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SALT LAKE CITY – Over the weekend Temple Square welcomed visitors from every walk of life for a conference filled with new callings, historic firsts and spiritual uplifting. Nearly 100,000 members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints … Continue reading
When BYU fans think of Craig Cusick they think of his game winning put-back as time expired against Utah State. Now he’s graduating and basketball will be just a memory. With those memories and an accounting degree in his pocket, Cusick will be set to pursue his true life dream.
“My dream is to start my own business, so that’s the dream, but I might have to obviously go work somewhere for a few years and get some experience,” Cusick said of his plans.
The large majority of BYU athletes find themselves in Cusick’s position, putting their athletic careers behind them at graduation.
BYU players are used to being in the spotlight. Thousands of people have piled into sports venues to watch them compete. Now that they’re graduating, they’ll have to move on to their private lives and private careers.
Athletes prepare for those careers in the Student Athlete Academic Center. It’s here that they really define their futures because their studies, not sports, are more likely to give them a win in the long run.
Different athletes start focusing on their studies at different stages in their college careers, but basketball and football players generally hold on to the professional sports dream for the longest.
“Going into their senior year they really (ask themselves): ‘Am I going to be able to make a career out of this sport or not?’ And that’s when I really start seeing a change and a re-focus on…the career part,” Trevor Wilson, director of the Student Athlete Academic Center said.
Luckily for athletes, the center doesn’t abandon them at graduation; they have career-seeking resources which continue helping them to get into their career field of choice.
NCAA reports say the percentage of college athletes who go pro in sports is below 2% in all sports except baseball. Baseball sits just above 10% because it has such an extensive minor league system.