Player Profile: JJ Jerman continues to increase play

Player profiles typically reflect athletes who are excelling in their sport. Buc football kicker Junior JJ Jerman (Seymour, Tennessee) fits that description. Last season, he was known for his game-winning kicks to keep the buzz around the East Tennessee State football program going into the 2017 season.

As a student, Jerman is majoring in English in hopes of becoming a teacher after his football career.

“I’m in school to be an English teacher, but I would really like to teach English abroad so I’m also learning Spanish,” Jerman said. “So maybe I can go teach in a Spanish-speaking country for awhile and come back to coach while teaching English in high school.”

During his tenure at ETSU, he has been named to the SoCon academic honor roll twice. Jerman has found a good way of staying committed to his school work while being a consistent kicker for the program.

“It takes a lot of practice. My first year I struggled a little bit, but then I started using a planner to manage things from beginning to end,” Jerman said. “I’m not in study hall when I go back to my room, but I try to act like I am, so it’s just a lot of organization.”

On the field, Jerman has seen his production increase each season. In his freshman year, he kicked perfectly on extra points, connecting on all 22 attempts. On field goals, he went 8 out of 13. He also earned Special Teams Player of the Week three times.

In his sophomore season, Jerman saw the work he put in the off-season show on the field, making 18 out of 19 extra point kicks and 12 of his 16 field goals connect. In that season, Jerman led the team in scoring with 54 points on the season and was named Special Teams Player of the Week three times as a sophomore.

So far in his junior campaign, he has not shown signs of his production slowing down. He has connected on seven out of eight kicks and has made all 12 extra point attempts. With several games left, there’s certainly more to come from Jerman.

“Going into the week, I try to visualize every kick going in because every game is different,” Jerman said.