Memo to The Nation: The Scrapper is Back

I’d first like to apologize to the loyal members and followers of Scrapper Nation who have written me repeatedly over the last few months urging my return. Frankly, between applying to medical school, being involved in a bunch of extracurricular commitments, and trying to live up senior year, it was difficult for me to give Scrapper Nation everything it deserved.

What’s The Scrapper up to these days?

I’m actually a first year student at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and halfway through Anatomy- an introductory 12 week boot camp-like course where you dissect and learn everything in the human body. For me, it’s been without a doubt the most grueling, intense, and demanding period of my life.

Then why back to the Nation? Why now?

It’s a good question. I’ve never been busier, never been more exhausted; some days you wake up at 6 am and you don’t go to sleep till midnight and the only thing you’re doing is studying the whole day. Sometimes you lie in bed trying to go to sleep and the only thing you can think about is powerpoint slides or a group of nerves that won’t stop rushing through your mind (kind of like how Deangelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are going to rush all over the Bears today). It’s easy to let school take over, to become a robot, and to lose your sense and perspective on life and what makes you happy. And you know what makes me happy? What will never cease to bring a smile to my face?

• Jake Delhomme looking like he’s the best quarterback in the NFL.

• The Panthers marching the ball down the field to score a game winning touchdown with 0 seconds left on the clock to shock the Super Bowl-favorite San Diego Chargers.

• Steve Smith, D.J. Hackett, Muhsin Mohammed, Dwayne Jarret, Rosario + Deangelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart creating one of the most dynamic offenses in the league.

• My Fantasy team dropping 140 points (thank you Wille Parker).

• Duke Football winning as many games this season (2-1 right now!) as they’ve won in the last 3 years combined.

• 12 gold medals around Coach K’s neck (how is that not an NCAA violation? Oh man…)

Sports. It’s the light of my life. And I’ve realized that no matter how difficult I think my life is, how low or down you might feeling, we all need to turn to something that we love to get us through. The Scrapper’s hopping back on board, ready to give the world his unfiltered thoughts. I’m not going to promise to write everyday, every other day, or even every week. There might be a tough period where I go away for a little while (read: med school is hard). But don’t worry, I’ll come back (and so should you).

I’ll be here live today from 1-4 pm if any of you want to chat about anything going on in The Sports World (see the Meebo application on the right).