A competitive spirit is not unusual in athletes. In fact, passion often fuels the drive to succeed in sports. Perhaps a little unusual is when athletes admit to a competitive spirit driving them to succeed in the classroom.
Josh Fernicola is a senior at Brookstone School. Last year he participated in three sports for the Cougars and ended his junior year with an impressive 4.74 GPA. Fernicola said he set his academic standard back in elementary school, when he realized he wanted to be the best at whatever he did.
“I think that goes back to the competition thing,” he said. “I wanted to be better or be the best. It became my priority.”
Brookstone School has a reputation for academic excellence and college preparatory focus. Rigorous coursework and community service are staples of the Brookstone program. Fernicola has a humble attitude about achieving such a remarkable GPA as a multi-sport athlete in an environment where the bar is set so high.
“I like having a goal to work towards,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to work hard in class.”
The 17-year-old is the son of medical professionals, who Fernicola said expect him to do his best but have never pushed him to do more than he felt capable. Maybe some of his competitive spirit is derived from being the fourth of five brothers. Whatever the reason, Fernicola learned to channel that drive into what works for him.
“It has to do with time management,” he said. “I don’t like to procrastinate. I don’t want to leave assignments undone. The classes are getting harder, but I don’t like to be idle.”
No one could accuse the student athlete of being idle. Each year of high school Fernicola has taken a look at the course requirements and deliberately chosen the hardest classes. He has always taken honors and AP classes, which account for such a high GPA. At this point, Fernicola said, his AP calculus class has been the most difficult for him, but even then he managed to make an “A.”
In addition to his classroom studies, Fernicola is a member of the Cougars varsity football program. Last year he was a starter on both sides of the ball. This season he is expected to see time as a tight end and guard. Since starting the sport in seventh grade, Fernicola has played a variety of positions, including running back, receiver, middle linebacker, outside linebacker, and on special teams. His favorite position is linebacker, but he enjoys the game so much he is willing to play wherever he is needed.
For his senior season, Fernicola has a little more enthusiasm about the Cougars program. Former Brookstone head football coach Blair Harrison was named to the position again this past summer. While Fernicola did not play for Harrison during the coach’s first stint at Brookstone, he is familiar with him.
“My brother played for him,” Fernicola said. “I knew coach Harrison from then. I am so excited about his return. I am especially excited about what he is going to bring to us as a team.”
For his junior year, Fernicola played football in the fall, swam on the Cougars swim team in the winter months, and finished up in the spring with tennis. He is not certain about playing three sports again this year, but there’s a pretty good bet tennis will be part of his lineup.
“I love everything about tennis,” he said. “The coach is great. I can be in class and think about tennis practice after school and really look forward to it.”
As much as he loves the sport of tennis, Fernicola said football is what he enjoys playing most. The 6’2”, 190-pound athlete feels the camaraderie among the players is unlike any other sport. He also enjoys the more structured parts of it.
“My mom always said playing high school football is the closest you can come to being in the army,” he said. “Learning to follow orders, the discipline, and relying on those around you. The friendships you make in football are strong.”
The intelligent and talented athlete has not made a decision about college yet. He has always favored the science classes in school and knows he wants to go somewhere for biology and pre-med. His leanings at this time are to enter into some field of sports medicine.
He has taken the ACT and scored a 34 and will soon be taking the SAT. Fernicola has no desire to slack off for his senior year as far as his academics are concerned. Knowing he has years of schooling ahead, he wisely plans to move into the next phase without slowing down and to push through using what has helped him get this far.
“Brookstone does a great job of preparing us for college,” he said. “I plan on working just as hard. I’ll be ready.”
Columbus Valley/Scholar Athlete/October 2017
Josh Fernicola
Brookstone School
Columbus, GA
By Beth Welch
Photos by George McDuffie
Competitive Spirit Pushes Athlete To Excel In Classroom
