SWC athletes classroom champs, defy 'dumb jock' stereotype

Pity the poor athlete. Society has painted them as "dumb jocks," meatheads, boneheads and knuckle-dragging Neanderthals. That is the stereotype.

But athletes are not dumb. In fact, athletes at Southwestern College work hard and carry their books as much as their footballs.

To be a college athlete there are many sacrifices and much hard work involved to stay on top of the game, and most of the time it goes unnoticed.

Most college athletes are hard working students and put in more time than other students. They have classes, practices, games and sometimes even work. It is not easy to do, but serious dedicated athletes will manage to do it. "Where there is a will there is a way."

Former Southwestern College quarterback Drew Westling is a prime example. He earned a full scholarship to San Diego State University with his 3.6 GPA and 2,087 yards passing.

He is only one of the many successful athletes from SWC.

There are many valuable things athletes learn from being in team sports, such as time management skills, responsibility, discipline, dedication and teamwork.

Head football coach Ed Carberry agreed.

"In teams you learn how to work in a cooperate effort," he said. "Give up their own desires for those of the team."

Football players spend an average of 14 hours a week at practice in order to perform well on the field. That does not include the time dedicated to their classes. In order to play they are required to be enrolled in 12 units and have a minimum GPA of 2.0. Last semester the team earned a 3.0 GPA.

SWC coaches may not teach the same game but one thing they do have in common is they emphasize that their competitors are students first and athletes second.

One group always ahead of the pack is SWC's cross country team. Since 2000 every cross country sophomore has earned a university scholarship, which is based both on academic and athletic performance.

Professional athletes also get a bad rep for being "dumb," but most professional athletes attended college before being drafted, and not all get degrees in physical education.

Two notable college graduates are Padres pitcher Chris Young, a Princeton graduate, and Chris Capuano of the Brewers, who graduated from Duke University in economics.

"There is a valuable lesson to learn in athletics," said Carberry. "The leaders of tomorrow are on the football, baseball and volleyball teams of today."