Freshman Year Survival Kit For The Student Athlete

by Chris Rotolo

Surviving your freshman year with a good G.P.A. and your sanity intact is an accomplishment in itself. Being able to manage your time between classes, work, practice, and a social life is a difficult transition from high school to college, but a necessary evolution none the less.

To help the collegiate student athlete make a smoother transition the RateTheCoach Team has conducted research and come up with list of items that needs to be in your Freshman Year Survival Kit.

Flip Flops:

In World War II soldiers were exposed to the elements and would often find themselves sitting in sloppy muddy fox holes for days and weeks at a time. Frequently these “foot soldiers” would contract trench foot, sort of an extremely severe case of athlete’s foot. All you need to worry about is the regular type of athlete’s foot, the one that won’t cause doctors to amputate. It’s hard enough to play through a grueling college season. Why deal with itchy burning sores on your feet? Use flip flops and keep your feet fungus free.

Toilet Paper:

When you go away to school, whether you live on or off campus, at some point you will be forced to dine in the university cafeteria. Afterwards, when you are walking back to your residence, you may find that the slimy glob of vegetable lasagna you just consumed is not sitting right. So you race back to your bathroom to have a double and all that sits in your dispenser is a bare, brown cylindrical piece of cardboard. Do not place yourself in this helpless situation. Have plenty of toilet paper readily available.

Shampoo and Soap:

One of the perks of being a student athlete is that you attract the opposite sex more easily than the average student. Unfortunately one of the cons of being a student athlete is that you will be sweaty and smelling like a foot more often than the average student. So do yourself a favor ladies and gentlemen, keep large quantities of shampoo and soap on hand.

Laundry Detergent:

As well as having to bathe more frequently than the average student you will also have to do more laundry. Nobody likes a stinky teammate, and unless you are the star of the program, the other players will let you hear about your stench. Stock up on laundry detergent. It tends to run out quickly.

Clothes Hamper:

Contrary to popular belief, not all colleges pair athletes up as roommates during freshman year. With this in mind get yourself a hamper to put dirty clothes in. Your roommate will not appreciate grimy clothing strewn about the room so keep him or her happy, and clean up after yourself.

Cooking Utensils:

If you are lucky enough to have a stove in your room it would be pretty silly not to use it, you’re paying for it right? Have cooking utensils in your cabinets. They will come in handy when you get back from practice or a game and you can’t gather the strength to venture out to the cafeteria.

Storage Containers:

This one is rather self explanatory. While at school you may find that some of your belongings can not be stored away in conventional means. This is where the storage container comes into use.

Yearly Planner/Calendar:

One of the most difficult adjustments that you need to make from high school to college is the management of your several syllabi. The syllabus contains every meeting date and every assignment due date for a certain class. You will receive a syllabus for each class. Without a planner or calendar to write all these dates down it is easy to become overwhelmed by your workload.

Highlighters:

This isn’t high school anymore. The books for your classes are your property. Feel free to write in them with utensils of all sorts. Highlighters are usually the weapons of choice on the college campus. Highlighting helps you retain important information while reading for class. And, during mid-terms and finals, you will be amazed how easy it is recall information during the study period when it’s encased in a bright streak of yellow or pink.

Ibuprofen:

You are a student athlete and you will quickly learn that ibuprofen is your friend. On the field you work out your body and at some point you will be forced to play through a nagging injury. In the classroom you work out your brain and at some point you will be forced to sit through class with a headache or a sore throat. Keep a bottle of ibuprofen in your equipment bag and your book bag. Making it to class is just as important as making it through a game, because if you don’t perform in the classroom, you won’t be allowed to perform on the field.