Alexa Roth // Contributing Writer
For most students, college is a tough balance between school and a social life. Most don’t have the added pressure of early morning and late night practices, traveling for out-of-state games and carrying an important position on the football field.
For starting quarterback Alex McGough, this is normal everyday life. McGough was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and moved to Tampa when he was 5 years old. He began playing football in the fourth grade and has made that a passion ever since.
The junior says that the coaches drew him to play for the University.
“I really thought they were doing something great here, and I wanted to be a part of it,” McGough said.
He also says that one of his biggest achievements since being at FIU was being a starting quarterback since his freshman year.
Now in his third year, he feels that he plays an important role to his fellow teammates on and off the field.
“I know every single player and coach, and I feel comfortable talking to everyone,” McGough said. “My teammates look up to me, and will ask for advice, and it is important that I help keep everyone on track during practices and games.”
When it comes to school and classes, Alex says that time management was a problem at first, and he realized that it was on him to make both school and football a priority. In the 2015-2016 school year, the student athletes had one of their best cumulative GPAs yet.
“Coach Turner makes sure everyone stays on track, and he really wants to see us all succeed,” McGough said.
For the upcoming season, McGough is focusing on improving his accuracy on his throws, and as a team, the Panthers just want to improve from last season and hopefully get a chance to play in the bowl game, which McGough says is “very achievable.”
“We have a goal, and as a team we are working very hard to get it,” the quarterback said.
When the team isn’t busy with training, practices and games, they are helping out in the community.
McGough says he has always done a lot of community service and that it was always important to him. As a team, the FIU football team volunteers at hospitals and nursing homes as well as participates in neighborhood clean ups.
Even though the season hasn’t started, McGough says there’s a lot of work to be done even in the off-season.
“The coaches and training staff can only do so much, so we have to stay active and make sure we’re eating right,” McGough said.
McGough has learned from playing football and says his biggest takeaway is “mental toughness, and being able to move on to the next play without lingering on the last one.”
The starting quarterback never imagined he would be playing college football, but he says he is here to win and expressed how happy he is to be a part of the team. After college, McGough says he would love to play professionally and continue his love for the sport.
The first game of the season is a home game on Thursday, Sept. 1 against Indiana University.
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