 |
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The school of hard knocks: Young British Columbians recruited by American colleges and universities often return home because things aren't exactly as promised by scouts
Vancouver Sun
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Page: B2
Section: Westcoast News
Byline: Yvonne Zacharias
Column: Yvonne Zacharias
Source: Vancouver Sun
They leave with suitcases stuffed with sneakers and shorts and family snapshots. They leave with big dreams.
After tearful goodbyes at the airport, they are off to the U.S. on athletic scholarships.
They leave as stars on their home turf, the envy of teammates and friends, to find their place in the big U.S. pantheon of sports.
Many go to obscure universities and colleges strung like mini, multi-faceted jewels on a jagged necklace from one ocean to the other.
Reality hits almost as soon as the plane lands with a thud on the tarmac.
They are quickly plunged into a sea of talent, struggling to emerge to the top or merely get noticed. They face a new culture, tumultuous coach-player relationships, a juggling act between sports and academics. The coveted position on the team often vanishes like a mirage in the desert.
And they are young. So young.
Some like the Steve Nashes go on to become stars. Others come home, turning their backs on a full-ride scholarship that pays for tuition, books, food, housing and some of the best sports training money can buy. For the most part, they are happy they went. But they say buying that one-way return ticket back was the best move they ever made.
Regardless of their individual experiences, they will tell you that things aren't often as they are made to appear by the scouts who come a-calling. We asked six of British Columbia's top athletes why they went and why they came home.
- - - - -He was the star of his high school's basketball team in Richmond. Almost from the start, scouts from U.S. universities had their eye on him.
Pasha Bains could dart dribble, jump and block seemingly like none other. He led the Richmond Colts to the 1998 provincial championship. He was named most valuable player in the 1998 AAA championships.
When he was offered a full scholarship at Clemson University in South Carolina straight out of high school, he jumped at the chance.
There was some oohing and aahing among his teammates and classmates. Here he was, just a kid with this big scholarship at a Division 1 or top-ranking U.S. university.
Yet that same Bains returned to university in British Columbia two years before his scholarship at Clemson was to end.
For starters, Bains missed his family. Faced with a $900 US plane ticket every time he wanted to fly home, he spent many holidays and spring breaks alone on campus. That was tough.
It might have been bearable had he been on a winning team but he wasn't. "Losing was really tough for me." He didn't get as much playing time as he would have liked. He wound up playing behind a guy who went to the coveted NBA. The No. 1 player here was consigned to a more shadowy role there.
Although he had a full scholarship, what he didn't realize when he went down was he would have to pay $500 US per semester in taxes on it, plus he was given no spending money. Throw in the occasional plane ticket home and he estimates his stint south of the border was costing him $2,000 US per semester. As an athlete who was required to weave five or six hours a day on the basketball court around full-time studies, there was no way he could handle a job.
"It was a real culture shock going from Richmond to South Carolina. They still hang the Confederate flag in places down there," he recalled.
It was a world of divides. On the one side were the whites or Caucasians and on the other were the blacks or African-Americans. Bains, an East Indian, didn't fit in either. In fact, most had never seen an East Indian. "Some people thought I was Mexican."
An inveterate chameleon, Bains managed to turn his ethnic origin into an advantage. He managed to get invited to parties on both sides of the divide. "I looked different, which worked with the girls."
The coach had these arcane rules. All the players had to attend a team breakfast at 7 a.m. They were required to sit in the front row in class. That's because he didn't want anyone to think his players were academic slouches. And no baseball caps were allowed. The boys might be tempted to turn them around. No dumb jocks, please.
When opportunities arose first at Simon Fraser University and now at the University of B.C., Bains didn't hesitate. He packed his bags and came back. He doesn't regret it. He came back as a full-time starter and managed to follow his academic dreams, pursuing a joint master's in coaching science and sports psychology.
Nor does he regret going down, although he lost a year's worth of credits in the transfer back. "I would still recommend going to the U.S. There are a lot more opportunities, the media exposure is better, there are bigger arenas, more coaching staff, better facilities. Canadian schools still can't compete."
- - - - -You can faintly detect a catch in Emily McGrath-Agg's throat as she describes the experience of leaving her family in New Westminster to head across the continent to Wayne State University in Detroit to play hockey.
She had been scouted by seven or eight U.S. universities but settled on Wayne State because the coach from there talked to her face-to-face at Langley at a showcase tournament, one of those events frequented by up-and-coming players and scouts on the lookout for talent. The other university coaches had only spoken to her by phone.
"I could get a feel for the coach. He was really friendly, completely interested and offered me a full ride on the spot. That was part of the appeal, too. There wasn't this negotiation process."
McGrath-Agg accepted without much hesitation. This was a top-ranking Division 1 university. It all seemed so right.
Still, leaving wasn't easy. A lot of the parents of kids who were on the team were able to travel with them to university. Hers couldn't because it was so far away. "It was kind of like saying goodbye to my parents at the airport and I didn't see them until Christmas. It was hard."
However, the landing was fairly smooth. "They made it pretty nice for me. There was a girl from the team to pick me up at the airport and she took me to my dorm. She helped me get my stuff up to my room. My roommate was another girl on the team so it was relatively smooth. They took us to a restaurant for dinner because we were starving."
McGrath-Agg had a good first year, despite the adjustment of having to be on the ice every day.
But in her second year, she hit a snag. The coach who recruited her left and a new one came in. He made it plain from the start he didn't like her. "I think it had a lot to do with the fact he didn't recruit me so he didn't know me as a player. It was kind of like he was stuck with me. That's how I felt, anyhow." It didn't work. "Our personalities clashed."
At the end of her second year, she asked for a release from her contract. The coach called her into his office. They had a big meeting and he convinced her to stay for a third year. Then "it just went from bad to worse."
Because she had asked for a release, "he knew I was unhappy so he sort of made me feel bad. He was very aggressive and negative. He took a lot of confidence out of me as a player just by stupid things."
For example, even though she had an excellent season in her sophomore year, he saw to it that she didn't win any personal team awards. "He named all of my best friends captains and assistant captains for the next year but he didn't give me one. He didn't appreciate me or want me there. It was definitely hard. Emotionally, I was a wreck."
She feels a little cheated, robbed of what could have been a great experience.
After her third year, she came home and is now playing with the UBC team. Her love of the game has returned. So has her confidence. Not so with the seniors at Wayne State who are graduating this year. "They are all hanging up their skates and not playing hockey any more."
By rights, she should be graduating with them but her transfer back has tacked on another year of school.
She advises students considering a scholarship in the U.S. to do their research, something she admits she didn't do adequately.
More specifically, she advises prospective U.S. students to talk to the players who don't get a lot of ice time or those in compromised positions like backup goaltenders. Ask the coach what year of his contract he is in. Check on the team's record. Do your homework.
- - - - -If McGrath-Agg were the only native British Columbia to wither in the hands of a U.S. hockey coach, one could put it down to bad luck.
But almost the identical situation arose for Kim Coates of Harrison Hot Springs, who went to Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y.
In her case, the coach didn't change. He just didn't turn out to be the man she met when she went down to check out the university. As he showed her around on that first visit, he seemed to be such a good man. She liked his philosophy. She was happy when the deal was sealed. A full athletic scholarship in a top-ranking U.S. university. Wow! "I was really excited to be in a new place. I would get to play hockey every day."
When she moved down to begin school, she was immediately plunged into a toxic environment. The man who had seemed so nice turned out to be verbally abusive and threatening. "It was horrible." He ordered the players not to talk to teammates, friends or family about the problems they were having with him.
"It was hard to deal with the everyday abuse. It made it hard to do schoolwork."
She, of course, did discuss the situation with her parents. She was so upset, she had to. She lasted a year and a half.
The upside of her experience: "I learned how to put up with a lot. I learned I can handle almost anything."
When you get an athletic scholarship, "You have no idea. The way we were treated, it's not what it should be." She, too, advises prospective students to ask lots of questions and make sure they understand what they are getting into. "I am glad I left."
- - - - -MAKING THE GRADE
Bill Green is principal of Airport elementary in Comox. After spending roughly $20,000 in trips to the U.S. and special coaching for his son Taylor, he learned some of the ins and outs of the U.S. scholarship system. He now offers workshops to parents and students on the subject.
In the end, Taylor got 91 offers of U.S. scholarships, some from prestigious universities, and accepted none of them. Instead, he wound up at Cypress Community College in southern California, where he was drafted and signed by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Here are some of Green's tips to students and parents seeking U.S. athletic scholarships:
- Start preparing as early as Grade 8.
- Keep positive. Avoid the dreamstealers who tell you you don't have a chance.
- Be a sponge. Learn absolutely everything about your sport that you can.
- Draw up a plan with your family.
- Prepare yourself mentally, physically, emotionally and perhaps spiritually to be the best student athlete you can be.
- Keep your grades high.
- Research U.S. schools. You must understand that there are schools ranked as high academic-medium athletic. Other schools may focus more toward high athletic-medium academic. Find the school that meets your needs.
- If you can afford it, pay for private sport-specific instruction from several different instructors in different geographic areas. They may have connections to colleges.
- If you can't afford private instruction, sit on the sidelines, bleachers, etc. during someone else's lesson and be a sponge.
- Visit colleges, talk to coaches, tell them you are interested. Invite them to watch you play or ask if you can join in on one of their practices. Arrange your family holiday schedule to areas where you have high interest.
- Create a one-page player profile that you can hand out or e-mail.
- Create a personal video, DVD or website.
- E-mail and phone coaches on your target list on a regular basis.
- Fill out school questionnaires.
- Attend showcase events.
- Hire agencies to assist you in contacting schools.
Bill Green can be contacted at bill.green@rogers.blackberry.net
Please click here to read the second half of this Vancouver Sun special.
Illustration:
Colour Photo: Ward Perrin, Vancouver Sun / Basketball player Pasha Bains returned to B.C. after being awarded a full scholarship at Clemson University in South Carolina.
Colour Photo: Ian Lindsay, Vancouver Sun / Ice hockey player Kim Coates of Harrison Hot Springs returned from a New York university.
Colour Photo: Wayne State Athletics / Emily McGrath-Agg hit a snag when the coach who recruited her left and a new one arrived.
Idnumber: 200606130092
Edition: Final
Story Type: Sports; Column
Note: Ran with fact box "Making the grade", which has been appended to the end of the story.
Length: 2161 words
Illustration Type: Colour Photo