College is one of the most stressful times of a young adult’s life. Not only does it require young adults to mature and evolve into the foreign experience of early adulthood, but it also forces young adults to make decisions regarding their life.

Additionally, college is also overwhelming as, when not seriously studying, there’s a great amount of fun that can be had. This struggle, which is felt by any student in an institution of higher education, can be felt by student athletes, as they have a sport to focus on while also balancing their studies and down time. One student that feels the grind is junior Sean Nicolson, a member of Millikin University’s football team. Even so, in his opinion, playing a collegiate sport has been a very enlightening experience.

For Nicolson, playing football for Millikin has opened him up to a lot of different and rewarding experiences.

When asked how playing a collegiate sport has impacted his life at Millikin, Nicolson said, “I would say I have met a lot more people than I would have if I didn’t play a college sport. I’ve also had some pretty crazy Saturdays [during games]. Like some of the games have been the craziest games I’ve evet played in.”

Coming to a university allows young adults from all over the country to meet new people and experience new things. Being a college athlete further increases a young adult’s chances of forming new bonds and experiencing new experiences since athletes are given a chance to practice and play with various types of people.

Additionally, college sports are more intense than high school sports, which can be an extremely rewarding experience, as athletes like Nicolson get to work at their full capacity in order to perform well against other players. Nevertheless, although playing a collegiate sport is enjoyable, it can be hard balancing both school and sports.

When asked how he adapts both to school and sports, Nicolson said, “I have to budget my time really well. I get up early some days to do homework at Scovill.”

The immense pressure of schoolwork, while additionally having to juggle both games and practices, requires a great amount of time and effort. For every college student, but especially true towards student athletes, time management is the key to being successful. In order to keep being a part of the game, student athletes have to ensure that they are keeping up with their studies. Time management is also important regarding performance, as an athlete that isn’t managing their time well can become overworked and stressed, which can greatly impact their performance both during practice as well as their performance at a game.

Because student athletes have to juggle the stress of both donating a large portion of their time to athletics while also having to account for scholastic work, a lot of pressure is put upon student athletes. However, for Nicolson, playing the game helps alleviate the pressure. According to Nicolson, “Practice helps relieve the pressure. I get to go outside every day and play with my friends and compete against them. For two hours every day I get to forget that I am not a kid anymore.”

Although playing in a collegiate sport is very time consuming and stressful, while additionally having to factor in studies, the love of the game is what keeps Nicolson going.