Which Ivy has another dimension: find out how much slack student athletes are given. At least one has a rep for not giving any quarter- you fit your training / practice schedule, and your games around academic obligations, not the other way around.
At FL isn’t there a greater chance he will be sitting on the bench? I would take the Ivy personally, but it’s his choice
Also, I remember that I read that playing Div 1 football is pretty much being an employee of the school.
The 60-70k left over will give him a huge leg up in the long run. It is unlikely that if he sticks with CS the Ivy League education will be any better. Just note that CS is very hard with a d1 football schedule. Most of my friends that play football at Ucla are humanities based majors. However the opportunity to play in the FBS is awesome and there are a lot of opportunities that come with being a non ivy D1 athlete. My vote is UF. The school spirit will mak the time unforgettable.
^ DivI revenue sport + CS is tough.
On the other hand, Dan Kreft pulled off being a EE major at Northwestern while playing in the Big Ten:
https://■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/in/dkreft
He’s pretty hilarious too:
take the ivy institution - as a walk on odds are he won’t play and that’s not fair to him. It won’t be like high school he will get recruited over. Gotta be realistic for better or worse - and beware a d1 fbs coach they are salesman. Now if it was a top 25 school like duke, stanford, northwestern, vanderbilt, rice, or maybe usc (they are top 30 i think) that is a different conversation
@kalons It’s not the amount of people watching per say…it’s a completely different atmosphere and animal being the SEC vs Ivy sports as far as fan spirit, facilities etc…especially for someone wanting to play at the highest level they’ve earned. @melvin123 is correct. He would like to go pro if possible but that isn’t a consideration at this point. @PurpleTitan The reason it is a preferred walk on(guaranteed roster spot not just a walk on) is because his academic scholarship would save UF using a football scholarship not because of ability. He is a junior so the possibility of other schools as Stanford, Vandy, Duke etc…could still happen.
As to the core issue he is facing, how does he get past the feeling of missing out regardless of which decision he makes?
Out of curiosity, does he play a high profile position, or is he a defensive player who may not get noticed as frequently by the 85K viewers? And will he be first string?
As a junior, isn’t it also possible that he won’t be admitted to the Ivy? Does he have to make a decision before knowing whether he will receive the likely letter / preread?
@kalons I think @moscott is referring to the life experience of walking out into a stadium with 85000 people screaming, on TV, getting to travel. It is a legitimate life experience most of us never get the option to have. So I don’t think it is ridiculous.
I just wonder if as a walk on he’ll get to play much, and if not, will he regret the choice is all.
My S is a CS major, sophomore. He is super busy. it is very time consuming as a major. Perhaps a chat with some college athletes about their time vs majors might help.
As a Gator Alumni, would posting a response be considered an NCAA recruiting violation? :-??
He will be able to carry 45 credits (that’s the limit). My daughter, who is a current Industrial Engineering major, only took 12 or 13 credits a semester (no summers classes, she interned), and she will graduate on time. It’s very doable. Especially if he stays at UF over the summer and takes 1 or 2 classes (while working out).
Did you purchase the plan with 4 years of room and board (and the additional fees)? Keep in mind, that based on the date you purchased the plan, the Differential fee may not be covered. Tuition (and fees - the differential fee) would be about $4,500 a year, so that would end up (with R&B) to be a bit less than $16K. Still not bad! :-bd
If you want more info on UF’s CS program, reach out to Dr. Juan E. Gilbert (Chair of the department). He’s very approachable. Perhaps you can schedule a visit?
https://www.cise.ufl.edu/people/faculty/jgilbert
I don’t have any special insight into the walk-on process, but I think other posters in this thread are under the mistaken belief that walk-on players don’t play on game day. Div1 programs are limited in the number of scholarships they can offer, lose scholarship players to injury and transfers, so often have walk on players fill in those gaps. Judging talent can be difficult, and many players are late bloomers. Every year UF awards a scholarship or two to walk-on players, and walk on players can get substantial playing time.
Cristian Garcia, last year played significant time at linebacker.
http://floridagators.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=10250&path=football
Here’s a recent article on two twin brother’s (both Accounting majors, which is as challenging a major at UF as CS), that walked on at UF.
http://www.news-journalonline.com/sports/20161123/walking-on-some-only-practice-some-run-to-football-glory
I disagree with this. Students who study CS at some highly prestigious schools have more options than studying CS in Florida.
And yes, I have heard the stories of “I worked with this Harvard CS grad and he made the same money I did”. What these people do not see are the Harvard CS grads that were snapped work at companies they never heard of for much higher pay.
If he has visions of playing pro, then go to school for football. But since that’s not on the table, I would recommend that he go to the Ivy. It’s a credential that will help him for the rest of his life. And if he was National Merit and had a high GPA, while playing football, he can probably handle the academic load at the Ivy, too.
“As to the core issue he is facing, how does he get past the feeling of missing out regardless of which decision he makes?”
Try to be recruited as a preferred walk-on at Stanford/Northwestern/Duke/ND. Highest level of college football and academically Ivy-equivalents (or near-Ivy in the case of ND, but terrific alumni network there).
Problem solved.
This isn’t even debatable: If you have a chance to go to an Ivy, you take it. Even if he’s an elite athlete with a chance at the pros, those careers are short and an Ivy education is a great fall back. He even said he likes the Ivy atmosphere better.
@moscott does he have the opportunity to go to UF and spend time with the team? If he’s serious about academics, he may find that it’s not a fit for him.
Agree with others that he should pick the SCHOOL he loves the most. I’ve seen several of my son’s friends this year struggle because they picked their school based on the coach and team. His best friend was injured the first week of practice, then cut right before classes started. He became depressed, so much so that someone called health services anonymously because they were afraid he would hurt himself. He dropped out after the first semester and is now regrouping at CC.
Another friend is playing football at Carnegie Mellon. It may not be a D1 schedule, but there is plenty of travel. In the fall he had not one spare minute between trying to study and practice. I think your son might be surprised at how demanding any level of college football will be, especially given that he’s obviously a smart kid and will want to do well in his classes.
Another friend is wrestling D1 and majoring in engineering. He finished 1st semester with a 2.6 and said it was among the higher GPAs of the engineering athletes.
This is a kid who is intelligent enough to have many options. {Zipping up flame retardant suit now as I know the next bit is going to be as popular as the proverbial turd in the punch bowl…} It baffles me that with all we now know about CTE and other brain injuries with football, why anyone would even consider prioritizing a game that is likely to cause long term damage to him physically and possibly mentally over getting an education that would be the envy of millions around the world. In 20 or 30 years, we will look back on the football culture with sadness and disbelief that we all sat and watched - and profited - while people literally destroyed their brain for sport and our amusement.
Use the football as a way in to a top notch college then walk away, keep the brain intact and benefit from an education that is among the best the world has to offer. No question.
^This. I love football and spend many fall weekends in Happy Valley. There’s nothing quite like it and I can’t imagine how amazing it is for the players. At the same time I have strong reservations about continuing to support a sport that has been proven so deadly. (I even stopped watching the NFL for the first half of the past season but then my Eagles sucked me back in with their Super Bowl run).
My middle son is a sophomore who is hoping to play college baseball. We’ve always said that he shouldn’t choose a school for baseball reasons but rather choose a school with the best academic fit that still allows him to play baseball. In the end, the athletic careers for 99.9% of athletes are very short while an Ivy degree will set him up for life.
Also, I don’t know of any good competitive athlete who is content sitting on the bench. If he has a realistic shot to work his way up to a starter or regular I think its a tough decision. But if it’s likely he’ll only see limited playing time at Florida, the Ivy league school is a no-brainer in my opinion.
For clarification he is not being recruited at a position where CTE is a concern. In fact there is little to no contact by rules. Also, he is ranked in the top 25 in the country at his position. The reason he is “considering” a preferred walk on position is because it allows the team to save another athletic scholarship. He is good enough to be offered an athletic scholarship at other FBS schools but what makes UF unique is the Benacquisto scholarship offered. This puts him in the honors program at the #48 academic ranked UF and a top FBS football program in the power 5 and 60-70K in the bank after 4 years. As to whether he would start there are no guarantees at any level. @PurpleTitan that would be great if the option happens but as of today the 2 options are Ivy vs UF.
moscott, why did your son not look into universities with Ivy League level academics and strong football programs, like Michigan, Northwestern, Notre Dame and Stanford?
At any rate, your son should read the story of Michael Hirsch. He will get a kick out of it. 
Between Florida and the Ivy League, the main question your son needs to answer, and he should be honest to himself, is how likely is he to play at Florida…and is the risk of turning down an education at a better university worth it to him. Personally, considering your son’s academic profile, I would recommend going to a top university.