Why I Am a Lifelong Advocate for Competitive Athletics. At Every Level

I want to tell you who I am and what I believe. Not as a college counselor presenting credentials, but as someone who has spent his career at the intersection of athletics and education and has arrived at a set of convictions that I hold deeply.

I am a lifelong advocate for competitive athletics. At every level. In every division. For every athlete who still has the desire to compete.

Let me tell you why.

Where This Started

I grew up watching what sport does to people. I coached. I worked as an athletic director. I sat in college admissions offices and read the applications of thousands of students. I became a college counselor who works primarily with student-athletes.

Across all of those experiences, the pattern I’ve seen most consistently is this: the students who competed in athletics through college carry something with them that their non-athlete peers, in many cases, simply don’t have. Something built through years of preparation and competition and adversity and recovery that shows up in the way they work, the way they communicate, the way they lead, and the way they handle failure.

I’ve also seen what happens when athletes stop competing too soon. The disconnection. The identity loss. The absence of the structure and community that their sport provided for most of their lives.

Those experiences convinced me that one of the most important things I can do as a college counselor is help student-athletes find a way to keep competing, not just because it improves their college application, but because it improves their life.

What I Believe About College Athletics

I believe that playing competitive sports in college is one of the most transformative experiences available to a young person.

I believe this not because of scholarships or exposure or the prospect of playing professionally. I believe it because of the structure, the community, the identity, the leadership development, the network, and the habits that the college athletic experience consistently produces.

I believe that the division doesn’t matter as much as the fit. That a student-athlete who competes at a D3 school that truly fits them will have a richer, more formative experience than one who scrapes into a D1 program where they don’t belong.

I believe that D2 and D3 programs are among the most overlooked opportunities in American higher education, and that families who dismiss them without looking are leaving real value on the table.

I believe that the benefits of college athletics. Higher graduation rates, stronger campus engagement, better mental and physical health outcomes, and more durable professional networks. Are not reserved for elite athletes or recruited prospects. They are available to any student-athlete who finds a program, earns a spot, and shows up.

What This Means for My Work

These beliefs shape everything I do as a college counselor.

When a family comes to me and their athlete is considering stepping away from their sport, my first instinct is to ask: have we explored every option? Not because I think every athlete should compete in college, but because I want the decision to be made with a complete picture. Not a limited one.

When a family is fixed on D1 and hasn’t seriously considered D2 or D3, I push back. Gently, but clearly. Because I’ve seen too many families foreclose options that would have been better for their athlete than the D1 dream they were chasing.

And when a family needs help navigating the process. Understanding the landscape, reaching out to coaches, building the academic and athletic profile that opens doors. I bring to that work the full weight of what I believe about what’s at stake.

This isn’t just a job to me. It’s a conviction.

An Invitation

If you’re reading this and your athlete is somewhere in the journey. Middle school, high school, or already in college. I want to extend an invitation.

Let’s talk about what college athletics could look like for your family. Not what you’ve assumed it looks like. Not what the loudest voices in the recruiting world say it has to look like. What it could actually look like for your specific athlete, at the level and in the program that fits them best.

I believe your athlete has more options than you realize. I believe the sport they’ve invested in has more to give them than the highlight reel shows. And I believe that the right college athletic experience, at whatever level it happens to be, could be one of the most important experiences of their life.

That’s what I’m here for. That’s what I believe. And that’s why I do this work.