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ABSTRACT
Supporting the academic success of college athletes is often a focus for practitioners working in intercollegiate athletics. Freshmen football players have identified as an at-risk subgroup in their likelihood to experience academic difficulty. The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain an understanding of processes underlying academic success and failure by exploring the first-semester experiences of two groups of freshman Division I football players: one group who were academically successful (n = 6) and another who were not academically successful (n = 6). Emergent themes relating to their experiences were academic preparation, motivation, and engagement. Findings indicate that both groups struggled with managing dual roles. However, those who understood the expectations, had clear academic goals, and strong support were more likely to stay motivated and engage in academic activity. These findings offer insight into how sport psychology professionals can promote player development and enhance their first semester experiences by bridging the gap between academics and athletics.
Keywords: sport psychology, college, athlete, freshman, football, academics
INTRODUCTION
Facilitating the academic success of college athletes is a common undercurrent of a sport psychologist's work (Pinkney & Tebbe, 2009), as well as topic of scrutiny in higher education (National Collegiate Athletic Association; NCAA, 2012). With the increasing emphasis on maintaining academic eligibility, athletes are under constant pressure to perform both athletically and academically, and athletes on high profile NCAA Division I football teams have been identified as academically at-risk. Given the overlap in factors that enhance both sport and educational performance, sport psychology professionals seem well-suited to supporting the performance of student athletes, both on the field and in the classroom. Growing numbers of sport psychology professionals are therefore working alongside those in student services to address the complex performance, personal, and academic challenges of college athletes (Etzel, 2009).
Unlike other amateur or professional athletes, college athletes' sport participation is linked to their academic performance. In 2004, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) instituted the Academic Progress Rate (APR), and the Graduation Success Rate (GSR) to promote academic success (LaForge & Hodge, 2011). These standards require athletes to achieve a minimum grade point average (GPA), and to earn a percentage of credit hours towards their degree in order to stay academically eligible. The pressure to excel...