Getting a head start: Four Badgers enroll early
January 21, 2009 | Football
The first day of school is always a little nerve-wracking no matter what level it is. There are always certain ones that stick out as benchmarks. Think back to the first day of first grade, your first day as a freshman in high school and for the people fortunate enough, the first day of college.
Each one is a step into the unknown. The challenges on the first day of college are varied. What building am I looking for' Is this the right room'
For four UW freshmen just starting their Badger football careers, that day came Tuesday. Jon Budmayr, Travis Frederick, David Gilbert and Jordan Kohout all graduated high school early in order to enroll at Wisconsin at the beginning of the spring semester. So in addition to the normal anxieties of the first day of college, they had the added burden of being just weeks removed from high school.
GETTING AROUND
Frederick had just one class on Tuesday but a full slate of four classes on Wednesday.
'My first class is on the west side of campus and my second class is on the east side so I have to get completely across campus in 15 minutes, which is different from high school where I was in the same building,' Frederick said. 'That 's what I would say is the biggest change. The most difficult part is finding the classes. I think it will get easier, now that we've done it once or twice. '
A number of the football players have scooters to try and make the jaunts across campus a little more bearable, especially with having to get to Camp Randall Stadium most days. Frederick has already figured that out, but hasn't busted out his ride as of yet.
'Right now I'm walking. I have a scooter but I'm waiting on my parking permit to come in. I don't want to get one of those $30 tickets. '
Getting to the building on time is only half the battle, though, as Frederick found out quickly.
'Today when I was trying to find out where my classes were, I didn't realize that several of them were in an auditorium versus a classroom,' Frederick said. 'So I was going around looking for the number on the classroom and I couldn 't find it. It turns out it was actually in a lecture hall or an auditorium. So that was a little difficult but it should be much easier now that I know where they are. '
HEAD OF THE CLASS
Once Frederick found his classes, there was no time to relax. His Wednesday schedule consisted of technical writing, legendary performers, calculus and intro to engineering. Such is the life of a first-year student that hopes to major in either aerospace or computer engineering.
'There's a ton of requirements for engineering,' Frederick said. 'The way they've suggested it is that you start with a 15-credit freshman first semester, then you move to 16 then usually you have 17 or 18 credits each semester for four years. With football and everything, that's not realistic. I have 12 credits this semester. So it's great for me to be able to get those 12 credits out of the way, that means I'm 12 ahead. And then I'll take some more in the summer which means that I'll be even farther ahead and be able to get that jump start that I'm going to need.'
MAKING THE TRANSITION
Frederick, 6-3, 302 pounds, was a first-team all-state selection in the fall for Big Foot High School in Sharon, Wis. He led the Chiefs to their first-ever state title game less than two months ago. At that time, he was one of about 140 kids in Big Foot's senior class. Now he's sitting in lectures of more than 150 people.
'It was definitely different the first time I walked into class and saw that there were that many people in there,' Frederick said. 'It doesn 't really change the class that much. You still have the teacher teaching and the students listening, there's just a lot more of them.'
The process of enrolling early has become increasingly popular in college football these days. UW had four student-athletes (Jake Byrne, Jake Current, Dan Moore and Curt Phillips) enroll at the beginning of the spring semester last year. Andy Kemp, who started 36 games in his Badger career, enrolled early. And the national champion Florida Gators had five freshmen, including two starters, enroll last spring.
In order to enroll mid-year, the student-athlete must have graduated from high school and be certified by the NCAA eligibility center. Once they enroll, they can take part in any organized team activities, just like any other currently enrolled student-athlete.
Though it is happening more and more around the country, Frederick is still in the minority around campus.
'It's really different,' Frederick said. 'All the rest of the freshmen that are here, you can see, they kind of know how to get around. For us, there's not a lot of people that came in here at semester, a couple transfers and stuff, so we're definitely behind on that. On the other hand, we're way ahead of the people that didn't come in early, the regular graduates from our freshman class. So in that sense it's really a great experience and a great opportunity.'
Frederick, who is currently living with Kohout, said the four newcomers have learned to stick together.
'The four of us have been pretty much hanging out together most of the time, trying to figure it out together instead of being alone trying to figure it out. It 's nice to be lost with somebody else so you're not the only one who doesn't have any idea of what's going on.'
Going from high school senior to college freshman in such a short amount of time is not the easiest transition to make. But Frederick is comforted by knowing that he's never too far from home.
'It's difficult not being around the same friends and stuff that you were used to for four years,' Frederick said. 'There's a couple things that I'll miss, like not going to the sporting events with your friends. But it's such a great opportunity to be up here. It outweighs the things I could have done by staying at home. I'm pretty close to home, only about an hour away, so it's really nice that I can go home to see my family and friends and be back up even in the same day.'
GETTING AHEAD ON THE FIELD
In addition to getting a much-needed jump start on his engineering degree, Frederick also sees the benefits of getting early work in on the football field. After playing both offensive and defensive line in high school, Frederick said that his discussions with the coaches have focused on him playing on the interior of the offensive line, either guard or center.
'I just know that it's going to be a great opportunity for me to not only get ahead in classes and school and get going towards my degree faster, but also in football,' Frederick said. 'I've already sat down with some of the coaches and discussed plays and I'm already starting to get things down that I 'm going to need for spring ball. It's going to be such an advantage when we come in during the summer and the other freshman have no idea what's going on, I'm already going to know the plays and where I'm supposed to be going. In that sense it's going to be great.'
