Were you invited to a Super Bowl party but don’t know who’s playing? Maybe your best friend is a huge fan of the Baltimore… Bills? Don’t know who Patrick Mahomes is and at this point you’re too afraid to ask? Look no further, this is the article for you. 

The Super Bowl is one of the biggest television events of the year. It’s the one day when it seems like everyone, even those who don’t care about football the other 364 days, suddenly come out with very strong opinions about what a bunch of millionaire men do or don’t do with a ball. I’m not here to turn you into a die-hard fan. If you’re tired of “Superb Owl” jokes, or saying you only watch for the commercials, or having nothing to talk to your friends about until the halftime show, then I’m here to help. 

These tips are applicable to most sports, but particularly to team sports, and can be adapted at your own discretion. Here are my top five things to say while watching a sporting event to convince others that you totally understand what’s going on: 

1. “Consistency”
How to use it:
“So long as we stay consistent…”
“If we can just stay consistent…”
“I’ve been saying it all season. It’s in the consistency.”
When to use it: When the conversation turns to discussing performance or strategy, also known as couch coaching or armchair quarterbacking. It’s particularly useful when the team your friends are cheering for messes up. This kind of talk is typically critical, but this is a good and versatile phrase to use. It’s also unique enough that you shouldn’t be suspected of simply parroting buzzwords. 

2. “Stay healthy”
How to use it:
“The players need to stay healthy.”
“We need to play smart and not get hurt.”
“There’s been a lot of injuries this season.”
Keep your tone light while still sounding like what you’re saying means something. Don’t be so serious as to let them think that you have strong feelings about a particular player or incident.
When to use it: Like talking about consistency, this is a good neutral option. You can throw this one out during small talk pretty much anytime. During a game, you can say this whenever someone on your team gets hurt. 

3. “Let’s hold on to it”
How to use it:
“Let’s see if we can hold on to the lead.”
“We need to hold on to the lead.”
“Alright, in the lead, let’s hold on to it.”
When to use it: This one requires you to be sure that the team you (or your friends) want to win is the one currently winning. Toss this out during the celebration moment after they’ve taken a lead, or when the other team scores and gets close to overtaking your team. This is a good one to use when your team is winning near the end of the game. 

4. “Big plays”
How to use it:
“Let’s see some big plays out there.”
“We’re playing too much small ball.”
“We need a big play. Make something happen.”
Repeatable. 
When to use it: When things are getting boring and your team isn’t doing great. At some point past the halfway mark, there’s bound to be a lull in the proceedings. This is a good thing to say to kindly pump some energy back into the room. You can also use this one anytime your team hasn’t done anything exciting in a while, especially when losing. Some games are just bad to watch, and this is a nice, optimistic contribution. 

5. Pick a non-score number on the screen and say it like it means something. 
How to use it: 
“Only eight minutes left!”
“Fourth-and-5.”
“52 passing yards already?”
Repeatable.
When to use it: This tip requires you to pay attention a bit to the function of the scoreboard. The score should be easy to find. Don’t say that one. There might also be a small number that keeps counting down separate from the game clock that starts at either 40 or 25. Don’t say that one either unless it’s about to hit zero. For all other numbers, you’re probably safe. The game time is a good one because it’s easy to find on the screen and will make it look like you’re staying invested in following the game. If you still aren’t sure, take note of what numbers everyone else is saying and use those. 

6. Extra: Just ask questions 
How to use it:
We all love to talk about the stuff we like. Sports fans love to talk about sports. Odds are that whoever you’re watching with won’t care if you don’t know a touchback from a technical foul, and if they do, they probably won’t be fun to watch a game with anyway.

Let yourself be curious, but don’t expect them to walk you through every single second. Ask about words you don’t understand, rules that you can’t figure out, or what a statistic is measuring. Try guessing what the referee is going to call or complain if they make a call against your team. Throw in your two cents about the slow-motion replay. 

Whatever you do, remember that at the end of the day, it’s just a game and games are supposed to be fun. Get out there and have a good time!

In March of 2015, the NCAA put out a video that was supposed to depict the average day in the life of a student athlete. Many student athletes were upset by how unrealistic this video was, as it failed to include multiple practices, classes or homework time. 

This week, the Hilltop Monitor turns to a William Jewell College student athlete as a part of its “Day in the Life” series. Rachel Janiak, sophomore public relations major, is a member of the cardinal swim team. She gave the Monitor a rundown of her typical Monday, which starts bright and early at 5 a.m.:

Monday’s Schedule

5:00: Wake up

5:30-6:30: Weights

6:30-7:30: Swim

7:45-8:45: Get ready, eat breakfast, take a 15 minute nap if possible

9:00-10:05: Public relations class

10:30-11:30: Nap

11:30-12:30:  Eat / homework

12:30-1:35: Accounting class

1:45- 2:50: Interpersonal communications

3:20: Stretch for afternoon practice

3:50 – 5:30: Pool

5:45: Shower

6:30- 7:00: Eat dinner

7:00-8:30: Homework

9:00: Bed

Wednesday is the only weekday that Janiak does not have a second evening swim practice. In addition to her classes and practices, she teaches swimming lessons during the week. Some Saturdays she has swim meets, but she also babysits on the weekends.

When Janiak saw her schedule written out in this format, she realized just how exhausting the life of a student athlete can be. However, when she’s living her Mondays instead of scheduling them, they feel much more doable. 

When life gets overwhelming, Janiak relies on her team. 

“Remember that your teammates and people around you are going through the same thing,” said Janiak.

She also thinks it’s important to take breaks and makes sure that she has time for a nap everyday. 

“Stopping what you are doing and taking a nap or breathing can be helpful to relax,” said Janiak.

The life of a student athlete tends to look a lot more hectic – and a lot less glamorous – than that NCAA video. However, when athletes find support in their teammates and remember to take time to decompress, the college athlete experience can be an extremely rewarding one.

“I would like to improve my time, especially in the 1659 and 1000 freestyle. I am close to an NCAA B-cut in the 1000 and would like to get closer to that. I am also working towards my kick and stroke technique,” Beckley said.

However, for Beckley work doesn’t stop once she gets out of the pool. She is a full time Nursing student here at Jewell. Her passions include helping people and providing compassionate care for individuals in their most vulnerable states. She recently began her first clinical experience and shared how she manages two practices a day and finding time for her studies.

“Late nights, lots of coffee, naps and setting my priorities straight. My biggest challenges are balancing everything and finding time for myself to just have fun, but that is when you need to make your sport more fun and let it become an outlet for release,” said Becky.

This summer Beckley hopes to work as nursing tech at a local hospital in order to gain more experience in the nursing field. In terms of swim, she shared her hopes for improving this summer.

“I want to work on my aerobic base more for this next season and improve my freestyle technique to be more efficient.”

In her free time, she loves crafting and is even starting to create a small side business selling homemade personalized jewelry. She wants to work on the business more this summer while she has a break from her schoolwork. Beckley named the business Atman Jewelry and has created it in order to instill peace and mindfulness in every individual who wears one of her products.

“It’s an amazing activity to help me unwind from stress and I love that I can promote peace in others when they wear it,” said Beckley

Beckley is an example of a motivated athlete who is dedicated, works hard and dedication, and helps anyone in need with a compassionate smile and hug.

“The team’s preparation for this event cannot be explained in a paragraph or even the length of this newspaper. In short, we got this team to be as physically fit as possible and worked on their technique while pushing them to swim speeds that would help them compete to the level of competition,” said Gole.

“We do a lot of weights, and running as well as swimming to keep us in the best shape we can be in,” said sophomore international relations and french major Delaney Haralson.

Haralson finished the day by placing fourth in the 400 individual medley (IM) event.

“It’s a lot of work, but definitely necessary since we finish with a four day meet that basically lasts all day,” she said.

Many members on both teams had the best performances of their careers.

“The greater majority of the members of the men’s and women’s swimming program went lifetime best times in at least one or two of their individual events,” said Gole. “Only a handful did not go a best time and the coaching staff is still trying to figure out how that happened. I applaud the individuals that commit themselves to working as hard as possible to swim as fast as they do at the end of the year.”

Trey Roggenstein, senior recreation and sport major, was one of these Cardinals who performed well, placing fifth in the 400 IM.

“Everyone wants to be that one person to step up and lead the team,” said Roggenstein. “This year we had some great performances right from the first swim of the meet til the last one. I think many people surprised themselves with how they did.”

Both the men’s and women’s teams also took home the James R. Spalding sportsmanship award from the event.

“Winning the sportsmanship award on both the men’s and women’s side means a great deal to me and the program,” said Gole. “Supporting their teammates and cheering on their opponents has become something that the members of this program see as the right thing to do.”

According to Gole, the men’s team has won the award every year the GLVC has sponsored swimming, and the women’s team has won the award twice in the last four years.

“We do try to make it a point to be the loudest, proudest team by the pool, especially during finals,” said Haralson.

While a few individuals and relay teams will be making an attempt to qualify for the NCAA Division II national championships in March, for the majority of the team, this is an uplifting end to their season. Gole and the team seem eager to improve next season.

Photo courtesy of Jewell Athletics.