Reflection

This class has taught me a lot about writing, but it has taught me even more about my major. It can be easy to forget that athletes have feelings just like everybody else in sports. We get so attached to our teams that we are desperate to win any game. Now imagine how it feels as an athlete when you have your purpose in life ripped away from you. As fans, it can feel like we are incredibly committed to our teams’ success. Yet, fans don’t have to make any sacrifices for their team’s success. College athletes must wake up early, lift weights, practice, attend class, eat healthy food, and sleep properly daily. The time commitment required to be a collegiate athlete is unbelievable. Most college athletes are making little to no money despite recent rule changes allowing athletes to profit off of their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). These athletes are not being rewarded for their sacrifices. The reward for them is stepping onto the field, court, or turf and having an opportunity to compete against others in an activity they love. So, when that one reward gets taken away, athletes can experience dangerous effects. Until I did my research for the Investigative Field Essay, I had no idea how severe these impacts could be. As I continue to progress in the sports industry throughout college and my career, I will be sure to remember that these athletes have feelings, and they put all of their time and effort into their sport.

As far as the individual assignments, they were helpful. The investigative field essay was similar to some projects I had done in high school. I found it beneficial to practice finding academic journals using the FSU search database. Although I had analyzed academic journals before, this assignment required me to use three. Being exposed to different formats of journals helped me gain experience in reading research papers. Additionally, I enjoyed combining other resources and articles found on the internet. I used articles that related to Tez Walker, which allowed me to make a connection between his feelings about being ruled ineligible and the statistics provided in the research that support the idea that mental health is impacted when athletes lose their sport. 

In the Rhetorical Analysis of Field Artifacts paper, I analyzed a research journal and a video of Tez Walker’s coach explaining how the ruling has impacted Tez mentally. In my analysis, I explained that combining pathos and logos creates a compelling argument. The research journal helps the audience understand the magnitude of this issue, and the video helps them sympathize with Tez. The primary goal of the video was to make the audience feel responsible for these mental health problems, urging them to change their behaviors. 

Finally, I created three persuasive artifacts to convince my audience to change their behavior. This project helped me further understand how to use persuasive appeals to complement each other. A well-rounded argument is the key to establishing yourself as reliable to the audience.