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Show basketball team boasts good students T-Bi- rd College athletes are frequent recipients of a bad rap. Theyre just dumb, sweaty jocks that live for sports and sports only. They go to school, but their classes are arranged so they dont have to go or so they only have to show up to get a passing grade. While that stereotype may be true in some cases, no one resents it more than the athlete whos dedicated to winning both on the court and in the classroom. see basketball as only part of my college experience, said Bill Rohnkohl, one of several Thunderbird hoopsters who takes pride in When college is over, being a student-athlete- . basketball will end too, and want to have a good profession to go into. Rohnkohl, a senior form Las Vegas, Nev., is in his fourth year with the Thunderbirds. He majors in mathematics, has a minor in computer science, earned a 3.6 grade point average last spring, and carries a class load of 24 hours this fall. In addition, he is certifying to teach math in public schools. My career aim is not to be a teacher," Rohnkohl said. want to finish my bachelors degree and go on to. get a masters in math and computer science. Im certifying so can teach while Im going to graduate school. Rohnkohls ultimate career goal is to become a computer programmer for a major industrial 1 a 3.5 student and also fits the bill as one of the One of my favorite subjects fn school has been the educational psychology classes were required to take for the teaching certificate, he said. Academics, Jeffs said, are important because they bring a person into contact with so many people, and enjoy meeting new friends. also enjoy learning, and Ive had some good experiences as a direct result of my academic work. Derrick Johnson, a senior guard who will play his first year as a following a transfer from attended Southern Utah State last spring, and pulled a 3.8 grade teams more serious students. Jeffs, a senior from Castle Dale, is a physical education major with a minor in computer science. He, too, is taking the 24 hour class load this fall. wanted to load up so that could take it a little easier during the height of the season when the pressure is on, Jeffs said. We are going to be great this year, and wouldnt want my studies to suffer because Im too busy with I 1 1 I basketball. Jeffs is also certifying to teach, but he wants to make education his profession. Cal-Irvin- point average. A team leader and serious athlete, Johnson is majoring in physical education and minoring in police science. He is not only serious about basketball, but about being an example of 1 physical fitness. feel that if Im going to major in physical education, Ive got to be in the best physical shape can, and it doesnt matter if its basketball season or not. Johnson intensely studies all aspects of physical fitness, in conjunction with his courses, and puts them into practice. I I I Thunderbird coaches in all sports generally agree he is one of the finest athletes on campus, if not the very best. would like to be a recreation officer or perhaps a police officer, Johnson said. Im studying in both fields, and if continue to get good grades, that will increase my chances of doing what want to after graduation. Two transfer students, Trent Scarlett and Brad Guess, also turned in superb academic performaces last year. Scarlett, a business administration major from Las Vegas, Nev., pulled a 3.9 GPA at Weber State last year, where he studied but did not play basketball. Guess, a junior forward-cfenter- , played at Orange Coast College in California, where he was a 3.7 student, majoring in biology. 1 I 1 corporation. Hands-o- 1 in the colleges experience computer center is one of his favorite also like academic activities, Rohnkohl said. classes like linear algebra and educational math, he added. really enjoy academics, especially since math comes so easy to me, Rohnkohl said. realize that athletics wont carry me through the rest of my life, so Im using my head to prepare for what will come after basketball. Todd Jeffs, one of Rohnkohls best friends, is n I I 1 I. Ask members of the Southern Utah State basketball team how they spent their summer and they just might sit down and pull out a scrapbook. The Thunderbirds spent three weeks of late August and early September touring Malaysia and Singapore, where they represented both the College and the United States in three international tournaments. It was the opportunity of a lifetime, said Southern Utah Coach Bob Schermerhorn. We played against some of the best teams in the world, and since we hadnt practiced together for months, thought we did fairly well to win six and lose six on the trip. The opportunity to make the trip presented itself when Idaho State, originally scheduled to make the trip, was forced to back out at the last minute. Herb Livsey, owner of the prestigious Snow I Valley Basketball Camp in California and also a personal friend of Schermerhorn, was in Malaysia at the time Idaho State officials sent word that their team would not be coming. Herb told the people he knew where they could get a team which would come over, not present any troubles, would behave, and play a good brand of basketball, Schermerhorn said. When the tournament directors showed interest, he called me and we signed on to make the trip. Senior Todd Jeffs drives hard in his schooiwork as well as on the court. Getting the team together was something had my kids else, Schermerhorn said. scattered out all over Utah and California, and had to call them, determine which ones would make the trip, and get everybody here for some workouts before we left, he said. In addition, one of Schermerhorns three assistants, Jack Thomas, had just returned from working a basketball camp in Hawaii. Jack hadnt even had time to get unpacked and we were already preparing to take off again, Schermerhorn chuckled. Derrick Johnson, Shawn Daniels, Eddie Benson, Bill Rohnkohl, John Pierce, Todd Jeffs, and Maz Trakh, all returning Thunderbird players, made the trip. Bryan Olson, a graduate from last years team, and Karl Anderson, one of SUSCs leading scorers, rounded out I 1 all-tim- the nine-membe- r e squad. The Malaysian government picked up the tab for everything, Schermerhorn said. We didnt have to pay for anything. They really took care of us well. Life in the fast lane of foreign basketball and to, foreign customs took some getting u'-ed though. It took us a little while to get used to some of the food and other things we had to go through over there, Schermerhorn said. dont know if Americans really realize how I lucky they are. It was a good'experience, but just the same, was glad to get back to the I USA. In the three tournaments, Southern Utah played very well in some instances and very poorly in others, Schermerhorn said. was really pleased to beat Spain, which is one of the top amateur nations in the world, Schermerhorn noted. However, still dont understand how we ever lost to New Zealand. They werent that good and I still dont see how we could have been that bad. One of the many benefits the Thunderbirds gleaned from the trip was an introduction to physical basketball the likes of which SUSC had never before seen. There were some people who liked to push learned to take my and shove, Pierce said. share of knocks and dish some out when the refs werent looking. A Singapore newspaper printed a picture of Pierce gamely hanging on to a rebound with one hand while aggressively serving an elbow sandwich to an overzealous defender. Since we were from the United States, there was no question that we were the team to beat, Schermerhorn said. The fans loved to see us lose, but the other teams were true gentlemen, and they really treated us well. It was a great experience, he added. 1 I 1 |