Interviews
Below are just a few select student athletes who completed the surveys and interview questions. Each student had many of the same views, but there were also some very different answers. I found out that their answers depended heavily on the sport they played and what division their school was a member of. Most D1 students said that they spend close to about 20 hours a week with their sport and those students at a D2 or D3 college did not spend quite as much time a week with their sport. What might be a surprise to some people is that women spend just about as much time with their sport as the men do. With Title VIIII in place, women's sports have become more popular and the women are able to have the same amount of time and space on campus to practice. In the interview, I asked questions that dealt with time management, grades, free time, and what their likes and dislikes were of being a student athlete. As I said earlier, you will see that there are similar answers to these questions, but in a way each person has their own views.
Jessica Foster
Jessica Foster is a freshman basketball player at a NAIA school in Kentucky. In her interview, Jess said that the first semester of college was difficult because she had to learn to manage her time between schoolwork, basketball, and still trying to be a social college student. Now she is used to her schedule and the second semester is going much better. When asked what her favorite part of being a student athlete was she said "My favorite part is getting to go to a great school for free while playing a sport I love." Jess was one of the few who were able to have a chance to receive a scholarship. She also is happy that she is playing basketball and doesn't wish she didn't play even though it takes time away from her friends and family. "I feel that I'm very lucky and fortunate to be offered this opportunity, and I can't see myself not doing it."
Nick Lambrinides
Nick Lambrinides is a freshman football player at Thomas Moore College. Thomas Moore is a D3 level and Nick lives on campus but only lives a few minutes away from school. In his interview, he stated that being a student athlete does take up a lot of time but he makes new friends who become like family to him. One concern with athletes is their grades and not having enough time to study but Nick says that because he plays football, his grades have to be good and the coaches are always watching and checking to make sure you are keeping up on school work. When asked if he thought he got any type of special treatment for being an athlete, Nick said "I do believe that you get to be able to do things that just students wouldn't be able to do such as take tests at different times and stuff, but I believe we are set to higher standard in the classroom because we represent the school in and outside of the classroom. Although he loves playing football and traveling across the country to play the game he loves, he wishes sometimes that he was just a student and did not play a sport in college.
Kari Kowalski
Kari Kowlaski is a sophomore soccer player at a NAIA school in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. She is from the Cincinnati, OH area so she lives more that 5 hours away from home and only comes home a once every few months. Kari spends a lot of hours doing homework but like many of the other athletes I interviewed she thinks that because she plays a sport her grades are just as good as they would be if she wasn't a student athlete. When I asked Kari what her favorite and least favorite part of being a student athlete she said "My favorite part of being a student athlete is being able to continue to playing soccer after high school and just playing the game. My least favorite part would be the long bus trips that we take and being gone weekend after weekend during the season and early morning practices." Kari loves being a student athlete and has been successful in her career so far.
Logan Jaehnen
Logan Jaehnen is a freshman at Lindenburg college in St. Louis. He was also lucky to be able to receive a scholarship. Logan is also from the Cincinnati area and lives more than 5 hours away from home. He does not get to go home as much and see his family but the though of not playing basketball has never even crossed his mind. "It makes breaks a lot shorter so I have less time with my family. It stinks only getting to see your family for 3 days or so but it also helps you become more of an adult." He also does not think that he or other student athletes are treated differently. Logan spends about 8 hours studying and about 10 hours with basketball each week. Time management is something all athletes have to adapt to but Logan says that this is something he had learned to do in high school so luckily not much has changed with that.
Matt Kamieniecki
Matt Kamieniecki is a junior basketball player at Ball State University. Ball State is a D1 college and the level of competitiveness is more on the higher level than some of the other athletes on this page. Matt is from Michigan and lives about 4 hours away from home so he also does not get to be at home as much as he would like. When asked if this bothered him, he said "From time to time. Road trips take away most of the time on the weekends. Also living 4 hours away I don't get to see my parents and family as much cause I don't get to go home. It bothers me a little bit but you get used to it." As a member of a D1 basketball team, Matt spends about 13-15 hours a week with basketball but still is able to manage his time and maintain an A average. He never wishes that basketball wasn't a part of his life.
Colton Robinson
Colt Robinson is a sophomore and a member of the University of Cincinnati Men's Track and Field team. He specializes in pole vaulting and has been running track since the 7th grade. At first, time management was hard for him but after being involved in track for a year and figuring things out, he says he has learned to adjust better. Colt is one of the few who said that they sometimes think about not playing a sport in college. "Yes, sometimes I feel I have got myself in over my head." Cincinnati is a D1 college so they are also more competitive and athletes sometimes require more time. Colt says he spend about 17-19 hours a week with track and only about 3 hours studying. This is why his grades are not where they could be. "I feel I would be able to spend more time and effort with school if I wasn't an athlete" is what Colt said when he was asked if track took away time from his studies. He lives about 30 minutes away from home but still is not able to come home very often or for long periods of time during the track season.