“I just want to be able to make a difference in the world and make others happy.”
That was senior Dylan McHugh’s career aspiration, after his 17- year football career ended this year. However, how he would accomplish that goal became a serious question, as it often does for so many athletes like him.
For years, student athletes train to be professionals at their sport. But an unsettling reality often sets in after the months of training: they must now prepare for a life beyond their college sport. .
“Obviously it’s a scary thing for a lot of athletes, a lot of athletes go through it,” Mchugh said. “I’ve always thought I’m a decent problem solver, but it’s tough to know where to go next.”
One of the biggest unknowns for athletes post-sports is their social life. Mchugh pointed to this as one of his biggest fears, with a huge change in environment at hand.
“You have 120 friends automatically and you get really close with those guys,” said Mchugh. “Now, it’s like you’re leaving the little pond, and you’re going out in the ocean.”
The former offensive lineman feels, however, that football has prepared him for a career beyond Ursinus.
“In my four years here and in my whole career, I learned how to build connections with people, how to market yourself, and how to be a leader,” said. Mchugh was a captain in his final year at Ursinus. “It was very surreal to be able to help lead a group of people towards a common cause.”
Mchugh will look to transfer these lessons learned to a career in journalism. Currently, he writes for a video game news website called MXDWN, located in California. He explained that he believes that his work in journalism expands upon his work as a football player, giving him more purpose.
“For the longest time I was just an entertainer, because football itself is a game created to sell food and make money,” Mchugh said. “Now, my job is not just to entertain, but to report, to search for truth and put that in front of people because that’s what I would want to know.”
For now though, he’s simply enjoying his experience writing about a childhood passion.
“Video games have always been close to me, ever since I was a kid, “ he said. “It’s a really cool opportunity to be able to write about them and games that I like.”
The Bear will look to continue pursuing success, both as a writer for mxdwn, and a contributor here at The Grizzly. We wish him the best for his post-football career!