Collin Chandler has been on an absolute heater lately.
The LSU pass, the Tennessee steal, the turnaround jumper at Arkansas, a late three against Ole Miss, and finally the huge three that sent Rupp into
a frenzy against Tennessee on Saturday.
But he has been doing this for a lot longer than just the last few weeks.
Collin’s mom took to social media to celebrate his birthday, showing just when Collin found the “basketball jones.” In the video, which you can see below, Collin was 18 months old, shooting hoops on a goal in his living room in Iowa City. Typical of Collin, he made it.
As fans, we often forget the human side of the game.
The hidden sacrifices of college athletes
These are the moments that we don’t always get to see. These kids make so many sacrifices to get to where they are today: countless hours in gyms, traveling around the country, and missing out on typical kid stuff to go practice.
Late-night dribble sessions turning into early morning runs. The countless hours alone in a gym just working on their game.
Their parents are behind them, often sacrificing just as much to help make their dreams come true. They devote so much time to the game they love, and sometimes it’s cruel. You miss the shot, you fail to make the pass.
As Cal used to say, they aren’t machines. But Collin has been about as close to automatic as you can get these past few weeks.
Even better, Collin always takes time after games to talk to fans. He loves it here, and we love having him.
Drew Holbrook has been covering the Cats for over 10 years. In his free time, he enjoys downtime with his family and Premier League soccer. You can find him on X here. Micah 7:7. #UptheAlbion
