Athletics and academics have been associated with each other ever since academic eligibility has been incorporated. As a result, several studies have been performed to investigate the relationship between academic performances in-season compared to out-of-season. The study done by the NCAA shows that more athletes perform better in class when they are out-of-season rather than in-season. However, this is not always the case for all athletes.

Seniors Robert Falconer and Chris Wilford attribute a lot of their academic success to being involved in sports and other clubs. Falconer is ranked number one in his class and is a cross country and state track runner. Wilford is also ranked highly, while having played baseball, football, and even being the president of the National Honors Society.

“While my academics are very important to me, I try and find other things to do, such as track and cross country,”  Falconer said.

Falconer is not someone who focuses solely on his grades.

“I believe being apart of a team has benefitted me because it helps keep my stress low and puts me into different roles where I support some and lead others.”

Falconer generally believes that his decision to join track and cross country has benefitted him in the classroom, not hindering his performance.

“The exposure to a team role has been huge when it comes to working with others in a class.” Falconer stated. “Being on a team has changed the way I work with others, I always used to do everything on my own. But now I have started encouraging and supporting my classmates with their parts of our projects”

Falconer feels that this new approach to group projects will enhance his abilities to work well with others to achieve a common goal as well as boost his grades.

Wilford has been part of sports and extracurriculars his entire life. Playing football to becoming an Eagle Scout and president of the National Honors society, Wilford says it’s necessary to manage every part of his day so he can stay on top of all his academics.

“I honestly believe that being in so many sports and clubs has helped perfect my time management, and that I perform better in my classes because I can’t waste any time procrastinating,” Wilford said.

Wilford also believes that when he is out of season it is more difficult to find as much motivation to do his work because he doesn’t absolutely have to get it done straight away.

“Being in-season is a driving force for me to finish my work, and helps keep me motivated to get everything done because if I don’t I know i will fall behind and my grades will suffer for it,” Wilford said.

DGN track coach Eric Buhot has also had some thoughts as to how he can help his athletes thrive during their busy practice schedule.

“Practice every day until about 6 can take up a huge amount of time a person has to do their work,” Buhot said.

Buhot has now implemented a mandatory day of practice that is dedicated to schoolwork.

“Overall, I believe that many of my athletes are still learning how to juggle school and sports,” Buhot said. “But I truly believe that even though at first being heavily involved in athletics and academics, given the right instruction, athletes can achieve new levels of success and productivity once they learn proper time management.”