Spring 2001
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Spring 2001 |
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We know Rose-Hulman is Number One in undergraduate engineering. In a very real sense, we also are Number One in athletics. I am not talking about winning national championships, producing professional athletes or receiving big buck revenues from bowl games. We are Number One in athletics because of the athletic opportunities we offer all our students. From intramurals to varsity athletics, we engage the maximum percentage of participation possible. We do so keeping in perspective that our number-one priority is providing the finest engineering/science/mathematics education possible. Athletic participation, varsity or intramural, is a part of that complete education. A mind is truly healthier in a healthy body. Stress from the pressures of study can be relieved through physical exertion, and athletics teaches teamwork. Everyone who participates has a shot at "15 minutes of fame." Rose-Hulman offers 21 varsity sports, ranging from football to rifle. More than 300 students participate in varsity sports, including 35 percent of our entering freshmen. Competition is stiff, the schedules are tough, and the experiences are rewarding. Through it all, our coaching staff never loses sight of our number-one goal –scholastic excellence. Rose-Hulman has graduated 29 academic All Americans in the last 11 years. Several years ago Paul Harvey’s national radio program gave us accolades for excellence because of a baseball game. We were playing a ranked state university and had the lead when several of our starters had to leave in the fifth inning to take a test. Our priorities were in the proper location – the classroom, not the ball diamond. Athletic participation is not limited to the varsity ranks. More than 80 percent of our students take part in 12 intramural sports. A hearty hurrah for Athletic Director Greg Ruark and all of our fine coaches running these programs. Let me share with you what I tell superior high school athletes who also have excellent brain power. "Unless you are sure you are a Larry Bird, don’t go to a big state school with the objective of being a division one national star and having a pro career. Dreams are nice, but solid choices need to be made. Rose-Hulman is about education for life and placement in a high-paying job. At a division one school, you ‘might’ make the team, and you ‘might’ play some if you are good enough. But the percentage of high school varsity athletes who are not quite as good as Larry Bird and don’t make the team is large. The sense of failure can be debilitating. At Rose-Hulman, you can be assured of being able to continue your love of your sport while achieving a degree from the best undergraduate engineering college in the nation." I will close with my own 15 minutes of collegiate athletic fame. When the varsity basketball coach at MIT learned I was from Indiana and had played varsity basketball for a high school team that had been ranked sixth in the state, I was immediately drafted. (I didn’t tell the coach about all of the calluses on my rear end from warming the bench during my high school career.) The coach quickly learned I could shoot like a Hoosier, but only if left unguarded. In the first game, I was put in at the beginning of the second half to try to pop in what would now be called a quick three-pointer to throw the defense off balance. In my excitement, I forgot that teams change ends at the half. I received the tipoff, dribbled the wrong way and (since obviously left unguarded) swished a beautiful 22-footer for the opposition. My playing time was limited thereafter – but hey, I received my 15 minutes of fame.
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