Myron Rolle is Smarter than Me

This week there have been several reminders that sports, both at the professional and collegiate levels, are often all about money. So I thought it might be nice to end the week with someone for whom sports are just that thing they do when they aren’t trying to save the world. (Plus, it spares you all from a post gushing about Pujols’s 2nd MVP. If you’re disappointed, just re-read my post from September.) So, ladies (and gentlemen), I present to you Florida State safety and Rhodes Scholarship Finalist Myron Rolle.

Myron hugs a participant in a program he created to teach Seminole Indian children about health and nutrition issues. Source: Phil Coale (AP)

On Saturday, Myron may miss all or part of Florida State’s game against Maryland so he can report to his final interview for the Rhodes Scholarship, which would allow him to study at Oxford University in England on full scholarship for two years.  I have seen the Rhodes Scholarship application process up close, and it is no joke.  First of all, each university in the US is only allowed to nominate one person in the entire school to even apply for the award. The written application alone makes most grad school applications look like a third grade spelling test.  And then there are at least two rounds of in person interviews, where you often are asked to account for every detail of your academic career so far and detail your plans for the future.  Maybe this doesn’t seem as stressful if you get to go out every day and knock someone to the ground.

I knew a few kids in college who took extra hours and graduated early, so they could get a head start on their graduate degrees.  I knew a few that played Division I sports while getting a degree in engineering or pre-med.  I even knew one guy who became a Rhodes Scholar.  All of these people worked their asses off, and most of the second group ended up giving up their chosen sports because it was taking too much time away from their studies.  Assuming things go well on Saturday, Myron Rolle may wind up doing all three of these things. Did I mention he’s also an occasional sports blogger?

Oh, and he's not bad looking, either.

You can learn more about the specifics of Myron’s incredible academic and athletic career in this New York Times article or this Sports Illustrated article (which was published in July, but still has some nice details).

Good luck, Myron!