The Spotlight

 Being in the spotlight comes with the territory of being an athlete no matter the sport. As a member of an instiution you are obligated to represent yourself in a positive light at all times. Being responsible and acting in an appropriate manner doesn't just mean playing the part when everyone is paying attention to what you do. The moments when you least expect someone to be observing your action are the most crucial moments because those are considered your moments of weakness.

I can recall my student-athlete days, as it hasn't been long since I have stopped competing (lol), when there was a period when a lot of our athletic programs were having discipline problems. It almost felt like every weekend someone would be dealing with the consequences of making bad choices. There were a few instances, on my team specifically, when coach had to kick a few teammates off the team for participating in underage drinking.

What we have to realize as athletes,correction, as student-athletes we have to remember that our actions affect not only ourselves but it causes a domino effect. We hurt ourselves, our team, and the instituiton we are attending. I remember a specific incident that happened around my sophmore or junior year. It involved a male athlete from the men's basketball team. He was arrested and charged with sexual assault (rape) of a minor. I don't know full details about whether he knew her true age or not but because of his actions and his lack of better judgment his whole team and program received a reputation of shame.

Know who you surround yourself with and what type of environment you are in or will be in. Make sure to make good decisions as they can have a detrimental impact on all of those involved in your program.