If you are a student athlete, like myself, the nights where you get home late and have very little time to complete your large amount of homework are all far too familiar. You may feel like there is no way to get all of your work done, much less do it well. The situation is not completely hopeless though. If you work hard enough, there is always a way to complete all of your tasks on time and with quality.

Although I can definitely say I have had my struggles with getting homework done on late nights over the years and still do, I can also state that I am getting better at it and am finally starting to learn the importance of getting things done in advance. Even though I don’t necessarily want to complete homework early, I am beginning to realize that it is the practical choice.

On nights where your practices or games are later in the day, try to complete all of your assignments before leaving or at least get some parts of them done. Just doing this will help you maintain a good grade and not have to sacrifice your sport for school work, which is a common repercussion. I have been playing club baseball competitively for nearly five years now, and have been able to to get mostly A’s and usually only one B. It has been a tough road, one that has resulted in quite a bit of panicking over the years. But the key is to make good use of your time and to not procrastinate.

Now, I understand that there are some nights where the big game or games are scheduled at times to the point where you have to leave your house as soon as you get your uniform on and grab your equipment. And then you don’t get back home until 10:30 p.m. at night. I’ve had my share of these as of late, and they usually leave me with two choices. I can stay up for a while and try to finish my homework or wake up earlier the next morning and scramble to finish everything before I have to go to school. And I’m not exactly the type that wakes up easily.

What I have found to be the most viable choice is to do a little bit of both. I stay up for a little longer and get some of the assignments out of the way, but not too late to where I can’t function in the morning. Then, I wake up  a little earlier (nothing drastic) and finish up. This way I can complete everything and hopefully not fall asleep in class.

Being a student athlete takes a lot out of you at times, but it is completely worth it. If you truly have a passion for sports, don’t let that go. Just make sure to find the time to do your homework neatly too.