The Importance of University Athletics

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3 years, 1 month, 3 weeks, and 5 days. This is how long it took me to play in my first OUA basketball game since I tore my ACL in my final year of high school. This chapter of my life has been called perseverance. Spending a total of 1,151 days working towards one goal, playing in my first university basketball game.

My name is Ismail Hassan, but everyone calls me Ish. I’m currently a third-year Sport & Event Management student at the University of Guelph – One of the very few schools that recruited a kid with a torn ACL. Guelph saw beyond my injury, recognizing my character and commitment to the game of basketball. To me, the importance of university athletics has always been about shaping myself into the best version possible. Tearing my ACL was the decisive moment that would restructure my approach to life. In that moment I had to reflect inwards, all my life I have been working towards this goal of playing university-level basketball. Now what? All the work I’ve dedicated since I was 12 years old towards my love for the game of basketball couldn’t be for nothing. I wasn’t going to let this obstacle break me. This meant an invasive ACL reconstruction surgery and 12 months of rehabilitation, forcing me to redshirt my first year of university.

Privilege. A word that has started to resonate with me more as I’ve matured. It’s a privilege to wake up with a roof over my head. It’s a privilege I have access to healthcare that allows me to get surgery on my ACL. And it’s a privilege that I am even on a university basketball team. In life we are entitled to nothing. My favourite saying from my head coach, Chris O’Rourke, is: “There’s two things you can control – your attitude and effort”. Although he is talking in the context of basketball, this approach has shaped my outlook on life. I would control the controllables and show up with a positive attitude and my best effort every single day.

After I completed my ACL rehab I was utterly excited to finally return to the court. It was February 2023 and although I missed my first year of university athletics, I was eager for the off-season to get back in shape. But right before the school year would kick off, in August I suffered another setback, reinjuring my knee and forcing me to sit out another six months.

One of the hardest parts was sitting on the sideline watching my team compete. I attended every practice with a towel in my hands, wiping up sweat whenever someone hit the floor. I stayed at home watching the livestream when my team played away games. However, I stuck with it. Controlled the controllables which were my attitude and effort. Any one of my teammates or coaches could attest to this. Plus, I had already gone through one knee rehab, so this second one should have been a piece of cake, right?

Then came another setback. In January 2024, when I officially got cleared to return to practice, I still never felt 100%. After consulting my physiotherapist, I underwent an MRI and discovered I had a meniscus tear that would require another surgery. Again. Mentally it was beyond exhausting to consistently go through all these injuries. Some people even asked, “Are you considering not playing basketball anymore?” The answer has always been simple – of course not. As long as I was in school I would keep working toward my goal of competing at the university level. Maybe even my PHd while still playing basketball with all the years of eligibility I have.

I had my meniscus surgery in May 2024, and after three months of rehab, I was cleared at the start of the 2024-25 school year. Now, the real work began. From September through December, I played a total of 0 minutes. But I never hung my head. I showed up to every team practice, did my strength and conditioning training, and continued to work on my game on a daily basis. Then at the end of December, we had an exhibition tournament – my first opportunity to compete at the university level. I performed well enough for my coach to give me a chance to play in my first OUA game in the new year.

January 8th, 2025 against McMaster University. For the first time in 1,151 days since my ACL tear, I played my first minutes in an OUA regular season basketball game, scoring my first points.

This is what the importance of university athletics means to me. Facing adversity, again and again, and continuing to push forward. It would have been easy to quit, to walk away from basketball and use injuries as an excuse. But for me, it has been about the journey, not just the destination. The skills of perseverance, time management, leadership, discipline, and work ethic – are things I will carry into every aspect of my life. Without these obstacles, I would not have developed into the person I am today.

Beyond the basketball court, university athletics helped me realize something bigger – life is about being more than an athlete. Up until my first year of university, my identity was tied to basketball. Everyone knew me as a basketball player, but I wanted to be known for more. I wanted to use my experiences through basketball to give back to my community and inspire the next generation of youth.

This realization led me to starting my own non-profit basketball organization known as Dribble Dreams Foundation. The goal was to remove financial barriers associated within sports so youth can have access to a high-quality basketball camp experience completely free. Growing up, my friends and I would sneak into basketball facilities before school and during the summer so we could work on our game. Basketball has given me so much – it has allowed me to pursue university studies on scholarship, form lifelong friendships, and develop off the court. I wanted as many children to experience the same benefits I did, without their parents being burdened by the expensive registration costs of sports programming.

To date, Dribble Dreams has provided over 350 youth aged 6-18 access to cost-free programming In December 2024, we expanded to Nairobi, Kenya, hosting basketball and education clinics on a global scale. Over the past two years, we have raised over $60,000 in monetary and in-kind donations, with 100% of proceeds reinvested into the community and youth we serve.

For me, there is nothing more fulfilling in life than knowing I am making a positive impact on the next generation. It is the conversations with parents expressing gratitude and the excitement from the kids which keep me motivated. Basketball has helped me grow immensely and created wonderful opportunities for myself, but the true power lies in what it can do for others.

At the end of the day, university athletics is about more than just the sport. It’s about the lessons I’ve learned along the way. It is about the resilience I have built. And it is about the impact it has allowed me to achieve. Whether it is on the basketball court or in my community, I am the utmost grateful for everything university athletics has taught me. And I will continue to use athletics as a tool to uplift others.