Athletics

Many high school athletes dream of becoming a professional athlete. It is a noble dream, but somewhat unrealistic for most high school athletes. Many parents dream of their son getting a football scholarship or their daughter a full-ride college scholarship. That, too, is unrealistic for most kids and parents. The type of athletic program offered in the Upland Unified School District (UUSD), emphasizes discipline, character, and cooperation. It accentuates the classroom and getting an education first. It doesn't emphasize winning at all costs nor displaying one player so that a given athlete is more important than the team.

We want every athlete who is deserving of a scholarship, to get one. Coaches in UUSD will do everything they can to help athletes go to college and to procure a scholarship, if one is merited. UUSD offers a quality program that emphasizes education.

Some parents will agree with the above for everyone except their son, who was All-County or All-American. To those parents we say, look at the following statistics. In the 1993 study released by Utah State University shows the likelihood of a high school senior getting an athletic scholarship and moving on to the professional athletic:

• 50% of high school football and basketball players believe they will get a college scholarship.
• 98 out of 100 high school athletes will never play in college.
• Only 1 out of every 100 high school athletes will receive a scholarship to a Division I school.
• Only 1 out of 12,000 athletes will go on to become a professional athlete.
• Only 1 in every 5,200 college football players will go on to become a professional player.
• 67% of all NFL players do not have a college degree.
• The average career in the NFL lasts 3 1/2 years.

Participation in athletics is highly valued in the Upland community. The importance of scholarships, however, must be placed in a broader perspective.