As a parent that will more than likely have 1-2 kids playing in college soon, I wanted to do the research and figure out why some Arizona kids are picking College Station and how does College Station compare to Tempe. Would I send my kids there? See the breakdown below. Just to let everyone know, I lived in Texas before and I enjoyed my time there. With that said, I lived in Plano which is very different in many ways than College Station from what I have researched.
Football
A&M has had fantastic recruiting classes every year for the past 5 years. In 2014 they weren't very impressive with a 3-5 record in the SEC and 7-5 overall when you include the really easy opponents. Coaching and development is everything at this level. Look at the athletes USC has had. We beat them the past two years. Coaching! I want my kids in a program that will provide them the best influence on their personal growth, leadership skills, and coaching. This is where kids really should evaluate what is best for them instead of following friends or a league name. ASU and A&M are both good programs. ASU is on the rise and A&M has fallen but with a couple new coaches may get back to being good. Without Manziel they haven't been very impressive yet, despite their talent.
Advantage: ASU, because Graham has shown consistent success and because of the positive influence Graham and his staff has on his kid's mental development. There are a lot of fast and strong kids trying to make the NFL. Ask coaches in any sport what separates the good from the great athletes at that level and almost always it is how smart they are. Graham's scholastic demands are creating a smarter team and producing better adults in my opinion. Just listen to how they speak 2-3 years in. They learn that knowledge is power and you must train and stress your brain to grow. Will this payoff in their careers? You bet it will. I would interview Berco, Simone, DJ, Ballage, and many of the others just by how they carry themselves and how they think. I want to surround my kids with people like these kids.
Look what DJ did here while playing in addition to becoming a great man.
D.J. Foster is the NCCA's active leader in All-Purpose Yards and he will go into the NFL next year. If you are great you will get noticed at either location.
Randall went in the first round with only two years with Graham. Smart kid and a 3 star out of a Junior College.
Community/Influence/Exposure/Opportunity
Staying in Arizona
Near ASU there is State Farm, Google, Pay Pal, Go Daddy, Ebay, Motorola, Intel, and many other companies with opportunities. If they go to College Station they are probably going to have to move away to get a good paying job. Here they won't and they may have connections and a good name to branch off of. Very few kids have the talent to make the NFL. Of the ones that do have the talent, many will fall to injuries unfortunately. I am looking to select a university and location that gives my kids a chance to succeed if they don't play at a higher level. I believe in surrounding my kids with good people and family that can help them grow and protect them. If my kids stay in Arizona we will be able to watch and support our kids and so will our grandparents. That is worth a lot.
See the Tempe statistics and then compare to College Station. There are many other cities near Tempe with a much higher rate of income than Tempe too.
Population 172,816
Tempe Census Statistics 2014
Median household income, 2009-2013 $47,941
Persons below poverty level, percent, 2009-2013 22.2%
Leaving to College Station
These are startling numbers and not very promising for future employees or companies considering moving to College Station. Your kids can be influenced by their environment. I would not be excited about sending my kids away to a place with these kind of numbers for median household income and high poverty rate. Don't be fooled by coaches and other players. The facts are the facts.
Here are the results for College Station. Houston and Austin are 86 miles away. Both better cities for job opportunities. In my opinion, the University of Texas would be a much better spot for a kids growth than College Station. Austin is a good city with great opportunity. Their football team isn't great but good players will get to the league from any Big 5 league and actually even beyond that. There are scouts everywhere.
Population 103,483
From the Census 2014
Median household income, 2009-2013 $31,596
Persons below poverty level, percent, 2009-2013 35.9%
Advantage: ASU. This is not even close. This is 4-5 years your child will be influenced by their environment and this coaching staff and their support staff. This is not the environment I want my kids to get used to or think is normal. They shouldn't be spending 4-5 years in college to earn $31k. If they love their job and it fulfills them at those earnings then fine. But I want a positive influence that can help my child strive to be the best they can be and have the most opportunities they can. I believe this comes from mentors, training, and exposure to other achievers in my opinion. Graham is demanding excellence in athletics, academics, community, and pushing leadership at all levels. That is how you build excellence.
For me there is no question which college I would choose. Wherever my kids are thinking of going we are going to sit down and evaluate all of their options. They are kids and they really need our help in deciding what's best for them. I plan on being there to teach them how to make an educated decision and how you eliminate emotion from the equation.
Sorry for the long post but I figured I would share.
Football
A&M has had fantastic recruiting classes every year for the past 5 years. In 2014 they weren't very impressive with a 3-5 record in the SEC and 7-5 overall when you include the really easy opponents. Coaching and development is everything at this level. Look at the athletes USC has had. We beat them the past two years. Coaching! I want my kids in a program that will provide them the best influence on their personal growth, leadership skills, and coaching. This is where kids really should evaluate what is best for them instead of following friends or a league name. ASU and A&M are both good programs. ASU is on the rise and A&M has fallen but with a couple new coaches may get back to being good. Without Manziel they haven't been very impressive yet, despite their talent.
Advantage: ASU, because Graham has shown consistent success and because of the positive influence Graham and his staff has on his kid's mental development. There are a lot of fast and strong kids trying to make the NFL. Ask coaches in any sport what separates the good from the great athletes at that level and almost always it is how smart they are. Graham's scholastic demands are creating a smarter team and producing better adults in my opinion. Just listen to how they speak 2-3 years in. They learn that knowledge is power and you must train and stress your brain to grow. Will this payoff in their careers? You bet it will. I would interview Berco, Simone, DJ, Ballage, and many of the others just by how they carry themselves and how they think. I want to surround my kids with people like these kids.
Look what DJ did here while playing in addition to becoming a great man.
D.J. Foster is the NCCA's active leader in All-Purpose Yards and he will go into the NFL next year. If you are great you will get noticed at either location.
Randall went in the first round with only two years with Graham. Smart kid and a 3 star out of a Junior College.
Community/Influence/Exposure/Opportunity
Staying in Arizona
Near ASU there is State Farm, Google, Pay Pal, Go Daddy, Ebay, Motorola, Intel, and many other companies with opportunities. If they go to College Station they are probably going to have to move away to get a good paying job. Here they won't and they may have connections and a good name to branch off of. Very few kids have the talent to make the NFL. Of the ones that do have the talent, many will fall to injuries unfortunately. I am looking to select a university and location that gives my kids a chance to succeed if they don't play at a higher level. I believe in surrounding my kids with good people and family that can help them grow and protect them. If my kids stay in Arizona we will be able to watch and support our kids and so will our grandparents. That is worth a lot.
See the Tempe statistics and then compare to College Station. There are many other cities near Tempe with a much higher rate of income than Tempe too.
Population 172,816
Tempe Census Statistics 2014
Median household income, 2009-2013 $47,941 Persons below poverty level, percent, 2009-2013 22.2%Leaving to College Station
These are startling numbers and not very promising for future employees or companies considering moving to College Station. Your kids can be influenced by their environment. I would not be excited about sending my kids away to a place with these kind of numbers for median household income and high poverty rate. Don't be fooled by coaches and other players. The facts are the facts.
Here are the results for College Station. Houston and Austin are 86 miles away. Both better cities for job opportunities. In my opinion, the University of Texas would be a much better spot for a kids growth than College Station. Austin is a good city with great opportunity. Their football team isn't great but good players will get to the league from any Big 5 league and actually even beyond that. There are scouts everywhere.
Population 103,483
From the Census 2014
Median household income, 2009-2013 $31,596 Persons below poverty level, percent, 2009-2013 35.9% Advantage: ASU. This is not even close. This is 4-5 years your child will be influenced by their environment and this coaching staff and their support staff. This is not the environment I want my kids to get used to or think is normal. They shouldn't be spending 4-5 years in college to earn $31k. If they love their job and it fulfills them at those earnings then fine. But I want a positive influence that can help my child strive to be the best they can be and have the most opportunities they can. I believe this comes from mentors, training, and exposure to other achievers in my opinion. Graham is demanding excellence in athletics, academics, community, and pushing leadership at all levels. That is how you build excellence.
For me there is no question which college I would choose. Wherever my kids are thinking of going we are going to sit down and evaluate all of their options. They are kids and they really need our help in deciding what's best for them. I plan on being there to teach them how to make an educated decision and how you eliminate emotion from the equation.
Sorry for the long post but I figured I would share.
