CJ Palmer '21 Recruiting Profile

Sports have been a passion of mine for my whole life. From following my parents and sister around, watching their events, to learning to catch a football and hit a baseball on my own, there has never been a time when I wasn’t involved in some type of sport.

I began pursuing my football career in the second grade, when I travelled out of town a couple times a week to play flag football during the fall. After football season, I played basketball in peewee associations for the winter, and when spring and summer rolled around, I joined a travelling tournament baseball team that went all throughout the state “chasing rings” and learning to work together to be champions. Little did I know then how much these sports would influence my life as I grew up. Over the years, I often visited the stadiums of our local team to watch the older boys play, and they became my role models. I stuck with these sports throughout the rest of my middle school period, I worked hard to keep good grades so that I could play, I put in extra work to build better stamina, and now I am grateful to have become one of those high school boys on the team that the younger kids can look up to. The pure passion that sports create is amazing; the bonds that are built and the traits that are developed will last a lifetime.

Now that I am in high school and beginning to think about my life in the years to come, I have found interest in organizations at school, like 4-H, the Fishing Club, and Future Business Leaders of America on top of being a team member of Varsity Football, Baseball, and Track. I am also pursing an honors diploma and working on good test scores. In the meanwhile, I participate actively in my church’s “CELLAR” Youth Group, volunteer with both the Wounded Warrior’s Association and the Ducks Unlimited Group, and I enjoy spending extra time with my family and friends.

While there have been a few obstacles in my athletic career, I would not consider them “hardships”. I believe that every person has control of their attitude and outlook, which turns a hardship into a character-building moment. My family has always believed that attitude is the only thing you can control, and I believe that with a positive attitude any situation can be beneficial.

In college, I really look forward to continuing my sporting career along with my education. I would like to study either Marine Biology or Physical Therapy. Ultimately, I am hoping to improve my talents on the field while learning about my educational interests and preparing for a successful future.