As a student-athlete, you devote hours to training so you can beat your competition. But how much time do you spend thinking about your education?
According to United Way’s Team NFL website, more than 1.2 million students drop out of school each year. Unlike those who stay and graduate, these students will never even have a chance to play sports in college or the pros.
Houston Texans DB Glover Quin recently spoke with STACK about how gearing up for academics is as important as your training regimen. Quin is the latest pro football player to join United Way’s “Team NFL” campaign, whose goal is to reduce the number of high school dropouts nationwide.
“Young athletes today think sports is all there is—[but] athletics can’t take you all the way. You need to take school seriously,” says Quin. (Read what star RB Thomas Jones has to say about education.) As the NCAA’s marketing campaign states, “There are over 400,000 NCAA student-athletes, and just about all of [them] will be going pro in something other than sports.”
Prep for your next test just as intensely as you do for big games. Read up on how to score a scholarship so you can attend college for free. And follow Quin’s advice by encouraging your teammates to stick with school. He says, “Athletes need to use their status to bring awareness of issues to the community. Let people know you’re a person aside from sports. Athletics give you so much, so take the opportunity to give back as an honor.”
Join Quin and United Way or your favorite athlete’s team on the Team NFL website to start training for more than sports. Or find other ways to get involved with your community—and be more than an athlete.
Quin: “If I can make an impact on one kid, changing someone’s life so they can reach their goals, I’ll consider my goal met.”
Photo:  foxsportshouston.com