Rolle putting scholar in Scholar-Athlete

In the very near future, Florida State's Myron Rolle could face this dilemma:

a) Choose a career in the NFL as a high draft pick;
b) Become a Rhodes Scholar, go on to medical school and pass up the glamor and riches of professional football.

What choice would you make?

Rolle, a standout safety with the Seminoles, hasn't completely made up his mind. But what he's doing Nov. 22 may give you a hint. Instead of traveling with FSU to College Park, Md., to face ACC rival Maryland, Rolle will be in Birmingham, Ala., to interview before the Rhodes selection committee. Later that day the Rhodes winners will be announced, when Rolle may be on a plane (if the NCAA permits and ESPN schedules the game at 7 p.m.) to hopefully play in the second half.

"The more I do mock interviews here at school and think about what I want to say [to the committee], I have grown to really want to be a Rhodes Scholar," said Rolle in an article in USA Today. "If it takes missing a game, that's what it takes."

It appears everyone involved supports Rolle, including legendary coach Bobby Bowden. "We couldn't be more proud of this happening for one of our players. It's a once-in-a-lifetime chance and you wouldn't dare deny him that. I just hope he wins it," the coach said in the same article.

The Rhodes Scholarship is one of the most prestigious academic honors an American undergraduate can receive. Each year, the Rhodes Trust affords 32 students from across the country the opportunity to study at England's Oxford University.

When Rolle was one of the most highly recruited defensive players in the country no one was talking to him about being a Rhodes Scholar. But Rolle became so intrigued by the idea that he has put as much effort into building the right resume as he has put into the weight room.

I don't know if he's one of the 32 most deserving undergraduate scholars, but the committee's decision can't be tougher than the one Rolle potentially faces.