written by Augusta University student Jaylan Hayes
Sophomore John St. Germain ? is about to start his second season with Augusta University's basketball team. He is finally getting used to the college lifestyle and is ready to see where this year will take him.
Germain is the youngest member in his family with two sisters and a brother. While they may not have been super close growing up things have definitely changed.
"When we were younger, they would always nag me, but now we're just like best friends," Germain said.
But he has always had a close relationship with his parents. In fact, when it came to choosing where to go for college, his mom would have loved to have him stay close to home, seven hours away in Charlottesville, Virginia.
"My mom wanted me to go somewhere closer to home, but my dad was the one that told her you got to let him be him. He has to have his own life," he said.
Germain visited and really liked Virginia Tech but ultimately, he decided to go with AU. Mainly because of head coach Dip Metress. When first visiting the school Germain immediately saw coach Metress as someone he could trust and knew that he wanted to see him succeed.
"My trainer always told me go where you're loved, appreciated and tolerated so I knew this was the choice for me," Germain said.
When it came to transitioning from high school to college there were some nerves since it can be a big transition. Mainly, it had to do with the expectations he put on himself as a player and student. But he had help settling those nerves from the upperclassmen on the team.
"I got dunked on my third practice here by (Ja'Queze) Kirby. It was bad but it was like my welcome to college," he said.
Like most athletes Germain did more than one sport growing up. He started with baseball but realized after playing in the outfield he didn't do well just standing around. His dad then suggested basketball around the age of eight and he fell in love after his first game.
When he has free time Germain likes to relax, watch anime, hang out with friends and challenge anyone to a game of ping pong.
"I'm a ping pong master. I'll brag to my teammates when I win," he said.
That's not his only talent, he also taught himself how to play the piano. While he mainly has kept this to himself, if he sees a piano on campus he'll brush up on his skills. He never has showcased this at a talent show but Germain was part of a play in eighth grade.
"I thought it was funny because I had some of my friends on the stage with me, but I was performing in front of the whole school and my school was pretty small, so everybody knew everybody, and it was just nerve wracking on stage. But I got through it," he said.
It's safe to say he'll be sticking with basketball and won't be participating in anymore plays.
While practices are heating up in preparation for the season to start, Germain is feeling confident in himself and the team. He's a firm believer that if you're doing something you love it's not hard work.
"With college sports it's easy to get burned out because it's so demanding. Everybody from the coaches and the players just demands so much out of you. But I mean, I love it." he said.
Germain is majoring in cyber security and is on track to complete his degree in four years. He said someone would have to pay him to do more than that. He wants to get a job in software engineering or possibly be an analyst. While playing professionally is a dream of his, nothing is ever guaranteed. But he would love to play for the Washington Wizards to be close to home.
Men's basketball schedule
