Tide Softball?s Brittany Rogers a Fan Favorite
6/7/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. ?? University of Alabama softball sophomore Brittany Rogers helped the Crimson Tide draw record crowds in 2007 by becoming a fan favorite with her speed on the field and outgoing personality off the field.
Rogers is one of the most exciting players to watch in the SEC as her speed on the basepaths puts pressure on the opposition to be perfect on every play. Rogers set the Alabama school record with 48 stolen bases this season. After an outstanding freshman campaign in which she batted .427, she followed by adding a new facet to her game.
This season she batted right handed for the first time. Usually a left-handed slapper, Rogers would sometimes turn around and bat from the right side with runners in scoring position as she possessed more power batting right-handed. As a switch-hitter she accomplished the unthinkable as she hit both inside and outside the park home runs from both the left and right side of the plate.
"She almost has two personalities, the one on the field and the one off the field," said Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy. "The one off the field is as nice as she can be. She greets every little kid who comes up to her at camps, clinics or after games. She is very giving and takes the time to get to know kids. She is great with kids. She will inspire them and motivate them. I think she will do a great job with kids that age and give them a good role model to look up to."
The capacity crowds of over 1,400 per game at the Alabama Softball Complex enjoyed watching Rogers this season but it was what Rogers and her teammates do following each game that has helped build such a large fan base for the Tide throughout the state of Alabama. Afterwards kids line the fence from the Tide's dugout to clubhouse and every UA player goes through the line signing softballs, posters and other memorabilia.
"I used to be one of those girls when I was younger," said Brittany. "I remember going to a University of Georgia women's basketball game and they were playing Tennessee. I remember seeing the players walking around after the game and giving autographs. I was just wondering if I would ever be a college athlete and be like them. That is what I am now and that is why I try to really pay attention to the kids. I know everybody else on the team does too because I am sure the kids are thinking that is where they want to be someday."
"I think Brittany takes responsibility for being a role model," said Tide assistant coach Alyson Habetz. "She thinks that is an honor and wants to be a good role model. She takes the time to know the kids and talk to them while she is signing autographs. She does the right thing on the field and off is a great asset to our program."
Rogers doesn't just sign autographs. She spends time talking to kids after games, asking what their name is, if they play softball, if they enjoyed the game and other general topics. It is that friendly personality that has made Brittany a great role model for kids and why so many kids opt to run out with Rogers to center field for the national anthem on Kid's Club days.
"I think that is so cool when they run out there with me," said Rogers. "I wish I could get to know all of the kids who came out there. They take time and make the effort to come down all of those stairs and run out there with me. Sometimes they just stand there and shake a little bit because they are scared and sometimes they tell me their name and the position they play. It just depends on the kind of girl it is. Sometimes girls ask me how I hit or they ask me if I could get a hit for them in the game."
It was a community service project that Brittany did with two of her teammates, Chrissy Owens and Jordan Praytor, which helped her realize how much she enjoys working around children. The three Tide players volunteered for the Gatorade Get 60 program, a program designed to encourage kids across the country to run, jump, skip, bike and dance their way to the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Student-athletes from across the country have gone into classrooms to inspire children to make physical activity part of their daily routine.
"I have to give all the credit to the Gatorade Get-60 program," said Rogers. "I worked it last year and that is where I realized that I have a passion for kids. I never thought that before. I had wanted to be an architect and do things like that but I worked with that program with Jordan and Chrissy and realized that the way I felt when I left was awesome. The way those kids learned sportsmanship and got wisdom off the words I was saying made me feel really good."
There was one particular instance at the end of the program at Holt Elementary School that showed Brittany that what she was teaching the kids was effective and had an immediate impact on them.
"The last day they all came up to me and gave me a basket of cards that they had made for me," said Rogers. "One of them said ??Thank you Miss Brittany, you have taught me sportsmanship.' When I read that I knew that they had actually listened to what I said and it made me a little sappy."
Once she realized how much she enjoyed working with kids and teaching them about sportsmanship, Brittany decided that she wanted to pursue a career in the teaching field. She is majoring in elementary education at Alabama.
"I would like to teach either fifth or sixth grade because I like that age group," said Rogers. "You can get through to the kids at that age and they are starting to grow up. That age group is right in the middle and I like that."
Before deciding to become a teacher Rogers had always wanted to be an architect. She now considers it more of a hobby and in her free time she works on interior design drawings.
"I like to sketch out what my future home would be like if I ever made it big," said Brittany. "A lot of the sketchings people would not understand but I try to make them as legible as possible. I used to watch the Christopher Lowell show at midnight during the summer. I started rearranging my room when I was younger and it kind of blossomed into a new passion. I like doing it but I would rather teach to be honest. I want to touch lives more than I want to draw so I will just keep it as a pastime."
Brittany gained some more experience with kids the summer after her freshman season when she went to work at Suwanee Sports Academy in Suwanee, Ga. It is a player development company that focuses on athletes' mental, physical and emotional growth to enhance performance.
"They have this program which is basically like a high end day care where they bring all of the kids in, split them up into age groups and we take them on field trips," said Rogers. "That was the best learning experience because I worked with age groups from second grade to eighth grade."
Some of the field trips Brittany went on with kids at the academy include the Atlanta Falcons training camp in Flowery Branch, the Mayfield Ice Cream Dairy, an Atlanta Braves game, the Georgia Aquarium and Six Flags.
"The Georgia Aquarium was probably my favorite because I had never been there," said Brittany. "They were so much fun. The kids were fun to be around. Kids like to interact with people and they really do learn from their environments. That is something that I learned because the way they look at things and take things in is really cool. They notice things that you would not think they would notice."
Not only is Rogers able to teach kids about different things like character and sportsmanship, Brittany also says that she learns a lot from working with them.
"I love working with the kids," said Rogers. "If you sit down and listen to what kids have to say I swear they are like adults. The way they look at life really opens my eyes. I found out that I was a lot more patient with them than I thought I was. They really taught me a lot myself, being patient and being able to listen to others. If you work with them as a team and let them have some say in the way they learn about life they will blossom. Those kids I worked with for four weeks were completely different people when I left them."
Rogers undoubtedly will continue to be a good role model for kids and keep them coming back to games at the Alabama Softball Complex. She finished her sophomore year as a 2nd team NFCA All-American and 1st team Easton All-American as Bama advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals. She will help lead the Tide to another great season in 2008 when she returns for her junior year.
