It's hard to believe it, but we're finally here. After three years and more than 50 columns, my time with Rules of the Game has reached its close. This will be the final column I ever publish in a regular edition of the Daily. I know, I know, it's hard to accept, but please, hold your tears.
I wanted to take these final 600 or so words to send a thank you note that is long overdue. Four years ago, I joined this department as a clueless kid who liked sports and went to a high school that didn't even have any sports programs.
Along the way from useless freshman to only-slightly-less-useless senior, I got a lot of help. From editors who made my articles look presentable to friends who critiqued my column pictures, every bit helped.
But this article isn't about my friends or the staff. It's about the campus' athletes, who have made my time at the Daily so much better.
There are plenty of stereotypes about college athletes. Some people see them as conceited, or at least closed-off to others. There are plenty of famous players or coaches who, coming off a bad game or loss, will refuse to put together more than three words at a time. Others will always give the "right" answer, as though it were scripted by their coaches five minutes earlier.
Even on this campus, there is a general feeling that athletes are closed off from the general student body, out in their own cliques.
But my experiences over the past four years couldn't do more to dispel this idea. I wouldn't say I've ever ended up best friends with the athletes I've reported on. But I've been so appreciative of the relationships I've formed and the access they've given me.
I immediately think back to last year, after the women's basketball team lost a heartbreaking game in the Sweet 16. Less than 24 hours after being eliminated in Chicago, they were at a table with me in Hotung being forced to recount every second of the end of their season. They could have been cold, they could have given me one word answers and left me with nothing to write about. Instead, they gave me enough to put together something I was truly proud of.
Another time, I was given the glamorous assignment of writing a feature on two soccer players with the hook being that they had a lot in common. I remember sitting down to that interview, and all three of us knew we were about to have an awkward 20 minutes. But they still took my questions, answered them as seriously as possible, and maintained that they enjoyed the article, even when they took a decent amount of ribbing for its contents.
Then there were those awkward freshman articles, where I had no idea what I was doing. Half the time, they were being interviewed by some talented upperclassmen, and the other half they had to deal with this bumbling, confused kid who could barely keep their names straight. But they answered my useless and repetitive questions anyway, every time.
But these stories are only a small sample of the kindness athletes have shown me. From showing up at the campus center at 11 p.m. for an interview to answering my questions while sitting in class so I could meet a deadline, they've broken every stereotype I've ever had. My love of sports journalism comes as much from each of them as it does from anything else.
If there's one final rule I would like to impart on this campus, it's for both athletes and non-athletes to break down those boundaries. We are all one large community, and you might be amazed about what you find when you step across the border.
