Eddie Hall

Everybody wants to go D1 until it’s time to do “D1” things. D1 isn’t what you think it is. It’s a lot of emotional stress that is unloaded on you on-top of very high expectations. You see the NIL money, the sponsorships, the uniforms, etc., but what you don’t see are the 5 am workouts at the facility. You don’t see the 2-3 hours of film you’re required to watch and take notes on, and we track it. You don’t see the 2-3 hour practices in the middle of the summer when it’s 91 degrees and 84% humidity. You don’t see the absurd amount of class work you are expected to complete and study for on your own (no more hand holding in college like in HS). You don’t see the sacrificing of social time because you have football, school, then football again all day every day. Weekends? You’re at the facility watching film for a few hours. You live, eat, and breathe football. The schools invested a lot into you, so they are going to require even more. I don’t say this to scare you from dreaming big - but I say this to put things into reality for you because ESPN makes CFB look a lot more glamorous than it really is. There’s a reason those student athletes get the perks that they do, it’s because the work they put in well exceeds what they are given 100% of the time. Ask yourself, am I comfortable and willing to give up more than what I am getting in return? That’s the ultimate question.