Conner Grupe | Contributing Writer

Adrenaline rush. It is the only thing that describes what it feels like to run out into an arena packed full of screaming fans. They all came to see you play. This is your time to shine and display to everyone how hard you have worked to put on a good show for them. There aren’t many feelings in the world that prevail over this one.

Being a student athlete is a tough thing to do. A student athlete must balance their schoolwork, athletics, sleep, and social aspects all evenly if they want to succeed in what they do. Student athletes are often under a microscope on campus. Everyone sees what they do, looks up to them, and knows if they do something they aren’t supposed to do.

As a basketball player here at Buena Vista University (BVU), I can say representing your respective sports department is something you really have to be careful with. Although there may be 30 guys in our basketball program, it only takes one or two to give the whole team a bad image on campus. There is no reason to play the sport if your number one objective is not to give the program a positive appearance to all of the BVU students, faculty and staff, and the community.

People ask the question, “Why play Division III? You can’t even get a scholarship.” My answer to them? You play for the love of the game.

There is much more to playing sports in college than just getting a scholarship. Many of the players in Division III had scholarship offers in high school or previously played at schools that were able to offer them.

BVU offers many things that many other schools cannot. Why does a student choose a college? Value. To me, it was worth my decision to come here and play, even though you cannot be paid for it. No matter how people look at Division III, it is still a huge time commitment, the athletes are still incredibly skilled, and the competition is equally passionate. All of the student athletes at every level share one thing: passion. We all love to play our respective sport, and we will do so at any cost. Years from now, I will be able to look back at all the great memories I have with my team, how hard we worked, and how much we accomplished. That is enough of a scholarship for me.

Photo by Makensie Brown