Sports Scholarship Information & Articles

In my last blog I talked about what to consider when choosing a college overall. The location, environment, academics, social life and well, you know…the whole thing, without sports. Today lets look at athletic programs.

If you followed the previous blog and made a list of colleges that interest you overall, then look now at their athletic programs. Go to each college website or a print or online reference guide and see whether they have your sport. Then consider the following factors when evaluating the school’s athletic program and how appropriate it is for you.

Availability of scholarship–does the school offer sports scholarships in your sport?

Level of competition–determine whether the school matches your skill level. Your high school or club coach might be able to help you with this–ask whether they know of the school and the sports program and whether they think it would be a fit for you. Also, what division of NCAA, NAIA or NJCAA does the school belong to? Generally speaking Division I is more competitive than Division II. (Division III does not give sports scholarships.)

Time commitment, length of season–how many months of the year would you be expected to practice and participate in your sport? What is the length of the sport’s season? How many hours a day do athlete’s practice and workout during the sport’s season and off-season? About the only way to find out the answers to these questions is to ask the college coach directly or a college athlete in that sport. But, generally, the more competitive the program, the more time they spend participating.

Coaching–how long has the coach been with the program? Information about the head coach as well as his/her assistants will probably be on the website. How do your particular skills fit in with a coach’s style? For example, if you are a running back, you probably want to look at football programs that feature a running attack. A good way to determine coaching style is to personally attend (or watch a contest on TV involving schools you are considering, or see if sporting events are featured on their websites).

There are plenty more things to consider when you narrow down your list of possible colleges. But, this is a start to thinking about what kind of athletic programs you feel you would be comfortable and have a stronger chance to be recruited. In our book How To Win A Sports Scholarship, there is much more information to help you make your list and to guide you to your final decision.

You have to start somewhere. Our best advice is that you start early (10th and 11th grades), do as much research as possible to create a workable list…then start contacting college coaches at those schools that interest you!

Over Thanksgiving break, take some time to consider possible college choices. Starting the college search can be difficult…overwhelming even for student-athletes because they have to look for colleges that will suit them overall, plus add in the sports factor.

I’m an advocate of looking at the academic side first, then checking out the sports program. Here are a few overall factors you should consider. Some might be more important than others to you.

Location of college–proximity to home, climate, geography and demographics

Campus environment–size of institution, housing, campus setting, extracurricular activities

Nature of student body–co-ed or all men/all women, commuter school, ethnically and culturally diverse, religion-based, private or public

Academic environment–admission requirements, quality and quantity of courses, availability of major area of interest, student/teacher ration, quality of faculty

Cost–availability of financial aid/scholarships, employment opportunities

Graduation rate of athletes in your sport

If you give some thought to these considerations it will help you narrow down your selection. You have to start somewhere…might as well be after turkey and pumpkin pie. In the next blog I’ll talk about important things to look at on the athletic side. Happy Thanksgiving!

Have you ever been jolted awake by a cramped hamstring muscle or sidelined during a run by a cramp in your calf?

Most people think muscle cramps are due to low potassium and recommend eating bananas as the solution. Well, according to nutrition expert Nancy Clark, while sufficient potassium is important, there are other answers, too.  

Clark, who is also the author of the prize winning book, Sports Nutrition Guidebook (4th ed., 2008), suggests stretching more after exercise, drinking enough fluids during the day (a sign of being well-hydrated is urinating every two to four hours during the daytime); consuming at least 2-3 cups of milk or yogurt a day.

She says the potential loss of potassium in a two-hour workout is 300-800 mg., depending on the type and intensity of the workout, and compares a few of the popular sports foods in potassium content:

• 8 oz. of Gatorade: 30 mg.
• One medium banana: 450 mg.
• 8 oz. orange juice: 475 mg.
• 8 oz. yogurt: 520 mg.

From this list, it would seem that a nutritious breakfast and one that would provide plenty of potassium to stave off most muscle cramps would be a bowl of cereal with milk, topped by a sliced banana and either a cup of yogurt or glass of orange juice. Actually, this is a pretty nutitious way to start the day for the non-athlete, as well.

Nancy Clark’s website is full of nutrition tips for active people. She also blogs and answers questions. www.nancyclarkrd.com

I’m convinced that the news media has helped infect high school student-athletes and their parents (even some high school coaches who should know better) with the “full-ride” scholarship fever. Parents brag about their athletic son or daughter being recruited for a full ride. Kids announce they are only interested in schools that offer them a full ride. Coaches brag about their full-ride prospects and local sports reporters write about these college-bound student-athletes as if only full-ride prospects deserve any press.

Nonsense.

While full-ride scholarships are the clearly the cadillac of athletic scholarships, they are awarded to a fairly small amount of college athletes, and mostly by NCAA Div. I schools in sports like football, mens’ and women’s basketball, women’s volleyball, women’s gymnastics and women’s tennis. The remainder of the thousands of other skilled college athletes receive partial athletic scholarships, or no scholarship at all.

Full-ride scholarships essentially cover all the athlete’s college expenses, including tuition, room and board, books and supplies. An athletic scholarship cannot cover more than the college costs–no cell phone, no pizza deliveries, no car payments.

Partial scholarships pay part of a full scholarship and are intended to help more athletes, while giving out smaller awards. For instance, Bobby might get his tuition paid, while Davon gets books and supplies, and Jenn gets her room and board covered. Colleges use scholarships as a recruiting tool to get the best athletes they can, but most don’t have the money to give full-ride scholarships (except in the cases above).

About 180,000 scholarships are awarded in 34 sports each year. Most of them are divided up between athletes. All scholarship money is free money, whether it’s sports or academic related. The student-athlete who gets a partial scholarship to a Div. I or Div. II school has bragging rights. He or she has shown a high level of success on the playing field as well as the classroom and is getting a scholarship to help with college expenses.

Why don’t sports writers tell us more about these student-athletes?

Name five fall intercollegiate sports for women. Give up? OK, I’ll help you out.

There’s cross country, field hockey, soccer, volleyball and…equestrian. You might be surprised to know that 23 NCAA colleges offer equestrain as a varsity sport. Women compete in both western and English contests.

Equestrian is what’s called an emerging sport in the NCAA. Emerging sports came about as a result of Title IX, the federal legislation to advance the opportunities for women to participate in athletes. Other current emerging sports are women’s rugby and squash. Each of these sports must gain enough participation within a time-table set by the NCAA to become full-fledge intercollegiate sports.

Since 1998, when equestrian was classified an NCAA emerging sport, many people in the horse industry have united together to help advance the sport to full NCAA championship status. To attain this goal and hold a NCAA Equestrian Championship, there must be 40 Division I and II schools that sponsor equestrian as a varsity level program.

Going into the fall season, the latest poll of coaches shows Auburn University ranked first, with the University of South Carolina and University of Georgia second and third, respectively.

The NCAA has allowed 15 scholarships. Availability and requirement of scholarships are decided by each institution.

So, if you are a student-athlete with a passion for equestrian competition, look into this growing collegiate sport. Ride ‘em, cowgirl!

Athletic scholarships range from “top-of-the-line” full scholarships (popularly called a “full ride”) to partial scholarships, full scholarships divided into two or more scholarships. But, what is a full scholarship?

These most coveted awards cover the student-athletes’ actually educational costs, including tuition and fees, room and board, and required books and supplies. Schools are not allowed to award money over and above these costs.

Partial scholarships are awarded to most student-athletes. They allow the colleges to give money to more athletes this way. Sometimes the award is offered on a percentage basis, for example, 50% of the total cost is covered. Or it can be divided in another way. A partial scholarship can be for tuition only, room and board only or just books and expenses. In the above scenario, the three awards would equal a full scholarship.

When Division I or II coaches offer a sports scholarship (Division III institutions do not award athletic scholarships), they must let the student-athlete know exactly how much is being offered. In the NCAA, a National Letter of Intent is then sent to the student-athlete with the precise terms of the scholarship spelled out.

Sports scholarships are awarded for one year only, and renewed each year for a total of four years provided you, the student-athlete, play by the rules as are spelled out by the NLI and by the school’s athletic department. Basically, you have to keep your grades up, attend and participate in all practices and games, stay out of trouble. That’s the simple version, so talk to your coach or the athletic director for more information.

Scholarships are free money, meaning you don’t have to pay it back. Whether you get a full or partial scholarship, you are a college scholarship athlete and your scholarship is helping you finance your education.

Did you read about the confrontation following a recent Boise State vs. Oregon State football game? An Oregon player, LaGarrette Blount, hauled off and punched a Boise player, Byron Hout, in the face. It appears Haut had run up to Blount, got in his face and taunted him about losing the game (Boise State won 19-8.)

Blount’s reaction to being verbally harassed caused him to be suspended for the season. No more football, just like that. What happened to Haut? Boise State announced that Haut will not be suspended. What’s up with that?

The original actor doesn’t often get caught. It’s so often the reactor, the person to whom the offensive action happened, who gets nailed. In this case, the action was taken by Haut; the reaction taken by Blount.

Haven’t you seen that before in your sport? Here’s an example: A soccer player is pushed or tackled hard by an opposing player, and the referee doesn’t see it. The one who was pushed pushes back. The ref sees it and issues a yellow card for the push he saw. Action vs. reaction. Who gets caught?

How you react to a verbal or physical assault during or after a game or sporting event is up to you. You can shut your mouth and ignore the action, or you can retaliate. Retaliating is often an impulsive reaction, which seems the case in Blount’s situation. But, impulsive or not, it ruined his season…may even have ruined his football career. Hout will continue to play.

If you pause and take a few deep breaths the next time someone says or does something that makes you mad in sports, you will be less likely to react in a way that hurts you.

I regularly talk to college athletes about their sports experiences so I can pass on their thoughts and tips to my high school readers and the student-athletes I consult with. Here are three questions I always ask, along with some of their collective answers.

Q: Is it hard to manage your time?

A: Balancing all your competing needs–academic, athletic and social–is a huge challenge. The tremendous time and effort it takes to be a college athlete is often a big surprise. During the playing season there is little free time. Besides participating in the sport–practice and game or event time, weight room sessions, travel time, community appearances and team meetings–there are classes and study time. Often, student-athletes take a lighter class load during their season.

Q: What about the sport’s off-season?

A: Many college athletes are surprised that their sports participation is year-round. Most coaches hold practice in the off-season and generally expect the student-athletes to participate during the entire school year. Here’s a typical volleyball player’s off-season daily schedule: 7:30 am: weights, 9 am-5 pm: class/study, 6-8 pm: practice. Weekends are usually off unless there is a fundraiser or informal game. Plus, if you took a lighter class load during the season, you usually have to take a heavier load during the off-season.

Q: What advice can you give to high school student-athletes?

A: Prepare yourselves for the level of fitness they will be required to maintain when you get to college. One soccer player says, “You have to get yourself into the best condition of your life so you can keep up with the much faster pace of the college game, as well as the increased physicality that comes from playing with and against people who are as much as four years older than you.”

Know that college sports, especially if you’re on scholarship, is like a job, “not the sheltered sanctuary that high school may have been.” Still, the majority of college student-athletes say they were happy with their decision to play college sports. One former college swimmer says, “Nothing can replace the strong team friendships I made in my four years of college. For that alone, I would do it again.” Plus, her partial sports scholarship helped her cut her college costs in half.

If you plan on competing in NCAA Division I or II athletics in your first year of college, you must register with the Eligibility Center and be certified academically and as an amateur. According to the NCAA (National College Athletic Association), you can register as early as the beginning of your junior year.

The purpose of the Eligibility Center (formerly called the Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse) is to provide a consistent one-source evaluation of academic eligibility. Plus, you need only to send your academic records to one source, not to every NCAA institution you are interested in attending. Several years ago, the NCAA added another purpose–that is to certify each student-athlete’s amateur status.

If you are planning on attending an NCAA Division III institution, you do not need to register with the Eligibility Center, nor do you if you are going to attend a school that is not a member of the NCAA. You can find out what athletic association the schools belong to by looking on that school’s website or asking the athletic department (or coach).

You have to pay a registration fee of $60 (or if you are an international student, $85). To find out more about the NCAA Eligibility Center or to register, go to http://ncaa.org. Click on ‘academics & athletes’, then on ‘NCAA eligibility center.’ At the ncaa.org website you can also read and download a copy of the “2009-10 NCAA Guide for the College Bound Student-Athlete.” This annually published booklet offers very helpful information, and I advise every student-athlete to read it.