Harvard students’ careers are often measured and oriented toward their outcomes. Each class, club, meeting, and activity is essentially regarded as a stepping stone to the next benchmark, and is ultimately valued by the products it yields. With this outcome-oriented theory, then, why do so many students engage in activities that might not lead to another accomplishment? Nearly a quarter of students at Harvard College play a varsity sport — sacrificing endless hours practicing, lifting, and competing for something that they likely will not play after they graduate. In the class of 2020, 83 of the 203 seniors who were previously varsity athletes, quit their sport; a surprisingly high number with influence likely from Covid-19.
Yet the choice to pursue a varsity sport at Harvard itself is unique. Unlike most Division 1 schools, where athletic pursuit at the college level often trumps academic obligations, student athletes at Harvard must be prepared to sacrifice a number of athletic efforts in the name of achieving Harvard’s famed education.
Daniel Abraham ’22, a senior on the football team, explains the “40 not 4” phrase that dictated his choice of college, referring to the number of years for which he was planning ahead. “It basically means that in addition to maximizing your playing career, you are deliberately choosing to allocate more thought towards life after college,” he notes. Abraham chose to play football at Harvard instead of at a more sports-oriented school. At Harvard, he says, “there is an understanding that sports are not the be-all and end-all, or they do not have to be.”
Yet upon graduation, unless they decide to play professionally, most student athletes are forced to shift their entire life’s focus. This reality contradicts the previous outcome-oriented theory about Harvard students and which activities they choose to pursue. Hours spent at practice will turn into hours spent at the office. Teammates will turn into coworkers. The ultimate identity as a student athlete will fade into one likely governed by corporate pressure.
Yet many athletes stick with their sport for all four years of college, regardless of their likelihood to succeed in it post-college. They describe sports as an “escape,” an opportunity to relieve the stress of their academic responsibilities. But the freedom that sports can bring is only a portion of the incentive for pursuing sports all four years.
For Abraham, football “is a game of overcoming adversity, which I think translates very well over to life. I appreciate the team bonding, especially the little moments whether it be in the locker room, on the bus, or in a hotel room.”
Owen Moore Niles ’22 on the lightweight rowing team reflects that his justification for staying on the team for all four years was his drive to exercise, and less so his love of the sport. “When I first got to college, I loved rowing. I got immense satisfaction from working to perfect my technique, and to a lesser extent, my fitness and reaping the benefits of that hard work when I got in a boat that felt smooth and fast,” he recounts. “When I came back to school for my senior year [after a year off], it felt stupid to spend so much time intentionally choosing to row instead of hang out with friends, eat, or get outside the Harvard bubble. But the reason why I continued to row was that I had gained some perspective on how important exercise was to my mental and physical health and how difficult it was to force myself to exercise without a structured practice schedule.”
Ultimately, choosing to play the same sport, be with the same team, and commit to the same routine for four years requires a degree of passion that is distinct from any other activity on campus. Unlike other pre-professional organizations, classes, or networking opportunities, the practical value of varsity sports does not typically manifest into a larger result after graduation. Most athletes will never play their sport again after they graduate, or at least not at the same level of competition.
But there are benefits of meeting like-minded individuals that extend beyond the playing field. After mentioning his plans to play football at Villanova next year while pursuing an MBA, Abraham affirms that “playing football has allowed me to create bonds and meet people that will be friends for life. The support systems that are made because of playing the game are some of the strongest that I have in my life today.”
For others, athletics give an opportunity to foster additional skills. “I think that rowing has allowed me to practice leadership skills in a controlled environment,” Niles asserts. “This year, I have found myself thrust into a position of some amount of power, whether I liked it or not. By being in this position, I have learned how easy it is to make my teammates feel like I care about them and how important it is for leaders to make the people they are leading feel like they care about them.”
Varsity sports provide something that few outlets at Harvard can: the opportunity to develop a passion and dedicate your efforts to something that does nothing more than make you happy.
Maybe I’m being idealistic, or maybe I am making generalizations from personal experience; but I often struggle to answer the question of why I plan to sail for all four years when it has already required me to sacrifice so much. Realistically I will not play my sport after I graduate. I will move on, get a real job, and all of the time I’ll have spent on my sport will be for something only in the past.
But by the same token, I, like most Harvard athletes, find attributes uniquely thrilling, addicting, and unconditionally satisfying in the sport I play. While I may not learn any technical skills and have to sacrifice vacation time for training trips, I get to practice and compete at the highest level in something that I genuinely enjoy, something that can only be found with a true love for the game.
Marbella Marlo ’24 (mmarlo@college.harvard.edu) wishes she played a cooler sport.