A lot of athletes I work with get nervous about their transition from high school to college, and I can understand and appreciate their anxiety. I DEFINITELY remember driving out of Fargo, ND heading to Stanford thinking, “What in the world did I get myself into…” I was EXCITED and NERVOUS all at the same time. Since that was quite awhile ago, I recently asked a good friend of mine, and a great young man I worked with in his college recruiting process to write up a quick piece about his transition from high school football to college football.
Kyle now plays at Lafayette in Easton, PA. His letter is from his heart, so enjoy what he has to share…
My name is Kyle Triplett and I am currently a student athlete attending Lafayette College in Easton, PA. I play football at Lafayette, which is a Division 1AA Patriot League program that has been quite successful in recent years. While I was born and raised in California, I made the decision to attend a school on the East Coast to pursue excellent academics and the chance to continue my football career.
While I personally did not have any urge to be away from my family or to leave California, I made decision to move east and attend Lafayette College. I made the choice over truly uncountable hours of thinking and debating my options. I was and am an exceptional student and while playing football was a definite addition, I had options in large part due to my grades. After talking to my parents and weighing my options, Lafayette College ended up being the best choice for me.
I arrived at Lafayette three weeks before school began to attend the pre-season camp to play football. Being from California (also living the farthest away on the team) I was the first freshman to arrive and started my journey alone in a bare residence hall, and felt for the first time in my life truly afraid and unsure. I was 3000 miles away from home, in a place I had visited one time, and completely on my own.
I will never forget, however, my first victory at college. I realized after a long day of travel how famished I was and that I needed to find some food. All the cafeterias were closed and the only way I was going to get food was to walk around Easton and find somewhere to eat. I had no mom service anymore to yell at me to come to dinner, and it was a strange feeling. After walking for about ten minutes I came across a small grocery with a sub station and I found my meal for the night. It was a very small moment in my life feeding myself for one meal, but it was monumental too. It was the first realization that it was up to me now, that I was completely in control of my own life and that no one was there to take care of me anymore.
Despite my first splash of independence, those three weeks of camp that proceeded that night were the longest and hardest I have ever had to endure. My personal hardship was not from the physical, but completely from the mental aspect. (But don’t kid yourself D1 football camp is as tolling as it comes) Over the first few days I was at camp I was not myself in any way. I was depressed to the point of feeling sick, I didn’t know anyone and would be lucky if I didn’t have to eat alone, and I was doubting my decision at all times. These feelings were affecting my attitude, my performance, and my entire self and were overwhelming me.
I consider myself to be about as strong a person (mentally) as they come and I was shocked to see myself feeling this way. I was almost embarrassed to be feeling the way I was but I missed my family, my girlfriend, my friends, and my whole life I had sacrificed to come to Lafayette. It took the help of several true friends, (one of whom I am writing this piece for), my girlfriend, and my family to get me through what I was experiencing. All of those people, who were there for me when I needed them most, have my deepest thanks and gratitude.
It took until about the end of football camp for things to begin to change for me. The change began with a talk with my father, who had flown out to help me move into my dorm. What my dad told me that night was the force that snapped me back on track and brought back the self that I had been missing.
I finally knew I was truly going to be okay and that I was going to make a future at Lafayette, when I began making reference to my new “friends” at school. Once I let myself become a part of my new college life, it embraced me. I have not looked back since that time and have realized I did indeed make the right choice.
The lesson I hope that anyone who reads this understands is that your experience somewhere is completely up to what you make it. When your outlook is dim, so will be your experience. It is as simple as optimism and attitude towards a situation. I had to learn the hard way and am the first to admit I didn’t take my own advice in the beginning. With the help and love of friends and family, I was fortunate to find my way and have been successful in my first semester of college.
The experience of going to school so far from home, seeing a completely new side of the country and culture, and making new friends from different backgrounds; has made me a stronger person than I ever could have imagined. The maturity and lessons that I have learned from this experience I couldn’t ever have received without making and sticking to my decision to go east.
My journey at Lafayette College continues each day, and each day I give thanks for being fortunate to have the opportunities I have had and the future that I am proud to be building.
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