MSU Networking

Life after sports; it's a transition many college athletes face once their playing days are over.

Life after sports.

It's a transition many college athletes face once their playing days are over.

Our quentin smith found out how mississippi state's athletic department is working to help with the transition.

Quentin, they've implemented new resources and programs to hep its students athletes get out in front of this problem??

Video in monitor that's exactly right..

Msu created a life after sports initiative.... it's put in place to help the student- athletes with four things.... personal... professional... and leadership development..

Along with community engagement.

I spoke with a few athletes who say this is beneficial to them because it helps equip with the skills the need to become successful after their playing days are over..

Chloe bibby has made a name for himself as a star athlete on the mississippi state's women's basketball team... now she's trying to make sure she has that same success off the court.

"you never know what's going to happen, i just tore my acl like a year ago so you never know what's going to happen.

Life can hit you at any moment."

The star forward knows the importance of having having a career to fall back on when her career is over.

That's why she was one of the many athletes taking part in msu's networking night... it's a part of the university's life after sports initiative... " just to have a program like that helps you out and let you know that it's not going to be forever, but let's put in the work right now so that once you are finished with your career you have something to fall back on that you love and enjoy doing."

Making the transition from the sports world to real world can be a scary and nervous crossover for many athletes.

It's something ben rodriguez, who's a former college football player, is all too familiar with " it took me a while to try and figure out exactly where my passions were.

Admittedly, the resources that i had at the time, then take it vantage.

I was so wrapped up with playing football and that's not in my group afterwards."

Now he's on a mission to make sure current athletes don't make that same mistake.

Rodriguez helped introduce the life after sports initiative as a way to help student athletes grow and become career ready once the buzzer sounds for the last time.

" we work on personal development, professional development, leadership development, and community service, all of those things are wrapped up in all of our life after sports initiative."

Through this initiative student athletes learn networking skills, interviewing skills, how to brand themselves, and how to search for a job in their career field....just to name a few... " it's our job to let them know, hey you can do athletics at a really high level, and you can do academics at a really high level, and let's add a third component in there which is to prepare for life after sports, you can do that at a high-level.

Is it hard?

No doubt it's hard.

Is it possible?

It certainly is possible" monitor tag the student- athlete development office implemented this initiative in september 2019.

What's unique about the initiative is it allows student athletes to continue taking advantage of and using these resources..

Even after they've graduated.

Stinger