04/24/24
October 24, 2009
"...I realize that I did make a good choice. It's been worth it.": As the NFL takes its annual trip to Wembley, the New York Times heads up to Oxford to check on someone who chose not to enter the draft just yet: Myron Rolle, the Florida State safety who has just begun the Rhodes Scholarship he was awarded at the end of last season.
I've had an eye on Rolle since news of the Rhodes scholarship broke, and I think he'd be a standout regardless of the campus.
One factoid to take from that piece: Rhodes Scholars can choose to join any college, and while many sign up with graduate-only colleges, which have more international students but can sometimes be fairly cloistered, Rolle has gone with Teddy Hall, a traditional rugby-playing college slap bang in the middle of town with 400 undergrads and 200 grads. That shows a real desire to throw himself into the Oxford experience during his time there, both as part of the Rhodes House community and as an active member of his college. That usually works out pretty well.
There's a Q&A with Rolle on the NYT Quad blog, which touches on the situation at FSU as well as expanding on his experience so far in Oxford and his hopes for the future.
posted by etagloh at 06:10 PM on October 24, 2009
Well, heck, Rolle sounds like somebody who not only recognizes that being a professional athlete makes one a role model, but somebody who embraces the opportunity to be a role model. Good on him!
posted by Joey Michaels at 08:30 AM on October 25, 2009
I saw him the other day at the gym (I was walking past on my way to the pub I should point out). I had no idea who he was, but the guy I was with filled me in. Great story. Good for him.
posted by JJ at 08:20 AM on October 29, 2009
Rolle's a great story, but it makes me wonder a little whether a guy with a Rhodes Scholar brain should be risking it in the NFL.
posted by rcade at 09:54 AM on October 29, 2009
Rolle is a very admirable individual.
Given what we're learning about the athletic scholastic environment at FSU, and about the academic culture there in general from T.K. on down, how a guy of Rolle's caliber even chose to set foot on that campus is not easily comprehended.