We have all seen Mean Girls more times than we want to admit, but there is one part which sticks in our brains as it pertains to our lives. No, I am not talking about having bad nail beds or bad breath in the morning; I am talking about stereotypes and cliques.
In high school, we stereotype everyone into cliques like jocks, nerds, outsiders, partiers, ‘plastics,’etc. But what happens when we go to college and put all the star jocks from high school together? Are we stuck with this one clique? Ehh, wrong; think again.
In a politically correct stereotypical world, all of the jocks would only eat protein, fist pump constantly and torment the guy they cheat off of in class. This stereotype between brains and brawn is one that has been reinforced and perpetuated by countless movies, television shows and pop culture references.
Though there are still the few football players that go around asking what 2+2 is, we at least know that they are bringing in money and revenue to our school. They also give us bragging rights, so there is no room for complaining.
Despite contrary belief, student-athletes actually have higher graduation rates and better grades than the student body in general. Take that, nerds!
Athletics is its own society within the unnecessarily large UCF community. Every athletic team has their own stereotype and clique. I am on the women’s tennis team, and although we are all classified as ‘jocks,’ we should not all be placed in the same clique. Every team is its own clique.
Since we are not all the same, how do we distinguish who is who? Well, the nerds of the men are the tennis team and the golf team. On the women’s side, the golf and rowing teams take the crown. All of these teams bring up the highest GPA’s to the athletic community each semester.
The players of the athletes are typically the football and baseball teams. Take a deep breath –I know that came as a shock to most of you. That does not mean that these are the teams that you are going to see out the most. The men’s basketball team is always out and in the prestigious VIP sections of all the hot places. Not all of these boys are players on and off the field, so if you are into athletes there are still some good apples.
As much as I would love to tell you all the dirty deets and inside scoop of the women’s athletics, I cannot throw my fellow ladies under the bus. Plus, I know all of you care way more about the men’s teams, so we will stick with those.
Our team was traveling to play Baylor this past weekend, and at the airport someone asked me if I was on the basketball team or a cheerleader. First off, I will completely contradict what I just said about stereotypes, but come on. I am 5’5”(on a good day), blonde and just about as white as you can be. I guess that combination just screams “baller.”
I am also not 90 pounds, so cheerleader is out of the question unless I was the only female base in college history.
My point here is not to try and tell the other 95% of the school that athletes are better. What I am trying to say is that next time you think an athlete is only at school solely on their athletic ability, think again.
So if you are like Karen and have, like, ESPN or something, do not touch the bodacious gifts God gave you to see if it’s raining. Watch UCF athletics with a new perspective.