by Tiffany Harris
Pebblebrook High School
Many college athletes will be seen on the big screen with a bright smile on their face, yet under all the sweat and success, there is still one more opponent to defeat– the one in their mind.
College basketball games are the highlight of the winter/spring season of college. On the outside looking in, what could be better for the athletes? They have packed out arenas, fancy facilities, and constant praise from fans. What we don’t realize is that some athletes struggle with the student athlete lifestyle. Rising sophomore forward on the Georgia State basketball team, Clash Peters talks about the expectation put on college athletes.
“I feel like a lot of people like to undermine athletes, especially ones that are on scholarship because they feel like things are just given to them,” Peters said. “It’s easier to hear something and have an opinion on it compared to actually live through it day to day.”
Not only do you have to battle the daily tasks of a student athlete, but it’s way more difficult to take those emotions on game day. Clash says that leaving the emotions off the court is the not only good for game play but good for problem resolution.
“You want to win? You gotta put it aside.” Peters adds.
Even though putting your feelings aside can help game-play, bottling up your emotions is not a good habit to pick up. According to VeryWellMind, bottling up your emotions can compromise your physical health, impedes social relationships, and puts a strain on your mental health.
Most freshman don’t know what to expect for their first season of college sports and once the pressure is put on them, things can get difficult fast. Peters had his first season with the panthers and spoke on the jump from high school ball to college.
“It was a major flip strictly because you’re going from high school where you were giving a blueprint and someone is holding your hand whereas college, it’s really all on you” said Peters.
Peters wasn’t alone on this difficult transition, another rising sophomore track & field athlete, Amari Ned revealed that freshman aren’t used to the intensity of college work-outs and are more prone to injuries.
“We (freshman) get injured really easy because of the volume of training,” said Ned “It’s a lot”
Amari spent his first year of track & field at Queens University of Charlotte. Ned speaks about how during his first ever indoor track season, he had thoughts of contemplations about continuing his season. As a freshman, he had never experienced a true indoor season and had a difficult time transitioning to the heat of college. Luckily, with the support of his teammates, he was able to get over that plateau and create the needed change.
Another point of view that gives great insight is a coach who sees the players at their lowest moments. One of Philadelphia’s newest assistant coaches, Kevin Norris gives us insight on a different perspective of the athletes. As a coach, Norris believes in forming a relation ship with the players. The benefits of getting to truly know your players is to fully understand where they are coming from and to know when something is off.
“You just never know, and if you don’t have genuine dialogue with the kids, you know, maybe they lost a parent, became financially unstable,” Norris said. “All that stuff can build up and be too much for a young man or woman.”
Norris speaks about the importance of the sports psychologist on campus and how his team has constant interventions with the players and their mental health. Peters and Ned both said that they have easy access to therapist and other resources. According to NCAA, 63% of male athletes say they know where to go if they have mental health struggles, however only 48%-46% said they would actually feel comfortable seeking support.
As fans, as much as we show up to support our favorite teams or players, we have to support not only the games they play but the battles they fight silently.
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