ROTC and Division 1 Athletics

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wrestle24/7

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Apr 13, 2015
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I was recruited by and committed to a Division 1 athletic program. I recently found out that I was awarded a 3 year AROTC scholarship. Does anyone have any insight on participating in ROTC and athletics at the Division 1 level?

Any insight and information will be greatly appreciated.
 
There are plenty of old threads on this topic. In general it's difficult but it can be done. You need to work closely with your coach and cadre to make it all work out.
 
My son is in NROTC as a freshman and does D-1 athletics. He has been testing out on PT by scoring "excellent" so he does not have to do PT in the early mornings so this has helped a great deal. However he still must get tested and keep his PT scores up whenever they re-test. He does have to do early morning drill though and he is required to do everything else the unit requires( naval science classes and events) including keeping his grades up to maintain his scholarship. It's tough but not impossible as he has proven. The next few years he will take on more responsibility as a Midshipman so we will have to see how it all plays out.
 
Hey! Thanks Clarkson. I'm a big Duke fan but never realized Plumlee was in AROTC!
 
From everyone I have talked to and all I have read, it sounds like it all depends on how willing the coach and cadre are to work together. I have emails into both explaining my situation and asking for their opinion and experience with this. I'll update you once I hear from them.
 
I received emails from my coach and cadre today. The email from the cadre says that they fully support cadets who are also athletes. The coach, who has never had an athlete in ROTC, came back with a very positive and encouraging response. He listed what he thought were the benefits of doing both and said that he would do all he could to help make it work.
 
wrestle24/7 said:
I received emails from my coach and cadre today. The email from the cadre says that they fully support cadets who are also athletes. The coach, who has never had an athlete in ROTC, came back with a very positive and encouraging response. He listed what he thought were the benefits of doing both and said that he would do all he could to help make it work.
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That is amazing! I am assuming wrestling? Can I ask which school?
 
wrestle24/7 said:
Wrestling at American University, Hoya Battalion at Georgetown for ROTC
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That is very exciting, congratulations and good luck on your wrestling and ROTC experiences in college! I have one that will be doing the ROTC side of things, and two that are going to be playing D1 soccer in Fall 2017. I admire you for biting off both, it will be worth it in the end, you just have to grind it out!
 
"wrestle24/7, post: 484604, member: 25299"]I was recruited by and committed to a Division 1 athletic program. I recently found out that I was awarded a 3 year AROTC scholarship"

Congratulations on both achievements. As Kinnem mentioned lot of posts on forum. Try to talk to as many D1 and D3 athletes, and cadets as you can. Not meaning to be a downer but go in with eyes open and as much information as you can gather.

Along with all the commitments and pressure as D1 athlete you will also have the extra weight of being a cross-town AROTC cadet, which present its own challenges. AROTC son's fellow cadet is D3 athlete and he has missed a lot of labs (conflict with practice) and classes (games) and week-end trainings due to his sport. Plus he is never really around the battalion members because of his athletic commitments. Many academy D1 athletes have opined actually easier at an academy for athlete because well understood by all what needs to be done. Not so much with ROTC on civilian campuses. We are wrestling family and know what it took for you to get to where you are. Good luck![/QUOTE]
 
Matt Brown was Army ROTC and won a National Championship in 2015 while wrestling at Penn State He wrote a book about his experience called "Mission Accomplished". Graduated with a 3.97 and had highest national PFE Score with 140 push-ups.
 
Quigley said:
Matt Brown was Army ROTC and won a National Championship in 2015 while wrestling at Penn State He wrote a book about his experience called "Mission Accomplished". Graduated with a 3.97 and had highest national PFE Score with 140 push-ups.
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Haven't been on the board for a while but thought I'd give an update. I have decided to try and do both. I actually got Matt Brown's email address and asked him what advice he could give me. I won't share the whole email but I will share a few things he told me.

1) Communicate and prioritize. At some point schedules will conflict. Decide which activity is more important and communicate that to the coaches and battalion.

2) Be present where you are. Give all of your attention to whatever you are doing. If you're in class pay attention so that you'll have to spend less time studying later.

3) Be humble. The other Cadets will see that you get excused from some functions, which may cause some animosity. He found that by being humble, fellow Cadets will respect you rather than be jealous.

Thanks for the advice and information that I received. I'll try to do periodic updates for anyone who is interested.
 
wrestle24/7 said:
Haven't been on the board for a while but thought I'd give an update. I have decided to try and do both. I actually got Matt Brown's email address and asked him what advice he could give me. I won't share the whole email but I will share a few things he told me.

1) Communicate and prioritize. At some point schedules will conflict. Decide which activity is more important and communicate that to the coaches and battalion.

2) Be present where you are. Give all of your attention to whatever you are doing. If you're in class pay attention so that you'll have to spend less time studying later.

3) Be humble. The other Cadets will see that you get excused from some functions, which may cause some animosity. He found that by being humble, fellow Cadets will respect you rather than be jealous.

Thanks for the advice and information that I received. I'll try to do periodic updates for anyone who is interested.
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I wish you much success. It sounds like you've got a great head on your shoulders and I look forward to your ongoing updates when you have some extra time.
 
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