Even with final projects and exams looming over them, the athletes of Chico State are still spending time on the court.

The library is filled with the casualties of finals week, as students strung out on energy drinks and coffee litter the computers. As practices and games continue to pile up despite the upcoming exams, the Chico State athletes are likely among that group.

Along with staying up all night to study for tests and write essays, athletes also need to focus on not letting schoolwork affect their gameplay on the field. Despite being a student first, it’s difficult to separate the two as many athletes are able to attend Chico State through the sports scholarship they are given.

The Chico State women’s volleyball team recently competed in the NCAA Tournament in Anchorage, Alaska. Although they had the pleasure of playing one of the most anticipated games of the season, it happened only one week before delving into finals.

In the case of the women’s volleyball team, the players are being asked to choose between making school history in their sport, or focusing on the upcoming schoolwork. Rather than allow games to coincide with finals week, the schedule should be more encompassing for athletes.

With athletes competing at the same time as their exams, it forces them to sacrifice studying time. The result is lower scores on tests, which can have negative impacts on their future outside of sports.

The basketball teams are facing the most difficult challenge to overcome, with games during breaks, finals and dead week. Although the students can take finals a week earlier than they are scheduled, it only shortens the time to prepare for the test.

With their minds focused on the upcoming games and exams, the players are not being given a fair chance to excel at being a student first.

In order to improve the student athlete’s success in the classroom, the schedule should be better thought out to accommodate the teams. Rather than holding games during dead week and finals week, they should be postponed to the break and should revolve around a reasonable school schedule.

Sports that play earlier in the year have an advantage regarding their scheduling because the players are finished with weeks to spare before final exams. With other sports already succeeding in helping out their students, basketball should take the time to reconsider its schedule.

Gabriel Moreno can be reached at [email protected] or @GabeSports3 on Twitter.