How to Become an NCAA Division I Student-Athlete

Discipline. Maturity. Self-mastery.

Those three qualities define a college student-athlete. However gifted, they must cultivate those qualities in order to realize their potential.

Being a standout on the field, on the court, or on the ice is a small part of what being an NCAA Division I Student Athlete is all about.

There are ways to achieve the goal of becoming an NCAA Division I Student Athlete though, and here are a few of them:

Attitude is everything

One of the most important aspects a coach looks for in a player is to make sure they are coachable.

Be ready to learn more about the game in a physical and mental way. You cannot be a know-it-all.

Remember that getting to the top doesn’t happen overnight and takes a lot of hard work:

• Want to win every game, but if you lose, know that you have to lose in order to appreciate the victories;

• Be more willing to lose all of your games and learn, than to win them all and get nothing out of it.

Have a good relationship with your current coach, because your coach is your connection to getting into college as an athlete. He or she is the person who will help make your dreams come true.

With this good attitude and positive relationship, on and off the field, it will help make a future college coach remember who you are and help in his or her decision to recruit you.

This positive attitude will also decrease your risk of getting cut or kicked off the team in the future.

Play with 120 percent effort

Your current coach will be recording and videotaping games of you playing. Be consistently great.

College coaches want to watch a team player, not just a sprinter or someone who never runs out of energy.

Be the player who plays with passion and love, not just talent and the player who makes sacrifices for his or her team.

Be a champion, even if you lose: the vision of a champion is someone who is bent over, drenched in sweat to the point of exhaustion, when no one else is watching.

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