Myron Rolle's Decision: Long-Term Education Over a Short-Term Fortune

Twenty-three-year-old Rhodes scholar Myron Rolle has just completed a year at Oxford University, studying amongst the brightest and most talented individuals on the planet.

His field of study is medical anthropology and one day this fine young man born of Bahamian parents hopes to become a doctor, more specifically, a neurosurgeon.

But by accepting the same scholarship that has boasted the likes of Bill Clinton, Bill Bradley, and a host of other distinguished intellectuals, (only 32 are awarded to Americans each year) Rolle has opened himself up to a plethora of criticism.

Why?

Rolle was a standout safety at Florida State who completed his undergraduate degree in two-and-a-half years in Exercise Science with a 3.75 GPA. Instead of entering the NFL draft right after graduation, he decided to accept the scholarship and take a year off from football.

NFL draft experts estimated that this decision, at the moment, has cost him an estimated $8 million.

But not only is Rolle smart, he is also quite the humanitarian.

He has many philanthropic and cultural endeavours including the Myron Rolle Clinic he plans to open in Exuma, Bahamas.

So what's the problem?

Apparently, Rolle is taking heat for passing up the big bucks. Rolle says that his "so-called" friends and others in the football industry are calling him a "sell-out."

Rolle understands he has lost a fortune in the short-term. But he believes he will benefit financially in the long run.

Leigh Steinberg, the high-powered sports agent who represents him, has said that Rolle will someday make far more money than the estimated $8 million he lost in the short-term.

But why does that not sit well with his peers? Why is Myron Rolle not being held up as a poster boy for "doing the right thing" by communities across the country?

Rolle says he is comfortable doing his own thing, unphased by the heat he takes for taking a year off for doing what he calls "cool things."

Ask Bill Cosby about Myron Rolle, and you're almost sure to get a hearty "Well done" out of him. Cosby has long been a proponent of African-Americans pursuing higher education.

But why do Rolle's critics seemingly disagree with The Cosby Theory?

Could it be today's "get rich quick" attitude, which basically says "make as much as you can, as fast as you can—regardless of the consequences"?

Yet, some statistics show that 78 percent of NFL players face financial duress just two years after their retirement.

Does "get rich quick" mean "lose rich quick" too?

Some sportswriters even claim that some student athletes on scholarship do not benefit, in the long-term, from the education they receive. 

"They make billions for the white, elite-run schools, and don't see a penny in return."

Has education become devalued in today's world? 

Does a college degree mean nothing, even though it costs families hundreds of thousands of dollars? Is it fair that someone who studies at one of the finest institutions in the world is called a "sell-out" by his peers?

The NBA is filled with 19-year-old kids who head for the NBA draft after just one season of playing in college. The NBA no longer allows its teams to draft star-players right out of high school. Because of this regulation, some high school basketball stars are traveling overseas for a year or two to play in Canada or Europe. They return to the U.S. once they qualify for the NBA draft.

What is wrong with this picture?

When I played basketball over 20 years ago, I was constantly reminded by parents, coaches, and teachers that I was a student/athlete. And while I was cut some slack because I was traveling often, I still had to perform academically as well. 

An accounting degree was my reward for applying myself academically. I was one of three players on my team to achieve an accounting degree. And my team was 95 percent African-American.

Should we just list this as a phenomenon, indigenous to the sporting industry, and let it go? It's sports, not the "real" world. Is it an anomaly that should be tolerated but not truly understood?

There are bright stars that burn bright for a short time, then quickly burn out. 

You want to be successful for your whole life, not just in your 20s and 30s?  Then study, learn, work hard in school, and you'll do fine.

Maybe Myron Rolle is just a throwback to when people were held to a higher standard: when "getting paid" wasn't the only goal in life, when our society was more concerned with producing athletes who possess quality both on and off the field.

Unfortunately, Rolle will most likely continued to be labeled as a "'sell-out" to education.

But for some reason, I have a feeling that Rolle will make a bigger contribution to the world and will touch people's lives in a positive way.  

At least much more so than some overpaid, bling-wearing, under-performing quarterback who left school early to "cash in" on a quick pay-day.