If I told you coming into college that I would be dating a collegiate athlete, I would tell you that you were lying. But you’re not and I am currently dating one who has taken my heart by storm. Dating a collegiate athlete isn’t the same as dating a regular guy because athletes are held at a higher standard for performance, grades, and image. Collegiate athletes have typically played their respective sports for years and are looking to, maybe, one day go pro and enter into the professional leagues. It’s a lot of pressure and courage to strive for a dream so great, but that’s the goal for a collegiate athlete. As the girlfriend or boyfriend of an athlete, you have to realize that and become their biggest supporter no matter what! It’s not easy dating an athlete, but it’s totally worth wild in the end.
You’re his number one cheerleader.
Literally, you should be his biggest fan and you should let him know that you’re here for the sport, that he’s been obsessed with since he was a child. His sport is a big part of his life and in due time, it slowly becomes a big part of yours. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, it would definitely be best to show your man or woman that you care about him or her and that you want to learn more about the sport. Learning about the sport doesn’t just intel the rules, it can mean the different teams, the pro players that he looks up to, and what the gear or equipment is used for.
My boyfriend is Ncincilili Titi, a sprinter for the University of South Carolina for the 100m, 200m, and the 4x400m. Before anyone asks, yes that is how you spell my boyfriend’s name and he’s from South Africa. I’m still learning everything that I can about track, but my boyfriend really appreciates it when I just sit and listen. Which segways into the next tip…
Listen, but don’t nag on the results of the race or game.
After a brutal loss or a flat time, your guy will more than likely be upset, maybe a little moody, and just wants to talk about the game and his frustrations. Let the boy talk and keep your ears wide open! You’ll learn so much about the game and about him just by listening to him during these fragile times. Stay away from nagging or critiquing the game until he’s up for it. It’s kind of like don’t kick him when he;s down but pick him back up. This is the perfect time to do that.
Memorize his schedule.
Athletes are super busy between going to 8 AM classes to eating lunch then to practice or weight room. Then when they get some free time, they have to do homework, study, and go to bed. Between all of that day in and day out, it can start to feel like there’s just not enough time for you. But I promise you there is! You just have to memorize his schedule and see where there are gaps in both of your schedules to hang out. With my boyfriend, we used to eat lunch together on campus between our classes and his practice time. We would also study together, which can actually be pretty cool if you can stray away from being distracted.
You won’t be there for everything and its okay.
Being the girlfriend or boyfriend of a collegiate athlete, there is a lot of pressure on you to always be at the games or meets to show support for the team and your baby. But your world doesn’t revolve around their sport nor does their schedule revolve around your work/ class schedule. It’s not meant to be that way either. You’ll have to miss some events and that’s okay. When this happens, I always try to find another way to either be able to see the meets or tweet stalk on the team’s twitter feed to stay up to date. Titi will typically either get his teammates to record his races to send them to me or I’ll watch the meets online.
Welcome to the team family!
If you didn’t guess this one, then I’m not sure what you thought being a girlfriend or boyfriend of an athlete would be like. But you automatically become a part of the team dynamic and family, which is actually really cool. It’s like multiplying your friends by….just a lot.
You wind up with a stock load of campus gear for free.
There is so many extra clothes, gear, and shoes that Titi is given all year around by the school. It’s ridiculous, but I’m totally not mad at it because I get to have a bunch of comfy campus gear that is the perfect baggy fit for free. So if you love tshirts for “you’re going to class” daily outfit, then welcome aboard girl because you won’t ever repeat a shirt again, I promise. The only funny part is that regular classmates or students probably think that I myself am a collegiate athlete when I am definitely not because I wear so many Carolina athletic gear. But it’s totally fine!
Dating a Collegiate athlete isn’t the same as dating a high school star.
Many people believe that dating a collegiate athlete is the same as dating the high school football star. It’s totally different! Collegiate athletes are dedicated athletes that are literally on scholarships or getting paid to play sports for their college. So they aren’t just playing their respective sport for the fun of it. It’s basically their job that feeds, houses them, and gives them an education. Don’t forget that they are also extremely talented and driven individuals who were chosen over other individuals to play. It’s actually pretty incredible seeing athletes go pro and knowing that you were just sitting in class with them last semester in Chemistry. But that’s the lifestyle or should I say goal for a collegiate athlete is to go to the professional league. So forgive me when I say, it won’t be a perfect movie scene where your athlete runs off the field after the winning touchdown to give you a smothering kiss and carries you off the field like in Cinderella.
Athletes are a special breed.
To be able to work out daily, strive to do better, and push themselves to the max, that’s a special breed called an athlete. They analyze the game or race to get better for the next time or they change their diet to improve their health or change their workout routine to improve one aspect of their figure. It’s a tough life to live, but the reward is so amazing. I used to play in sports in high school and the feeling of the game was incredible, but I didn’t have it in me to keep playing in college. It just wasn’t me. I applaud all of the athletes out there in whatever sport they choose. What they put their mind, body, and soul through to be a better athlete is something you can’t describe in words. You just have to watch them play or run to really appreciate all of the efforts that go into it.
Dating an athlete has definitely made me learn a lot of lessons that I hopefully was able to outline in this post for you to help you with dating a collegiate athlete. But I don’t recommend dating any collegiate athlete just because they are campus celebrities and a lot of them can have big egos. So when you’re choosing who you want to date, pick wisely and think about your decision, because a boy is a boy and a girl is a girl no matter what they do for a living. You still want to find that person that makes you fall in love and that pushes you to be a better person overall.
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Have you ever dated a collegiate athlete or are you currently dating one? What are your experiences?
