On Jan. 10, 2024, here at Roseville High School, Varsity Football Head Coach Vernard Snowden put together a panel for aspiring athletes who wish to perform at the college level. Snowden asked the coaches here at Roseville to pick their athletes who they believed could play at the college level and invited the students to meet and talk with Roseville High School alumni who played at the college level. The panel consisted of Amare Snowden who graduated in 2023, who plays football and baseball at the University of Wisconsin; Malachi Clark who graduated in 2022 and plays football for Miami University; Robert Porter Jr who graduated from Roseville and attended Jackson State University for football, Porter was able to make it on to the NFL roster but currently peruses his dream as a speaker and entrepreneur; Erick Mack graduated from Roseville in 2008 and played basketball for Olivet College; and Evan Gates who graduated from Roseville in 2016 and went on to play baseball for the North Carolina A&T State University where he currently resides on the MLB rosters.
The five athletes were asked questions by Vernard Snowden including questions like, what keeps you motivated to continue playing, what was your schedule like as a student-athlete, and what to expect at the college level physically. The five took turns telling personal stories, experiences, and giving very motivational talks.
“The panel gave me a good view on the student-athlete life in college and helped me feel more comfortable and ready when the day comes that I start my journey as a college football player,” junior Desmond Straughton said. Straughton is a three-star football player who has offers from schools like Michigan State University, Cincinnati University, and Central Michigan University. As a junior Straughton still has time to get even more offers and to improve even more.
“They helped calm my nerves and gave me insight and were very inspiring and gave me motivation to want to play sports in college even if it’s not at a varsity level,” senior Mya McKnight said. McKnight is a varsity volleyball and track and field player who is college bound and plans to play a sport in college at the club level.
