many of whom I am still close to
* Achieved great success and recognition - as a team won 2 national championships - which really boosted my confidence
* Had no choice but to learn time management and multi-tasking from Day 1, these skills continue to benefit me 20+ years after graduating
* Still do my sport to this day and college participation only enhanced the experience

Being with a group of athlete peers also helps create a healthy community. There was far less substance abuse and general unhealthy behaviors among my teammates than I saw in the general college population.

In my case, it gave me the structure I needed to succeed. Without it, I was disorganized and aimless. Additionally, it built up my self confidence, character, gave me amazing friendships, taught me how to push myself, allowed me to travel and meet people from all over the world, treated my ADHD with rigorous exercise, and not least, it paid tuition. I had an amazing experience playing.

Anonymous wrote:I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

At least for my kid, who is playing ACHA (club) hockey, the more casual/less structured environment of rec/IM/beer leagues is just not as much fun. So he makes the time demands of his sport (3.5 hours per night twice a week for practice and lots of weekend time taken up for games (home and away)) work. Socially, it has been great for him to get to know upperclassmen in a way that would have been difficult or impossible without being on team.

D1 mon here:

free food - their own special nutrition center/cafeteria at no cost
training - medical support, mental and physical therapy - no cost
international travel - summer and spring break - no cost
monthly stipend - use that money for anything they want
exercise clothes - tons and tons of free clothes
Tutors - special tutors, intensive tutors for any and all classes
Housing and class scheduling preferential treatment

and this is just for female athletes. Just IMAGINE what football players get

Anonymous wrote:To get into a college you wouldn’t have gotten into otherwise, although in that case, you can quit the day you arrive on campus for freshmen year with no repercussions.

This is very evident in the Military colleges.. Many more student athletes quit after their first season. It's a good way to get into say The Naval Academy without the blue chip.

Look at the rosters from several sports a few years ago compared to today. Over half the athletes use their sport to get in then quit.

Besides all the good reasons listed above, I think it is a way for some people to channel their competitiveness in a healthy way. There are a lot of former D1 litigators, CEOs, finance people, etc. who leave college athletics and put that competitive drive into their careers.

My SIL did not do it for scholarships he did it so he could go to a better-ranked school.

He functions better with more to do, which keeps him out of trouble (his words).

He loved his sport and it got him to an Ivy he probably would not have been admitted to given his HS rarely sent anyone to an IVY much less more than their state lower tiered schools.

His sister did the same. Both had great college experiences took advantage of everything at their respective schools and got out as their mother says from their beginnings. Mom & dad never went to college,very low income.

He's a super competative guy all day long.