As I finish my last season as a college athlete, I want to pass on some advice to future generations. Here’s some good advice for any college athlete, no matter the sport!
- Wear goggles. Make sure to keep the water out of your eyes!
- Do not let the ball touch you. Make sure you don’t get out, it sucks to have to warm the bench for the rest of the game.
- Make sure you have sturdy shinguards. You never know when your shins will be attacked, be that by cleats, or a stick, or poles, or ice skates. Your shins are important— protect them!
- Become well versed in trash talk. 90 percent of sports are won through psychological domination. Be sure to get in your opponent’s head.
- Be respectful when addressing the judge. Considering these people are often professional judges, you should try to be respectful of their time and always address them as “your honor.”
- Alert someone if you get a concussion. I know playing through a concussion is often tempting, and sometimes the game gets so intense you forget to take care of yourself, but be sure to stay alert and not let yourself be concussed.
- Wear cleats. Make sure you sharpen your spikes beforehand, and be sure you don’t wreck them by walking on the wrong surfaces.
- Breathe air, not water. I know being surrounded by water can occasionally cause you to forget what you should be breathing in, but make sure your head is out of the water before you breathe. Additionally, make sure your head is in water before you drink!
- Watch the clock. It can be hard to calculate what moves will beat your opponent after you get through the opening, but you’ve got to make sure you don’t spend too much time antagonizing over your middlegame.
- Bring an appropriately sized club. You want to intimidate your opponents with the size of your club, but you need to make sure you can still swing it well and that it’s not going to hamper your drive.
Teague Peterson-McGuire is from Oconomowoc, Wisc.
His majors are film & media studies and Nordic studies.
