“At Harvard, I grew up a lot in terms of being able to deal with different types of people because where I grew up in Arizona, it’s predominately white and predominantly Mormon families, so there’s not a whole lot of diversity,” Fitzpatrick said. “Coming to Harvard was an eye-opening experience because there’s so much diversity on campus.”

The quarterback would go on to be traded to the Cincinnati Bengals and eventually sign a six-year, $59 million contract, with $24 million guaranteed, with the Buffalo Bills in 2011 before moving to the Tennessee Titans this offseason.

COMBATING STEREOTYPES

Fitzpatrick’s career is exceptional considering the relative dearth of successful Ivy League players replicating that success in the NFL. Recent standouts, such as Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year Josue Ortiz ’11-’12 and quarterback Collier Winters ’12, failed to secure contracts and senior running back Treavor Scales has experienced similar struggles.

For players like Ortiz and Scales, who both received invitations to franchise minicamps, the Crimson shield presents an initial challenge because of the perceptions that people carry with the brand.

“Guys don’t expect Harvard football players to be ballplayers,” Scales said. “They expect this cerebral guy, this guy that will get a 50 on the Wonderlic, the guy that’ll impress you in the film room. But when he gets out there, does he have the fight that this guy from Alabama [or] LSU has? Does he have the grit that a guy at UGA has? And proving that I am a tough son-of-a-gun with a chip on my shoulder, that’s where I find the most trouble in going to minicamps.”

But Scales also notes that after receiving the initial invitation to camps, the stigma of the H disappears and landing a roster spot is purely based on the talent level of a given player.

“I’ve learned that a lot of it has to do with the logo on the helmet, but I’ve talked to scouts that will tell you straight up that the best players will play in their organization—it’s not a matter of where you came from,” Scales said. “It might get your foot in the door, but it doesn’t mean you’re going to stay there.”

TAKING THEIR SHOT

In addition to the connotations of the Harvard brand, college scheduling presents an obstacle for student-athletes attempting to impress scouts.  Alex Killorn ’12 was drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning after high school but notes that his choice to play in college rather than enter the NHL system immediately discouraged some teams from taking a closer look.

The disadvantage for college-bound hockey players with professional hopes stems from the increasing number of high schoolers who forgo college entirely and instead play in the junior leagues, which have a pro-style schedule, before entering the NHL.

“Going through the process, a lot of teams told me, ‘If you go to Harvard, we probably won’t draft you,’ just because they didn’t feel like that was the best thing for my development,” Killorn said. “For a guy like me to come through and transition well through the pro ranks might have helped Tampa be like ‘This is a great program and kids can develop here into good players.’”

BUILT-IN BARRIERS TO ENTRY

Despite the success and reputation of Harvard hockey, the Ivy League’s restrictive scheduling gives other college players a competitive edge.

“You play a shorter season than everyone else...just because you play in the Ivy League, so you don’t get as much development in that sense. You don’t play as many games,” Killorn said.