Stepping off the gorgeous beaches of Aruba a mere week ago, former UB football and softball captains, Craig Rohlfs and Andrea Sage are beginning a lifelong commitment to one another only a couple years after graduating from college.
Nowadays, trends indicate that marriage is often postponed to make way for graduate school and careers, but there are still young couples that feel comfortable making the commitment sooner.
According to the U.S. Census, in 1955 the average age for marriage was 22 for men and 20 for women. In 2003, the average age was 27 for men and 25 for women.
For the Rohlfs, who married early last month, marriage was the next logical step in their relationship. Craig is 25 and Andrea is 24, both slightly younger than current averages, but Craig said it was time.
"I think when you've met the right person, why not?" he said.
Craig did say he is glad he waited until he was older than college age. He was engaged while in college before he met Andrea, in a relationship he said happened too quickly, too early.
"I should never have done that," he said. "It was me being young and stupid."
Craig met Andrea on campus and began dating when he was a sophomore and she a freshman.
"We both lived in Ellicott dorms," said Craig, "but we really got to know each other in a Spanish class we were both taking."
Both were involved with sports teams, and the pair was already acquainted, but after becoming friends, Craig found himself very drawn to Andrea.
"I was in a very committed relationship at the time that was having some problems," said Craig, "and something about Andrea, besides how beautiful she was, made me want to be around her a lot more."
Soon after Craig and his then fianc?(c) broke up, he and Andrea began spending more time together outside of the classroom.
"Once I began seeing Andrea, I just knew this was it," said Craig. "No other girl mattered compared to her."
One year after Andrea had graduated and moved out to Cincinnati with him, they bought a house and were married.
"We were married on Oct. 8 at Briarwood Country Club back here in Buffalo," said Craig. "The wedding was phenomenal, it was absolutely perfect."
The Rohlfs couldn't be happier with their decision, but for other students marriage is a long way off. While many said that they are in love and are considering marriage for their futures, it is not enough to make them consider taking the plunge right out of college.
"I have been with my boyfriend for almost three years and we are very close," said Courtney Barnas, a sophomore psychology major. "We talk about marriage but not too seriously right now. We both have plans to go to grad school and want at least some of that before we get married."
A desire to hold on to their youth and avoid settling down too early also drives students to put off marriage, or even the thought of a long-term relationship.
"I can't see how a 20- or 21-year-old person could make a lifelong commitment like marriage," said Tim Lowden, a sophomore undecided major. "We're too young to even want, or feel mature enough, to make a decision like that. I have two very good friends who were seriously considering marriage and they broke up because they simply weren't ready to make a commitment like that."
School and the desire to take advantage of their youth are two main reasons for students waiting to get married. Another is maturity, as students can be both undeveloped and emotionally unprepared for such a huge vow.
"In order to be happy and in a healthy extended relationship like marriage, you have to be happy with and know yourself as a person," said junior undecided major Elisa DuBow. "And I just don't believe anyone at our age really has that knowledge yet."
The Rohlfs know they are young, but they didn't let that factor change the confidence they had in their relationship and their desire to spend the rest of their lives together.
The couple, which just got back from their weeklong honeymoon, now resides in Cincinnati, where he is in real estate and she is a personal trainer. Although they know they married young, if all goes according to plan, the couple will not be starting a family any time soon.
"I would love to start a family now," said Craig. "But she wants to hold off, and in reality, I know I do too. We want to be more than financially comfortable when we have kids, so we can do it right."
The vows "till death do us part" make marriage a life-changing promise, and many students say they are not mature enough to make such a monumental decision right out of college.
"I think it's important to secure your career and have some kind of income before marriage and a family," said Barnas. "And for me, that will not happen right out of my undergraduate education."
