Athletes discover the real world at different times.

Middleton gets real look at his life beyond sports
Athletes discover the real world at different times. Some are hit hard in the face with it when hoop dreams or football dreams end with four years of college eligibility. The lucky ones get a taste of it before that.

Akron guard Cedrick Middleton is one who discovered a true connection to his college major, communication. The 6-foot senior from Chicago spent last summer as an intern for ESPN. It was grunt work in human resources, not glamour work on TV or radio, but it was an introduction to the world of J-O-B that most people live in.

"It opened his eyes," Akron coach Keith Dambrot said.

Middleton came to Akron as a late recruit when another player backed out of his signed letter of intent. At the time, Middleton's older brother, Roderick, was playing at Buffalo, and Dambrot's fear was Bulls coach Reggie Witherspoon was going to get him.

"We're lucky Reggie didn't take him, cause I'm sure he could have had him," Dambrot said. "We got a guy who turned out to be pretty good."

Problem was, Dru Joyce was already locked in at point guard, and heralded 6-4 recruit Bubba Walther was the heir apparent at shooting guard. Then local favorite Nick Dials transferred from Ohio State, and Middleton waited his turn.

When Walther transferred, Dambrot let it known the Zips would not skip a beat with Middleton.

"Athletically, he was just what we needed," the coach said. "And he's such a high-character guy. He's been the best kid I've ever been around in all the years I have coached. He's the salt of the earth."

Milt Cook, a former Akron assistant coach, works for ESPN and alerted Dambrot to the opportunity. The coach then went straight to Middleton.

It was Middleton's personal characteristics - not his on-court production or the fact he was the Mid-American Conference's Sixth Man of the Year - that made Dambrot want to present the ESPN opportunity to Middleton.
They had me doing file work around the office," Middleton said. " . . . I did visit the radio and TV studios, watched how they cut up film and did the highlights.

"It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Middleton said. "What they had me doing wasn't exactly my field, but it was the fact of being out there, being able to make connections in other departments. Who knows what will happen down the line?"

After a summer in Connecticut, Middleton was a changed man back on the Akron campus. He had replaced his corn rows and the Afro with the corporate close crop of a young professional. And nobody recognized him.

"People I knew would walk right past me," Middleton said.

The loss of hair came with a weight loss as well, 10 to 15 pounds according to Dambrot, but it is a plus, because Middleton has struggled with sore knees and a stiff back throughout his Akron career.

The time away from the court didn't hurt, either. Middleton is averaging 11.8 points a game this season, compared to 11.1 last season. He's shooting 80 percent from the free-throw line, compared to 69 percent last season.

Other than that, the Akron coach said he hasn't noticed any major changes in his senior guard.

"He was so high-character to begin with he couldn't have changed much," Dambrot said. "The biggest thing he got out of it was just understanding what the real world is about a little better."