USC athletes are more than just champions on the field, court, diamond, and pool, they're champions in the classroom as well. Each week, we will get to know one of these scholarly Trojans a little better in our student-athlete spotlight.
Name: Max BrowneYear: RS Sophomore
Sport: Football
Major: Communications
GPA: 3.45
Sarah Bergstrom (SB): What was it like transitioning from high school to college, especially while playing quarterback here?
Max Browne (MB): To be completely honest, it wasn't tough at all academic-wise. I went to a good high school so that wasn't bad. I think the biggest adjustment was in high school I had a bunch of busy work on a daily basis and then I got to college and it's not nightly busy work but learning how to prepare for a paper that's due two weeks from now.
SB: Obviously you balanced football and school in high school, but it's kind of different playing football at USC - trying to learn a new offense and everything that comes with your position. Was that hard to do all at once?
MB: I think it's hard but then again I've done it for so long I think I kind of got used to it. It's almost like when I don't have a lot going on I get antsy, like I should be doing something either for football or school. More than anything, it's learning how to not procrastinate by taking advantage of my weekends and my time off.
SB: Walk me through what a typical day looks like for you.
MB: It depends on the day but I'll give you my Wednesdays. I get up around 6:00 a.m., get taped and go to practice. We have a tough practice in the mornings. Then there are meetings. Meetings and practice are normally done around 10:30 a.m.. I'll shower and then eat. Then I have class from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., class from 12 to 1:50 p.m. and class from 2 to 3:20 p.m. Then I'll eat again. Then I'll lift from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. and then I have meetings from 5 to 6 p.m. Then I'm finally done. It's all day. But you get used to it and you enjoy the grind.
SB: And that's not even including homework or studying or film. That's crazy. You're a communications major, right?
MB: Yeah, communications major and entrepreneurship minor. I've done a fair amount in Marshall [School of Business] the last couple of semesters.
SB: Marshall is a tough school.
MB: It's harder, but in some ways I've enjoyed it more. It's more fun and more relevant, not to knock communications. In hindsight, I think I might have done a business major if I could do it all over again. I think I would have thought about it harder at least. When I first got here I thought, 'Oh, Division I football, I don't know if I can handle the Marshall School of Business and football. I don't know if I can do that.' And I don't think I realized how well my high school prepared me for college academically. I really think I could have handled it. But I chose communications because I knew that it was really broad and it was never going to close any doors for me. You can do anything with a communications major. I knew I wanted a business minor and entrepreneurship was interesting. It also was the only minor that fit into my schedule units-wise and allowed me to graduate when I wanted to graduate. [Max will graduate this December with his degree in Communications.]
SB: Do you have any idea what you'd like to do one day when your football career is over?
MB: I love sports. I know a lot of guys say that. On the communications side of things, I could see myself being an announcer. I think that would be super fun - either basketball or football, I could do baseball too. I don't know. I'd love to coach, although that's probably further down the road. On the business side, I could see myself being a general manager or in the front office somewhere. And I kind of oddly have the desire to do basketball. I'd love to do football, but I think basketball would be super fun. The roster is smaller, every move is that much more important, and I think you get to know guys on a closer level. I think that would be really cool.
SB: Do you think that being here with people like Pat Haden, who has done a lot both in business and broadcasting, and other coaches and staff members who have had a lot of different experiences, has helped you develop some of your interests?
MB: No doubt. An assignment we just had in my entrepreneurship class was to find a mentor. I didn't use Pat specifically because he's a busy guy, but it got me thinking about how down the road I think he could be a huge resource for myself. He's had a really cool path as far as the business side of things to broadcasting. He was an NFL quarterback and Rhodes Scholar. I think that's really cool and I could really see myself jumping around like he did in lots of areas of his life.
SB: From Matt [Barkley] to Cody [Kessler], you've had some pretty good examples in front of you as far as guys who have graduated and have been able to balance academics with really successful football careers. What did you learn from them?
MB: I remember when I was getting recruited here I had a lunch with Matt. I remember him saying that if I go to class and turn in my work, I'd be just fine. It sounds easier than it is, but to a large extent it's true. If you go to class, pay attention and try to build a relationship with your teachers and classmates then you'll be okay. In some senses that's the best part, getting away from football and being around people who have nothing to do with sports.
SB: One of Pat Haden's biggest things is making sure USC student-athletes have a well-rounded experience while here. Do you feel like you've had that in your time at USC?
MB: 100 percent. I told my parents that the other day. Football is a roller coaster, it always will be that's the nature of the sport. But you can't beat USC as far as academics and social life. I think I've done a good job getting to know kids who have nothing to do with football, nothing to do with athletics. I've gotten to know a lot of people on other USC teams. I've done a good job in school and even joined a fraternity. I remember hearing that same message from Pat [Haden] as far as taking advantage of everything USC has to offer. I've probably only touched the surface but I feel like I've tried to do a good job of that.
