Mario Guzman        

  "No crying", might be what you heard someone say more than once to you, especially if you were a High School athlete, struggling to discover your future.

           Your strength was probably measured by how many tears you could hold in. This may hold true to an athlete in school, struggling to keep his grades, so he can run another day, so he can play the sport he loves, and that, just may be the only thing that keeps him eager to live, and eager to learn. The everyday student in High School can struggle with their own identity, staying focused, putting aside the distractions of things they have never experienced. For youngsters, there are few that find refuge in a sport, pushing themselves to the limit, trying to forget a problem at home, trying to be great like their father, or maybe there is no reason, other than how it makes them feel, but whatever the reason, some kids can reach their full physical, and mental potential, while some may reach only one or the other. Sometimes, the potential a kid can achieve, can be maximized by extensive practice and repetition, perfecting their skill, and refining their mental concentration, but, just a few words of encouragement, and the belief in a blank canvas that is learning the ways of this world, can be more than enough to turn a stow away athlete running away from a problem at home, into the leader of a new generation of athletic achievement, or turn the dreamer into a leader of a new world of possibilities.

      Guidance is key for a student athlete who is learning, the athlete that gets love, respect, support, and guidance, can achieve more than can be imagined. You can laugh at the possibility, that a College football player would fall in love with a girl he's never met, or seen before (Manti Te'o), but once you've had your laugh, look at how this can happen, because, if you've ever had a dream you could not see, or touch, and turn it into reality, you have the blind faith few teach anymore in this world.

   "I want to tell them to never give up, Also, that there is always a way of obtaining your goals and fulfilling your dreams, regardless of your personal circumstance. You just have to remain ambitious and believe in yourself",  is what Donnie Battle, founder and CEO, of 4TH and INCHES has to say, to those athletes struggling to maintain and reach a higher education. 4TH and INCHES is a program, specially designed for soon to be graduating athletes involved in the football academic programs of their high schools, based in Las Vegas Nevada, that connects passionate football athletes, with passionate academic programs in Universities across the Nation..

       " I'm looking for those kids who aren't getting the attention they need, That's who I was when I played", says Donnie, also former Defensive End player, at East L.A. College and Dixie State College, who shopped around for his own scholarships, without the help of scouts or coaches. "The main focus" is getting High School athletes to the next level, by highlighting their athletic skills through our "Exposure" program, where we personally help them build a profile with all the tools they need in order to be taken seriously by colleges across the Nation".

     You can contact 4TH and INCHES at  4thandincheslv@gmail.com. More programs like these should be available for the young athlete, because in the end, we can all appreciate the example that a great athlete sets of hard work and dedication.