I first started playing tackle football in the 6th grade. At the time I wasn’t thinking about how it would affect me being viewed as a student, an athlete, or a person. It was just a fun game that I enjoyed playing.

When high school started, my freshman team coaches pulled me aside and told me something I will never forget, “There’s a lot of good things about this game, but never forget: There’s always going to be a target on your back. You’re always going to be under a microscope.” Up until that moment, there had been a divider between my life as a student, and my life as an athlete. After that, my two identities began to meld together.

I had never thought of myself as just a football player, and actually, I have always felt like people who completely dedicated themselves to one thing are missing out on life’s opportunities. I actually see a difference between myself, and stereotypical “jocks” - the ones who live, breathe, and die for sports. I come from a diverse family, who includes everyone from football players to Harvard graduates. My childhood was of fun and valuable lessons, with football being just a small piece of a large puzzle that makes up who I am. I was first called a “jock” in the 8th grade; I didn’t really care at the time, but when I began to think about it later, it bothered me. I thought of all the things I do and how I am in no way just a “jock”. Sure, I loved football, but I also loved learning, and I didn’t feel like the two should be separate, especially since the love for both existed within me.

It wasn’t l until about a year later that I learned the rough truth about life as an academic athlete: It is hard, even brutal. It is full of long nights, coming home at nine, after a practice and a film, only to be met with three hours of homework. It is being so tired, that you accidentally sleep through a whole class of history, even though you love history. Everything you do is magnified, just as my coach had told me. Small mistakes turn into big issues and big issues have a tendency to explode, both on the field and in the classroom.

Being called a jock because I’m a football player is completely unfair. Or, maybe, it’s the connotation that “jock” carries. Some of the athletes I play with are the hardest working people in the room, and that should not be taken away from them just because they want to play a sport they enjoy. Trying to balance both academics and athleticism can prove to be quite difficult. Some nights, one may require more attention than the other, and it is hard to try and find a comfortable medium in between my two lives. However, having this experience in my young life has given me a strong mindset when it comes to working hard and getting things done. Although this has been a crazy journey, these have been some of the most exciting and satisfying years of my life.

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