EDITOR’S NOTE
Defining Success for Student-Athletes
FROM THE EDITOR
WE’RE BACK for
one more! You can’t
imagine my excitement
when Drago told me
we would be publishing
another issue of Bison
Illustrated this year.
Finally an opportunity
to truly see what it
takes to be great a
student-athlete!
Joe’s Best Bison
Memories
1. Any interview with Saul Phillips
2. Beating K-State in Manhattan
surrounded by Wildcat fans
3. Seeing the joy on kids' faces
while shooting this cover photo
4. Meeting the women's 4x400
relay team
Joe Kerlin
Editor, Bison Illustrated
C O N TA C T M E
[email protected]
facebook.com/bisonillustrated
Y
ou would be surprised by how
many inspirational stories we hear
every month. Anywhere from a
coach visiting a young Bison fan in
the hospital to a Bison athlete working at
a local homeless shelter, the individuals
that make up NDSU Athletics are a special
group because of way more than the
trophies they win.
We produce this magazine to give you the
inside scoop regarding everything Bison.
Sometimes in this process, we lose sight of
what’s important and what truly defines
success. Media members may flock to
an athlete who made a great play or who
is having a historic season, but at Bison
Illustrated, we have a different definition
of success.
Being a student-athlete in college is
something every kid should strive for. I
know I did. Achieving student-athlete
status alone is a great accomplishment
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BISON ILLUSTRATED
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for any high school athlete, but it doesn’t
stop there.
know how to run a phenomenal athletic
department.
To truly gauge your personal success as a
student-athlete, you have to assess your
own actions. Are you making the most of
your opportunity? Are you representing
yourself well? What about your school?
Are you giving it your all on the practice
field and in the weight room? What about
in the classroom?
For example, NDSU baseball player Tim
Colwell has been recognized as a nominee
for the Senior CLASS Award. This is an
award given to a Division I senior every
year that thrives in the community,
classroom and shows high character while
competing at a high level.
At Bison Illustrated we think studentathletes should answer yes to all of these
questions. We define a successful studentathlete as someone who is committed
to excellence in the classroom while
engaging his or her teammates with the
support necessary for peak performance
on the field.
These traits seem cliché, although they
aren’t always present. Except at NDSU,
who proves time and time again that they
I’m glad we were given an opportunity to
present a different side of NDSU Athletics
this month and hope we have covered the
areas that fans don’t always see.
Reading Sports Illustrated for Kids when
I was younger has definitely made this
month nostalgic, but it just adds to the joy
of making these magazines for you.
Go Bison,
Joe Kerlin