Four reasons to say yes to sports

Who should play intercollegiate sports in college? Anyone who can. Here are four reasons why.

Sports can help your transition to college
The camaraderie of a team furnishes a new group of friends, team identity and a sense of belonging that helps bridge the gap between high school and college. Occasionally, freshmen decide to postpone sports involvement until they evaluate the difficulty of their course load in the first year. The problem with this thinking is that each year of academics is designed to be progressively harder and more time consuming. If you have played sports in high school, you have had some experience juggling study and practice. The routine may feel normal to you and force a structure to your time that actually helps you succeed academically. Try the sport in the first year while your athletic skills are not rusty. If a sport turns out to be more that you can juggle, quit the team.

Sports may boost your GPA
Coaches must monitor the grades of team members in order to track their eligibility for play. Attentive coaches will solicit mid-term grades to watch players’ academic progress, encourage players to study and purchase tutoring attention if needed. Some teams mandate study hall hours for team members. Even good students perform better when they know someone is watching.

You may not get this chance again
The opportunity to participate in collegiate competition occurs once in a lifetime. Ask yourself the question, “Twenty years from now, will I kick myself if I don’t go out for a team?” If the answer is yes, then you have to try out.

Some freshmen shy away from trying out for a team because they feel their skills are not good enough to compete at the collegiate level. But why assume anything? A coach’s choices for team members are limited to those who have met the admission criteria for the college and who maintain a certain GPA. A coach may have a roster short on players due to injuries or failing grades and may welcome “walk-ons,” the term for non-recruited students who balance out a team. Entering freshmen with no GPA limitations are ideal. If you love a sport and want a chance, introduce yourself to the team’s coach and ask about the possibilities.

Athletes may get priority registration for classes
Due to only four years of eligibility and restrictive practice schedules, colleges often give priority enrollment to athletes. Keen competition for required classes in crowded colleges has forced many colleges to establish a pecking order for registration. It is not unusual in public colleges for low-priority students, such as sophomores, to be left with class choices with the most unpopular professors at the most unpopular times. Athletes are sometimes put at the head of the registration line.

Carol Sebilia is a sociology professor in California.

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