@jeremyroth44[/author_info] [/author]
From an outside perspective, the star athlete in high school seems to have it all figured out. Not only does he or she make the sport look easy, but they make life as a whole look simple as well. Behind the curtains, the makeup of a star athlete is a lot more than just a good swing or outstanding sprint times, and a little something called academics comes into play.
A true star athlete, whether it is in middle school, high school, or college, isn’t just an athlete, but a student athlete. Excelling in a particular sport may get you as far as a starting position or a varsity jacket, but that might just be the end of the road.
According to the NCAA, there are collegiate athletic teams that have a graduation rate lower than 10%, and only 1-in-25 student-athletes reach the professional level after college. A majority of student-athletes are forced to venture off into other fields of work after college, and the real star athletes will be more that ready for this transition.
The schedule of a student athlete is nothing short of rigorous, and good luck finding down time. Keeping up with homework while running between practices and games is a huge challenge, and as age increases, so does that workload off the field. There comes a time in every athlete’s life in which he or she must make the decision to continue playing or steer all focus towards a career in something else. Very few have all of the tools to juggle such a demanding lifestyle.
For those that do find themselves lucky enough to be in the position to play their respective sport at a higher level than high school, teachers and coaches will not be their only critics.
Danny Marsh, a pitcher for the Wagner University Seahawks, was a standout for his baseball team when he attended Monroe Township High School. With a fastball nearing 90 miles per-hour, a change-up that made other batters look silly, and an envious curveball, Marsh’s Division I potential was not even a question when he stepped on the diamond as a freshman. More importantly, he was a star off the field. In the classroom, Marsh’s concentration resembles that of his look in towards the catcher to see the next pitch call.
“It was the summer of my sophomore year of high school when I started getting recruited,” explained Marsh. “It was difficult because I sometimes felt that I had to live up to the hype because everyone was expecting me to succeed.”
This “hype” that Marsh talks about has the ability to make or break a young student-athlete. One mistake off the field could lead to several mistakes on the field, and scouts pay attention to every aspect of an athlete’s life. As a result, many athletes may be under the misconception that sports come before school, which is a dangerous idea to have growing up.
“I committed to Wagner in the beginning of my senior year, prior to the start of the baseball season,” said Marsh. “Going into my senior season, I just wanted to contribute to my team and put us in the best position to reach our goals, which were winning a state and county title.”
His Monroe Falcons team fell to John F. Kennedy High School in the Greater Middlesex County Championship game, but Marsh remained a champion in the classroom.
Despite all of the pressure that Marsh describes as “interesting,” he managed to leave high school with a prominent 3.6 GPA, and membership in the school’s National Honor Society.
“I knew I had to stay focused on my schoolwork in order to keep the academic part of my scholarship,” he explained.
Marsh was not only a scholar in high school, but he was a leader to his teammates as well. Whether he was on the mound or on the bench, his voice could always be heard cheering his team on and encouraging them to be successful.
Richard Poland, a high school teammate of Marsh, said, “He (Marsh) has always been someone who has had a tough schedule on and off the field, and he has had the composure to be successful during both. He’s always worked hard and did what he needed to do to balance being a smart student first and a great athlete second.”
Poland currently plays baseball for the Division III program at Drew University in Madison. As
another member of the Monroe Township High School National Honor Society, Poland, along with Marsh, portrayed successes on and off the field.
Poland describes the juggle between hours of practice, traveling for games, and keeping up with his studies as a “puzzle.”
He continued, “You have to figure out how to make the most of each hour and exactly how you are going to split your time up. It gets exhausting, but in the end, it’s a molding process that turns you into a better and more efficient person.”
A recent NCAA study reveals that 60% of today’s student-athletes view themselves as more of an athlete than a student. As seen with the poor graduation rates of those student-athletes mentioned earlier, having this idea might be the downfall of a young athlete’s future.
Marsh’s academic success continues in college. Last semester, he received a GPA of 3.6, all while reaching his goals on the pitcher’s mound. In other words, if every academic obstacle were a batter, Marsh tends to always strike the batter out.
Getting drafted and playing at the professional level is a goal that many student-athletes possess, but making that a priority is asking for potential future stress. Even if talents are great enough to be displayed on the professional level, one must take into consideration the risk factor of playing at such a level.
For example, one injury could cost an athlete their entire future in the sport. Also, professional competition is more rigorous than that at the collegiate level, so finding and maintaining a spot on a team may be a challenge. As a result, receiving that silly little piece of paper on graduation day should never be a backup plan, but a priority.
Aside from his aspirations to become a professional baseball player, Marsh also has his sights set on the career opportunities in nearby New York City. In finance or accounting, he is confident that he will be receiving a diploma at the end of his four years at Wagner. As for getting drafted, well, that would just be a bonus.
The road to the show is a bumpy one, and one wrong turn could land the commuter in a ditch. Marsh is taking advantage of the turn he received to pursue a college education, and with a successful baseball career in the rearview mirror, there are few obstacles on the road towards becoming a successful student-athlete.
“Always remember that when you aren’t working to get better, someone else is – as cliché and corny as that sounds, it is true,” said Marsh, “Work hard every day and remember that time is precious, and you only get so much of it, so make the most of it.”