FSU Football Star Prepares for Oxford, Med School, and the NFL

Myron Rolle on the football field for Florida State (left). Myron Rolle visiting Stonehenge in the country that will be his home for the next couple years (right).

(Source: FloridaState.Rivals.com and Fantoo.com)

Back in January, I wrote a post identifying Myron Rolle as a Black scholar to watch. Rolle, an Black student and recent college grad, is the first Florida State gridiron star in anyone’s memory to be named a Rhodes Scholar.

Recently, Yahoo Sports reporter Jason Cole published an update on Rolle’s preparations for his year at Oxford University, focusing on the scholar-athlete’s busy summer schedule. Rolle is not only getting ready to move to England; he’s also got several speaking engagements, continued work on a long-term health project in the Bahamas (where his parents and several siblings were born), and other activities, all in addition to an NFL-caliber training regimen.

Cole describes some of Rolle’s summer activities:

Even as Rolle keeps himself in shape these days, hoping to maintain his status as a first- or second-round pick in the 2010 NFL draft, he has made the medical gig a high priority as well. After a day of training, Rolle has spent afternoons shadowing orthopedic surgeon Dr. Brad Homan at nearby Celebration Hospital. He has gone on rounds and even observed Homan in the operating room.

“I didn’t set that up for Myron,” said Shaw, one of the best-known trainers with a client list featuring the likes of Deion Sanders and Michael Vick. “He did that on his own because he wanted to. Most of the guys I have here, they want to go test drive a car at Richard Petty’s track or go fishing or get on the golf course when they’re done working out. Myron spends his afternoon thinking about what he’s going to do next with his life.

“You’re not talking about somebody who is just driven. You’re talking about somebody who is truly special, the kind of person who becomes a president or a world leader … he’s different.”

In his spare time, Rolle goes on speaking engagements around the country and has worked on developing health programs. This Friday, he’s heading to Madison, Wis., to speak to high school kids. Next week, he’s heading to the Bahamas, where his parents and three of his four brothers were born, to work on a long-term healthcare project.

A week after that, he’s doing a leadership and fitness program for 100 children at Camp Blanding in Starke. Then he heads back to the Bahamas.

To read Jason Cole’s entire update on this young scholar-athlete, click on this link to Yahoo Sports.

Posted by Ajuan Mance