The typical day in the life of Maxx Forde starts by waking up around 7 a.m. for back-to-back classes beginning an hour later. Some students might have the luxury to call it a day after that, though for Forde, his day is just getting started.
Double-majoring in finance and marketing, minoring in statistics and partaking in the Integrated Business Curriculum, Forde, a senior, is also a standout on the Idaho football team.
After classes, he goes to the weight room at 2 p.m. This is followed by team or position meetings with coaches. Then, depending on which day it is, that’s followed by class at 5 p.m. or football practice.
“It’s definitely a lot of stuff,” said Forde, who has been able to maintain a 3.44 GPA. “From early in the day, it will take you to about 6 or 7 at night. It’s kind of like working a 9 to 5, maybe a little bit more. It’s a lot of stuff to do, but it’s definitely rewarding at the same time.”
What is often overlooked when watching college athletics is that athletes competing on the field or court are students too. For the time athletes spend trying to get better at their sport, they typically spend just as much time, if not more, with their studies.
It’s a physical burden, said Susan Steele, director of the Vandal Academic Support Services — a department that oversees and helps student athletes.
“It’s difficult,” she said of being a student athlete. “It’s more than a full-time job, and I say that with all due respect to them and the other students, too. It’s a physical burden because of all the practices and lifting they do, then it’s a mental burden because of the school. Not just anybody can do it.”
The path to becoming an NCAA athlete is an obstacle all on its own. UI athletic director Rob Spear said high school prospects must get cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse, which requires students to pass a recommended number of core classes. Along with that, an athlete’s GPA and ACT or SAT scores are graded on a sliding scale. Meaning that if a student has a low GPA, they can still get cleared if they have high test scores, and vice versa, he said.
Spear said he thinks athletic departments around the country just comply with the bare minimum requirements, and believes the “myth” that it’s easier for an athlete to get into UI is completely false.
“It is just that, it’s a myth,” Spear said. “Our requirements are the same as any other school — in some cases higher. It’s not true that they can get into school easier here.”
Every sport has its own internal policy, Spear said. Coaches will have their own requirement for the minimum GPA allowed.
For example, Spear said the football team and its coach, Paul Petrino, raised the minimum GPA for incoming freshmen. In 2014 it was 2.1, in 2015 it will increase to 2.2 — eventually 2.3 will be the core GPA to get in.
Since Petrino’s arrival in 2013, Spear said the average GPA for incoming freshmen has increased from 2.8 to 3.3 and SAT scores increased from 924 to 998.
The work doesn’t get any easier once a student-athlete arrives on campus, Steele said. Students will come here and not know what to expect.
“We have a system in place,” Steele said, “that all incoming student athletes are in service, which is where we have weekly meetings and help them with their schedule planning and time management, which is an issue for all college students and especially student athletes who have a little more of a burden on them.”
The NCAA mandates student athletes maintain a GPA of 2.0 or higher. It’s a mechanism that’s put in place, not to punish the student-athlete, Steele said, but to insure they are making progress toward their degree.
Before Petrino took over the football team, Spear said its cumulative GPA was coming in at 2.01.
“His first semester here they improved to a 2.5 (GPA),” Spear said. “This last fall it was up to a 2.6 … A lot of coaches will talk the talk about how important academics are. Coach Petrino walks the talk. Not only with the kids he’s bringing in now, but with the expectations when they’re here.”
To help student athletes, Spear said the athletic department has invested a lot of money into academic support services. He said since he’s been here, the office has gone from one to three-and-a-half full-time employees and also added another computer lab, which is open from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. with someone there at all times to assist the athletes.
In an effort to keep student-athletes on track, Steele said if an athlete’s GPA falls below 2.6, they are mandated to meet with someone at Vandal Academic Support Services. She said they help student-athletes with time management, arrange for a tutor, practice study habits and make sure they’re on track to graduate.
“We are trying to change a culture,” Steele said. “I think the thing that I’m trying to bring to the table is the idea that we care about the student-athlete.”
During halftime of a men’s basketball game this past season, Steele said more than 100 UI athletes were recognized for having a GPA of 3.0 or higher. She said that’s about one-third of athletes on campus.
The hard work by the student-athletes has also been recognized by the WAC with its Stan Bates Award, which is given to student-athletes for their community service and academic success.
Since the WAC’s 50 years of existence, UI has had the most Stan Bates Award winners — with nine overall.
For the majority of student-athletes, awards may be the most recognition they receive for efforts in the classroom or on the field, as very few will be lucky enough to go on and play professionally.
According to the NCAA, 1.6 percent of college football players will turn pro, 1.2 percent for men’s basketball, 0.9 percent for women’s basketball — and that doesn’t take into account the average lifespan of a pro athlete. A study released by the NFL Management Council in 2011 said the average career length for an NFL player is 6.86 years.
“Even if I do go pro, my career would only be so long,” Forde said. “I got to make sure I have something to help me with the majority of my life, help me earn money and provide for my family … You need to have your education to fall back on no matter what. Even if you’re a great player, you could have a knee injury and that’s the end of your career. Regardless of who you are, I think you have to have an education.”
Korbin McDonald can be reached at [email protected]