It’s Official

I am going to the University of Florida Levin School of Law. That means I will be in Gainesville for the next 3 years, making it 7 years in total. If I do not yet bleed orange and blue, you can be sure that my entire cardiovascular system will be infiltrated by the time I graduate law school.

So why UF? I am graduating with a 4.0 GPA (as long as I get an A on my last final exam this Thursday), I have held high positions in a variety of on campus organizations, I’ve had many great jobs throughout my college career, etc. I was also accepted and am still on the waiting list at a bunch of great schools [LawSchoolNumbers Account]. In the end, you have to do what is right for you, and there is no better option for me than the University of Florida.

Deciding factors:

1) Money – As a Florida resident, the tuition is hard to beat. In-state residents get a great deal on going to UF. Instead of paying around $180,000 over three years to go to George Washington University (thanks for the free t-shirt in the mail a couple of days ago), I can save around $150,000 and pay $30,000 over three years to go to UF Law. Plus, living expenses are dramatically different. Apartments, nightlife, food, etc. is much cheaper in Gainesville than somewhere like Washington D.C.

2) Prestige – Sure, Florida has dropped some spots in the U.S. News and World Report rankings this past year (it went from 41 to 47), but it is still a top-tier school. There is also a really good explanation of why it has dropped slightly [5 UF grad college rank on U.S. News list]. In addition, no other school can currently beat the prestige of our sports program. Winning 2 straight National Basketball Championships and the past National Football Championship, UF has a great sports program and some of the top athletes in the nation. This is a scene I do not mind being at.

3) Weather – Nothing beats being able to lay out at the pool in January while my fellow contributors are crying to me about how they cannot step outside of their apartments. I am a Florida boy, and always will be. I love this weather and cannot imagine paying a large amount of money to suffer through below-50 degree weather daily. It may sound like a stupid decision factor, but I am being honest!

4) Connections – Over the years, I am proud to say that I have built a great network of connections in Gainesville. I have many friends at UF that I hope to keep for my lifetime. I feel very comfortable here and enjoy the nightlife more than I do back at home, (and I live close enough to South Beach!) so my IdGod identification goes to good use when I’m here. I am the head UF representative for Playboy (and I will continue to be for the next 3 years), I used to run a successful promotions company, and I still help out with certain marketing projects in Gainesville. I do not see a good reason to leave at this point in my life.

5) Family – Let me throw it out there right now, I am a big time “Family Guy.” I am no Peter Griffin, but I love my family and hold them near my heart at all times. I talk to my mom, dad, and step-father daily, and love the fact that I can take a 5 hour drive south and be home whenever I please.

6) The future – I am in the process of developing a variety of businesses. I am thankful every day for the progression that this blog has seen over the past year-and-a-half. Since starting SportsAgentBlog.com – I Want to be a Sports Agent, I have completely re-organized my company (DHP) from a Gainesville nightlife promotions company to a network of businesses that I have become a part of. The second business that I started was Dynasty Athlete Representation. My partner in that venture is Matthew Vuckovich, contributor for this blog. It is still in the development process, however, we hope to have some clients join the Dynasty in the very near future. My third venture, which I started on a whim within the past week is AccessNotes. It is an open repository of notes that I hope will grow into something as large as the Facebook. It is in extreme Beta, and if you are reading this, you are among the first to even know about this project. I am still heavily developing the platform so that it can thrive. If you have any suggestions or can offer any help, be sure to do so. Last, I am starting up AccessAthletes with fellow contributor, Matthew Allinson. I cannot disclose exactly what the business will be yet (Allinson would kill me), but I promise that our initial investment in it is proof that we believe in its huge potential value.

So now that you know about all of my businesses, you may be thinking how that relates to staying at UF? It is because I need to have the time to continue to expand on my businesses during the next 3 years. I believe that the UF atmosphere will allow me to get through law school, learning the essentials to be a successful Sports Agent, while further developing all my ventures. After speaking with many colleagues who are currently in law school, I got the impression that UF Law is not a pain to get through, while many of my other friends are sweating it out at other schools.

UF Law does not have a Sports Law program and it is not ranked as high as Columbia, but I want to be a Sports Agent, and the ranking of a law school is really not as important to me as it is to someone looking to work for a private law firm straight out of school. I know what I want to do, and I am starting to do it right now. Going to law school is a choice I made a while back because I want to be as well versed as possible to help my clients, I have a general interest in the law, and I believe that a background in law is a benefit for every person in any position.

There is my shpiel. I may have left stuff out, but my hands are tired from typing. By the way, I submitted my Senior Honors Thesis, and I will be posting that shortly. My last final is this Thursday and graduation is this coming Sunday. I am graduating as valedictorian of the school of Liberal Arts and Sciences. I cannot believe 4 years have come and gone so fast!

-Darren Heitner