VTrendlines: So you want to play Division I sports?

by Austin Danforth
Burlington Free Press Staff Writer 

Young athletes everywhere aspire to play sports at the Division I level.

The lure of reaching the highest ranks of collegiate athletics — the premier competition, the potential incentive of an athletic scholarship and, who knows, maybe a professional career — has driven the development of high school standouts for decades.

Vermont is no exception. And the competition for those spots is as fierce as ever.

Yet, all the years of practice, goals set and realized, don't prepare you for entire experience. Sprints and free throws don't teach you how to handle that week when coach is on your case and midterms pile up with a group project, a sick roommate and back-to-back road games.

To get an inside view at what that life is like, the Free Press reached out to three recent Vermont high school stars currently competing at a Division I school: Former Essex golfer Evan Russell, a two-time Vermont Amateur champion and junior at Hartford; Champlain Valley's Emily Kinneston, a freshman at American University and two-time Miss Basketball winner; and Burlington's Joe O'Shea, a two-time Mr. Basketball honoree and fifth-year senior at Bryant.

BFP: How has the experience playing Division I college sports compared to what you expected or knew before you arrived on campus?

Emily Kinneston: The first thing I noticed when coming to the college level is the extreme competitive nature of the game. There is a lot more on the line for each game than there was in high school. The college level is physically taxing unlike the high school level — this is something that I expected, but it exceeded my expectations. Not only does the physicality increase, but the in-depth knowledge for the game increases dramatically. Since the game is a lot faster, it requires one to be able to think quicker and act quicker.

Joe O'Shea: Playing a college sport was more challenging but also more rewarding than what I expected. I became much more mentally tough and independent over the last five years and most of that I attribute to my athletic experiences. It is a tremendous time commitment, but if you are passionate about your sport it is well worth it. I traveled across the country — and to Italy — playing a sport I love and created life-long memories along the way.

BFP: What made you want to become a Division I athlete?

EK: Growing up, I always had the dream of playing Division I athletics. Once I got to high school and started playing AAU basketball, I learned that this dream could become a reality. I am extremely competitive and love being a part of a team, which are the two primary reasons I chose to pursue my childhood dream.

JO: I played a bunch of different sports growing up, but since my dad was the coach at St. Michael's I was always around basketball 24/7. I witnessed some of his teams have great success and play in the NCAA tournament so I always aspired to reach that level one day. About halfway through high school I started being recruited by Division I programs and I realized it was a possibility if I continued to progress as a player.

Evan Russell: It's a stepping stone to becoming a professional golfer. Becoming a professional golfer is a lofty goal, but college golf is the best opportunity to gain the work ethic, skill and competitive experience needed to achieve that. Also, all of my older brothers played college athletics so I definitely wanted to follow in their footsteps.

BFP: What elements of day-to-day life as a D-I athlete — in season or out of season — are tougher than you anticipated and how so?

EK: My day-to-day life is extremely busy. I usually have to reserve four hours out of my day for basketball on top of which I have two to four classes, homework, and I still have to find time to eat and sleep. I knew I would be busy as a D-I athlete, but it still took some adjusting to get use to the fast-paced schedule.

JO: The biggest adjustment was the length of the season and the time commitment. This year, we started practice around Oct. 1 and didn't finish the season until mid-March. Once official practice started I typically spent three to four hours at the gym each day. This included practice, film and treatment. Sometimes I also had lifts or extra skill work after practice. My freshman year I was a little shell-shocked at the time commitment but as you mature you become accustomed to it. Out of season, there is more time to socialize and kick back like a regular college student.

ER: Elements of my day-to-day life that I didn't necessarily anticipate before I got to campus were managing my time between class, homework, athletics and my eight hours of sleep. Golf has to be the most time-consuming collegiate sport and it is imperative to manage the rest of the day efficiently. It becomes even more difficult when we're on the road and miss class so often. We can be at the course from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. for some tournament days so it is obviously tough to get work done. I take pride in my academics so I try to stay ahead of the workload.

BFP: As an athlete who transferred from one school to another: What led to the decision? Was the process harder or easier than you expected it to be?

JO: I originally committed to Holy Cross out of high school but there was a coaching change before I arrived on campus. After my freshman year I hadn't received much playing time and didn't foresee that changing moving forward. The new coach had a much different system and preferences than the coach I had committed to play for, so the basketball situation was no longer a good fit for my strengths/weaknesses as a player. Even though Holy Cross was a great school, basketball is very important to me so I knew I would always have regrets if I stayed. I decided to transfer to Bryant, which was transitioning from Division II to Division I and where my uncle was the coach.

I essentially went 2 1/2 years without playing in a real game which was tested my patience. I also was taking a risk transferring to a school that had no track record at the Division I level. However, the redshirt year gave me an opportunity to get stronger and work on my weaknesses. The extra year of eligibility has also allowed me to pursue a master's degree on scholarship this year. Looking back, it was a difficult process but it was definitely the correct decision and ended up as a blessing in disguise.

BFP: What is the most challenging part about juggling those two responsibilities (student and athlete)?

EK:The most challenging part is managing my time. The days go by extremely fast and sometimes it feels like there aren't enough hours in the day to finish everything you have, but just know that somehow it all gets done.

JO: It is cliché but time management is the biggest challenge. This is especially true when you are traveling. There was one time last season when I missed a week straight of school, yet you are expected to keep up with your academics like any other student. However, as long as you take initiative and communicate, most professors will be flexible with you. It is also hard to have a great social life in-season because so much of your time is taken up by your sport and school.

ER: The toughest part is leaving the golf course on a beautiful, sunny day to go to class. Its difficult to have to give up possible practice time to go to class, but since we miss so many classes for events it is really important that we go to every class we can. Missing so many classes makes getting good grades a lot more difficult, so there is give and take from each side.

BFP: What pieces of advice would you give to high school athlete that wants to compete at the Division I level?

EK:Work hard and don't let anyone or anything get between you and your goals. Make sure to keep a positive attitude and don't let minor setbacks affect you. It's a long journey so make the most of it. Another piece of advice I have is to make sure you get plenty of rest, eat a lot and stay hydrated.

JO: There's two pieces of advice I'd give. First, it's important to have tremendous confidence in your ability. If you aren't confident, it's going to get sniffed out pretty quickly. One of the reasons I struggled early on in college was because I wasn't always confident I was good enough. When you face adversity, it is vital to really believe in yourself. My experiences have taught me that well-earned confidence is a great equalizer. Second, you need to embrace competition and not be afraid to fail. One of the biggest adjustments I had when I got to college was how hard I had to play on a daily basis. Sometimes I outplayed my teammates, and sometimes I got my butt kicked. But I had to change my mindset so that I wasn't constantly worried about how I was doing. If you can get to a place where success and failure don't matter and you are competing as hard as you can everyday, you have a great chance of reaching your potential.

ER: You need to have the work ethic and desire to get better every day because everyone else is. If you don't you will fall behind and it will be much more difficult to be competitive. However, at the same time there is not as big of a jump in skill and level of competition as I expected. You need to realize you're there for a reason and can compete with anyone you play against.

BFP: What advice do you wish you had gotten before becoming a Division I athlete?

EK: I wish someone had told me to not get stressed out. Everything can get overwhelming at times, but it all works out in the end. It doesn't help to spend your energy and time worrying about minor problems.

JO: I think it's important for high school athletes to understand there is no perfect fit and nothing is guaranteed. When I was being recruited, I had a difficult time making a decision because I was too concerned about finding a perfect fit so everything would work out how I envisioned. The reality is there are no guarantees in life and many factors are completely out of your control. Wherever you decide to go, focus on what you can control and understand there will be many peaks and valleys along the way. There were countless times, especially early on in my career, that I contemplated quitting. However if you fight through the struggles you'll come out better for it in the long run. Decide on the best fit for you and then embrace the journey.

BFP: What is the difference between being a standout high school athlete and competing at the highest level in college? What should kids know about making that jump?

EK:While you may have been a standout in high school, once you start at the college level, you are at the bottom of the totem pole again. Your high school career doesn't mean anything to your competitors. However, this shouldn't make you scared. It should be taken as a challenge to prove that you earned the standout role in high school and deserve to be at this next level. The jump isn't easy, but the reward is well worth it.

JO: The biggest difference is how much closer everyone is talent-wise. In high school, I was the most talented player on the court 95 percent of the time and I knew it. In college, everyone's talent level is much closer together. This requires fitting into the team concept instead of everything being centered around you. Unless you are a Karl Anthony-Towns or Jahlil Okafor, you are going to be a role player early in your college career.

ER: The biggest difference is definitely a broader range of strong competition. We at Hartford get to travel quite a bit and get to play some quality tournaments all over the country. Having the opportunity to travel like that gives me the chance to see some of the best players in the country. Competing against them helps show me where my game is relative to them and shows me what I need to do to be better.

For full article, click here.