By Ronald Trey Smith
April is the month for the National Football League draft, the month when some players realize the childhood dream of playing for a professional team.
It’s fun watching Odell Beckham, Jr. grab a one-handed catch over a defender, and it’s thrilling to watch Kam Chancellor knock the wind out of an opponent. So what kid wouldn’t want to grow up to become a multi-millionaire athlete?
Parents know the importance of supporting their children’s dreams so they can learn to work for what they seek. Every athlete has heard the speech about being a “student athlete,” which means putting schoolwork first before sports. Although “student athlete” becomes cliché to football players, it’s actually an important concept to follow since the chances of making making a professional football team’s roster are slim to none.
The NFL draft, also known as the player selection meeting, is a process of selecting the top college football players in the country to play for a professional team. An average of 3,500 collegiate athletes each year since 2011 consider themselves eligible for the draft, yet the average number signed by the NFL is about 254. That means only seven percent of eligible athletes get drafted.
And how many high school players make it onto a college team? Collectively, 1.1 million athletes play high school football. There are over 14,000 schools that have a football program, and each athlete wants the opportunity to play at the next level. But only 3-4 percent will actually get that chance. The simple fact is that there are more high school football teams than there are college football teams. On average, Division 1 FBS can offer up to 85 scholarships at a given time. Division 2 is allowed to offer 36 scholarships, and Division 3 schools are only allowed to offer financial aid.
For players, balancing schoolwork, football and life outside of school is challenging. In high school, the season begins in August and can go until December, depending how far a team makes it in the playoffs. Beginning the first week in January, the Virginia High School League allows schools to begin scheduled workouts. During August, every football player knows what a two-a-day is. This is two practices that ranging from five to seven hours. In college, football is year-long. Football is the main focus and a serious commitment.
Marckel Bonds, a linebacker at Christopher Newport, said, “It’s a grind, but I’ve never worked as hard with a group of guys as I’ve done here. You have to get a full understanding of the playbook, and it’s important to play your best during training camp.”
Football is not fun and games. It requires dedication by players who want to be a part of a football program. If an athlete is fortunate enough to play beyond high school, the hard work and competition only gets more intense. If a player does not get the opportunity to play at the next level in college or the NFL, it’s important to keep school first so that a backup plan is in place.
Education can carry players a long way, but football is only temporary. Still, the dream to play in the NFL dies hard.
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