Education & Careers » college sports

Top 25 College Educated Athletes

Russell Jensen — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 22:43:29 +0000

In order to debunk myths and stereotypes about college athletes being “less intelligent” than other college students I would like to point out that earning a degree while becoming a legendary sports superstar isn’t a walk in the park. Obtaining just ONE of those two feats is daunting to the majority of the world. Thanks to my friends over at Degreecentral.com we are able to recognize some of these super-star athletes.

Earn your bachelor’s degree! It will come back to you in higher earnings and more job opportunities for the rest of your life!

5 Must-See College Football Movies

Diane — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 22:23:56 +0000

Americans absolutely love college sports, particularly football. Since it’s that time of year again here are 5 of the best college football movies of all time. All of them are a must see and they show the hard work and dedication behind a football teams struggles.

We are Marshall

After a 1970 plane crash that killed nearly all of the Marshall University football team. The university president reconsidered his decision to indefinitely suspend the football program. The plot follows the rebuilding of the program, and the struggles that the team faces.

Rudy

Rudy is a legend but in case you don’t know what it’s about, I will elaborate. The movie is an account of Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger who wished to play football for the University of Notre Dame. He faced many obstacles, and initially failed to get into Notre Dame, he attends a small junior college, until he can qualify for a transfer to the university. He gets a job on Notre Dame’s groundskeeping staff and in his final semester of transfer eligibility makes it into Notre Dame. In his last home game, he is able to play in the final game of the season and is able to sack the opposing quarterback in the final play of the game.

Necessary Roughness

This comedy focuses on the removal of football players and coaches because of a scandal at a fictional university. Due to the lack of talented and experienced players, they have to look for players in odd places. They recruit a former high school star, a professor, and a female kicker from the school’s soccer team. The team finds little success at first, but in the last game wins against the number one ranked team.

The Express

This football classic is based on the life of Ernie Davis the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy. Despite coming from a difficult background, the character is able to excel on the football field as running back. He plays for Syracuse University and concludes a regular season undefeated and ranked number one in the nation. During his career, Ernie had to constantly fight racism and in 1960 led his team to a victory and their first national championship. In 1961 Ernie wins the Heisman Trophy and is able to meet President Kennedy. Later in his career he faces a serious medical condition also known as Leukemia.

The Program

This is a movie about players at a major university that come from different backgrounds and how they try to cope with the pressure. They must choose how they face the pressure, so some turn to drinking, studying, and drugs. One player after assaulting a girl, because of his football talent. After facing all these challenges, the players head to a major bowl game after scoring a victory.

These movies show the work and team spirit it takes to become winners. These college football movies are ranked as “must see.”

Easy ‘A’ for College Athletes?

adam — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 13:47:40 +0000

Do college athletes get an easy college education?

Whether you’re an athlete or a non-athlete, we’ve all seen it (or heard about it) before: The rumor that college athletes get an easier A than everyone else. With free tutoring, permission slips to miss tons of class, and make-up tests that might not be as difficult as the real test, many students believe that college athletes have it easy when it comes to college education. And we haven’t even mentioned all of the alleged “assistance” they receive during their college searches.

The flip-side of the argument, of course, is that college athletes work twice as hard as everyone else. They don’t have as much time to focus on class, their bodies are drained from training, and when they aren’t practicing, they are spending their time studying. And, lest we forget, college athletes are often the people responsible for bringing much-needed funding into the schools. Sports fans pay big bucks to watch their favorite athletes perform, and this is often the money that funnels back into everyone else’s classes in some way or another.

As an avid runner and college athlete, I found myself in quite a predicament when I became an adjunct professor at a reputable state university and my students began to request more and more assistance and time off for their sports endeavors. Was it difficult to help them catch up on missed work and tests? Yes. Did it take more of my time? Yes. Was it worth it to me? Absolutely. I feel that sports are an important part of college life, as well as “real” life. Sports help us gain valuable life skills like goal-setting, motivation, teamwork and dedication.

However, were my non-athlete students upset by the help I gave the athletes? I’m really not sure. Looking back, I realize non-athlete students had other equally important commitments: Families, work, etc. They didn’t get signed permission forms from school officials to miss class, so they did not have it as easy as the athletes did. If they missed class, they received a “0” from me. If they missed a test, they didn’t get to make it up. (Of course, I made exceptions for students with extenuating circumstances, but it still wasn’t as easy for them as it was for athletes.)

As a result of these realizations, I came up with a few tips for all of you non-athletes out there who have other important commitments that might cut into some of your classroom responsibilities.

Before your semester starts, decide what commitments you have that are so absolutely important that you can’t miss them. Make sure they can’t be rescheduled.
Set up an appointment to meet with your professor to discuss these commitments. Make sure to tell your professor why they are an important part of your life, why they can’t be rescheduled, and most importantly, how they will enhance your experience as a student (and prepare you for life after school).
Ask your professor what you can do to make up missed work beforehand to show him/her that you are really serious about taking the class and doing the work. Be willing to go above and beyond what was originally required of you in order to satisfy your professor.
Follow through with what you discussed with your professor. Failing to live up to your end of the bargain will not only result in a lower grade for you, but it will also make your professor less likely to make exceptions for anyone else in the future.
Stay in constant communication with your professor. Remind him/her of your upcoming event and when you will miss class. And of course, remember to say “thank you” for any exceptions they make…your commitment means extra work for them!

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