Hi, im going to college next year, but i know i wont be fast enough to walk on or be one of the top runners, so i was going to not compete for a year and run just a whole year of base by myself before competingmy sophmore yeaer. How do the rules of college competition eligibility apply for an athelete?
Do i still have the same number of competition available even if i didnt participate my freshman year?
you have 5 years to compete in 4.
so does this mean i can have 2 years of track and 3 years of cross? like that?thanks
No
You have have 5 years to complete 4 years of eligibility (meaning you can have 4 years of competition and 1 year as a redshirt if you need to redshirt). And in those 4 years you are able to compete in cross country and track.
it also depends on NCAA (various divisions) v. NAIA, there are medical redshirts (hopefully they won't come to pass), and then your also allowed time away w/o penalty if you go on a religious mission (Mormon) or if you get pregnant.
Duder, I\'d suggest go for it and try to be on the team. You may start out getting your ass kicked, but if you stick with it, there may be some surprises in the upcoming years. There is one part of college running that is totally different from highschool running and that is mental toughness....you have to have the mentallity that you can run with the big dogs even when your 5k pr is 17 flat....that way you can push yourself in the workouts and stive to improve on a daily basis to get up to their level. Running on your own and building base does not do this. You need to be thrown into the fire first in order to spark something great. You need teamates and a supportive coach that will support you in your running and transistion to college...I think you would be making a mistake to do this on your own, speacially your first year.
I'm sorry, I looked past the part in which you said you didn't think you'd be fast enough to walk on. Well, if I was you (and I was at one point), email the coach or call him up and let him know that you want to be on the team. Tell him that you are willing to work hard, put in some decent miles over the summer and work hard to improve his team. If he says no, then train yourself that first year as you had said, but try to hook up with a club or somthing to help ya out.
you might as well try out for the team unless you are not going to attend school full time. if you start off as a part-time student, your eligibility "clock" will not start. so, if you take 11 units each of the first two semesters, you'd still have five years to complete your four years of eligibilty the following year.
trackhead wrote:
it also depends on NCAA (various divisions) v. NAIA, there are medical redshirts (hopefully they won't come to pass), and then your also allowed time away w/o penalty if you go on a religious mission (Mormon) or if you get pregnant.
Why don't I get an extra year when I get a chick pregnant and have to defer study for a year while I work to support her a bit?