Hard work and determination are often what is calibrated
when it comes to becoming a football player. Like many high school football
players pursuing the big dream, they wonder – how to be a professional football player. Before one can become a professional it is important to make it to the
collegiate level. Here are a few thoughts on how to be a collegiate athlete.
Brains
I know a lot of you football players are not excited to see
this at the top of the list but if you don’t have the grades it really hurts
your chance of getting to a good college and playing ball. Division I football
teams have to have a certain GPA average to maintain scholarships from the
NCAA. If the team GPA begins to drop it will hurt the chances of scholarships
for next year. Some collegiate teams will grab a Division II athlete that has a
4.0 GPA to be on the team to bring up the team average. This may be a good way
to getting at that level and then working your tail off to start.
Speed
In today’s age of football it is about speed. You might know
a few guys that are just monsters in the gym, but they are slow – this really
hurts their chances to making it big. Many linemen in the NFL are running below
a 5 second forty. If you are a speed athlete and you are not close to a 4.4
forty then you really need to step it up. Football is about speed no matter
what position you are in, and the game only gets faster when you get to the
next level. The forty is important when being looked at because it shows the
explosiveness that you have, working on your vertical can help your time as
well.
You are competing against yourself
Remember that when you are training you cannot be content
with being better than the people around you. You need to be able to push
yourself farther even when you do not have people to push you. Maybe you are
someone who looks like a football player but you don’t have the brains
to remember plays, and can’t read an offense or defense – you are your worst
enemy. The game of Football is for athletes you can know something before they
even happen. Hopefully this article has give you a good idea of how to prepare
yourself for the next level in football. Obviously training is important but this
is only a third of what needs to be done.