Athletic scholarship decisions elicit joy and often uncertainty

Wednesday will be one of the biggest days in the lives of many high school seniors.

It's a day where most of the attention is devoted to football. Countless newspaper, TV and Internet reports on high school stars across the country and in our area signing their letters of intent and making their college choices official.

Standouts in soccer, cross country, track and field and water polo can also sign and seal their decisions. Official choices don't have to be made until April in basketball and other sports, which had a one-week early signing period in November.

For some athletes, the choices were easy. They knew where they wanted to go all along, found a school that had everything they wanted and made verbal commitments long ago.

For a select few, they were pursued by dozens of schools. It didn't seem there was any way to go wrong with so many options to consider.

For others, particularly some football players, their process was a little tougher. It was an emotional up-and-down ride, with some schools dropping out of the picture and others making late courtships.

It will make for all sorts of emotions Wednesday.

Joy. Relief. Still some uneasiness about this decision that will affect much more than just the next four or more years.

An athletic scholarship is an incredible opportunity offered to only a select few of the hundreds of thousands of high school athletes. It's tough to find any negatives in having all or part of a college education paid for through sports.

But it does add variables to an already difficult choice.

Many athletes choose a school because of relationships with head coaches and their assistants. Understandable since that's who communicates with the athlete most.

But stability isn't usually one of the perks of college coaching - particularly in the higher-profile sports at some of the most prominent universities. For every Joe Paterno leading Penn State football or Mike Krzyzewski in Duke basketball, there are coaches coming and going through a figurative revolving door.

Promises may be made about future playing time and then a more talented player may come along at that same position. Coaches are paid good money to win, so those promises may be forgotten.

The number of college athletes who move on to get paid to play games is minuscule. So how important is playing time over time spent toward a degree that hopefully will provide a lifetime of opportunities?

Ultimately, all athletes hoping to move on and play in college, from Division I to Division III, must determine what it is about a college that makes them happy. It's not easy in a situation where attention and adulation can cloud judgment.

So would you still be happy at the school you picked if your coach leaves?

Would it be too difficult to handle ending a four-year college career primarily on the bench?

Would you still be happy if an injury brought an end to your athletic career and would your academic needs be met?

It's all part of what should be considered before signing on the dotted line.

mmaciaszek@dailyherald.com