OK, so maybe your cousin who's on the 12-year undergraduate plan isn't such a slacker after all. Former UCLA and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman finally graduated from UCLA on Saturday, more than two decades after he left for the NFL.Aikman is already a member of the Pro and College Football Halls of Fame. Though he is a native Californian, Aikman attended high school in Oklahoma and started out playing for Barry Switzer's Oklahoma Sooners. Aikman proved to be ill-suited for Switzer's run-oriented offense, however, and Switzer helped Aikman transfer to UCLA after he lost his starting job to Jamelle Holieway. At UCLA, Aikman won the 1988 Davey O'Brien Award.
Tom Landry, whose Dallas Cowboys held the first pick in the 1989 NFL draft, thought Aikman was just the quarterback he needed to bring the glory days back to Dallas. There was, of course, just one little problem with Landry's plan.
That problem was Jerry Jones, new owner of the Cowboys, who ran off Landry, brought in Jimmy Johnson from the University of Miami, and drafted Aikman anyway. Aikman had to compete with Johnson's former quarterback, Steve Walsh, but won the starting job. He would go on to win three Super Bowls and be named to six Pro Bowls before a string of concussions ended his career.
Lots of athletes justify a decision to leave early by noting that they can always go back to school later, after their careers are over. Many more don't decide to leave early but don't finish their degrees because their scholarships have run out. Aikman deserves credit for going back and getting his degree. Maybe he'll inspire some other athletes to do the same.
Of course, there's one more little problem. Aikman's degree is in sociology. Didn't anybody tell him he'll never find a job with that degree?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
6-15-2009 @ 10:36AM
phil said...
i been an always well love the cowboys how bout the cowboys
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6-15-2009 @ 11:30AM
DrThunder said...
Another coherent thought by another brilliant cowboys fan....
6-15-2009 @ 2:49PM
Tom said...
I can't stand the Cowboys, but I still think Aikman is a class act - Congratulations, Troy!
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6-15-2009 @ 2:54PM
big blue said...
Troy is ok broadcasting UNLESS he is doing a Cowboys game, then it's like you are watching the best team in the history of sports and we ALL know thats so not true. Loved watching Troy do the games at the end of the season or in the playoffs, then he didn't have much to say..John Madden he's not!!
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6-15-2009 @ 2:56PM
josephzman63 said...
Congrats to Troy on setting another good example to America's youth. You're a class act Troy. Take care.
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6-15-2009 @ 3:15PM
Armando Martinez said...
it's obvious that big blue lets his team loyalties cloud his vision and distort his hearing. if anything, aikman seems to go out of his way to be more critical of the cowboys. as for him not being a john madden? well, he doesn't really have to be to be a member of the top broadcast team in football, does he?
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6-15-2009 @ 3:25PM
Woody said...
I remember hearing that he was from Virginia Beach!
This doesn't mention that.
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6-15-2009 @ 4:49PM
dtenore said...
You must have heard wrong. Troy was born in California, moved to Oklahoma when he was about 12. Sorry, no VA Beach.
6-15-2009 @ 3:33PM
STEPHEN said...
Troy Aikman is a class act whether on the field or off the field. You never hear anything negative coming out of his camp. Good father, husband, citizen. Should we be so lucky as to have men like him for kids to look up to!! As for his announcing skills, I like him better than Madden. I wish they didn't wear coats and ties though...what's up with that? Way to go Troy. All dads should get their young boys to walk a path resembling yours. Forever a Dallas Cowboy fan. Forever a Troy Aikman fan. Hey, what are your rookie cards worth these days?www.dareu2wearit.com
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6-15-2009 @ 3:49PM
Terry said...
Nice website Stephen...
6-15-2009 @ 3:43PM
snakedoctor said...
AS A BRUIN ALUMNUS, I LOVE IT. CONGRADULATIONS TROY. YOU DID THE RIGHT THING. YOU'RE HAPPY AND YOUR FAMILY IS HAPPY. THAT'S ALL THAT COUNTS. I DID EXACTLY THE SAME THING AND I'M REALLY HAPPY ABOUT IT. ALL I CAN SAY IS: "GO BRUINS"
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6-15-2009 @ 3:50PM
Terry said...
I thought it was spelled CongraTulations...not a Bruin alumnus.
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6-15-2009 @ 3:53PM
tokleywhit said...
Good going Troy!!!!!!!!!!
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6-15-2009 @ 4:14PM
cterry9478 said...
From one recent college graduate to another, congrats, Troy! You deserve it. I`m curious if he`s going to order a college ring to complement his Super Bowl ones.
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6-15-2009 @ 4:42PM
Wish Belkin said...
I bet he falls to his knees and thanks the Lord every day that he transfered to USC.
Switzer would have ruined his carreer.
It's amazing that he survived Johnson.
Some coaches are such users.
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6-15-2009 @ 5:18PM
Maggie said...
I have great admiration to anyone who takes it upon him/her self to improve their education. Wish I had had the chance many years ago. CONGRATULATIONS TROY!
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6-15-2009 @ 6:22PM
Patrick said...
Belkin,Belkin,Belkin, Don't EVER confuse the Bruins of Westwood with the Trojans of South Central.Way to go Troy!!!
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6-15-2009 @ 6:51PM
Jim Martin said...
Apparently, judging by his grammar, Phil went to the same state run correctional institute of higher learning as a lot of the Cowboys...
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6-15-2009 @ 6:58PM
wbichamp said...
A real inspiration to others to get your degree after such a long layoff. Joe Namath also went back to school at Alabama a few years ago and earned his degree and graduated with his daughter.
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6-15-2009 @ 7:02PM
draw984 said...
Good for Troy. Knowing the situation regarding a college degree, he and I probably shared the same nightmares about graduating from college. I occasionally dream about missing my finals or classes that prevented me from graduating, although in reality I did and later B-school. But that feeling is not very pleasant. Troy is now exorcized.
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