Not Your Average Joe
December 22, 2004 10:01 PM | General
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| Herber |
In a country where since 1992 the national basketball team has been comprised of a select group of hand-picked professionals, the accomplishments of West Virginia University’s own Johannes Herber aren’t fully realized upon first hearing the news.
However, minutes after one hears that Herber is not only a three-year starter for the Mountaineers and a 4.0 student, but that he is also a current member of the full-fledged German National team, the sheer magnitude of his accomplishment takes shape. Of all the basketball-playing German men, Herber is one of only 12 who get to wear his country’s colors and be a human embodiment of the German heritage on the hardwood.
“It’s like making the next step,” Herber says of his current roster spot. “It is another dream that I have realized. Growing up in Germany, you dream of the chance to be part of the national team. It’s the highest honor you can get.”
After failing to qualify for 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, and thereby not gaining the automatic bid to the 2005 European Championships, Germany recently completed a round of qualifying competition that has secured the country a spot in next year’s European championships. This past September, Herber’s squad downed Belgium, Ukraine and Hungary to earn a trip to Belgrade for next year’s games.
“The goal right now for this team is to go to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing,” Herber explains.
It is a lock that Herber will be part of the 12 who participate in next year’s European championships, however he must continually compete for the chance to be part of the group that could potentially show off its stuff at the ‘08 Olympics.
“It’s definitely one of my bigger goals,” the political science major says of maintaining a long-term roster spot on the national team. “It’s about getting to the next level and establishing myself there. We have a lot of good players at my position right now, so it’s not going to be easy, but I think I should be able to play a good role on that team. If I improve the way I hope to improve, I think I’ll be okay.”
Understanding that there is always room for growth and possessing the diligent work ethic required to carry out that mission are just two of the many characteristics that make Herber the success story that he is.
For example, when the junior discovered that his commitment to the German national team would force him to miss the first few weeks of classes, Herber e-mailed each of his professors and requested the syllabus for each class. He then arranged for the WVU coaching staff to mail his books to Europe, and filled his time on the bus and in the hotels attacking his class work with the same ferocity as his two-a-day basketball workouts.
Two weeks later the 2004 CoSIDA Academic All-American was back in Morgantown, rising early in the morning for individual workouts and attending classes such as The Politics of War Peace in the afternoon, not having missed a beat.
“You have to have fairly good time management skills,” says the Darmstadt, Germany, native of his ability to juggle missing classes for international play while still maintaining his perfect GPA. “And, I think it helps that I’m not the most outgoing person, literally. I don’t have a problem staying at home and reading.”
An introvert by self-definition, Herber finds pleasure in attaining knowledge, but admits that there are times when he gives in and lets his friends drag him out of the house.
However, more often than not being out of the house means being in the gym. Alone on the Coliseum floor, the sight of the ball going through the hoop builds his confidence.
“You love playing in front of big crowds,” Herber says in English more perfect than most Americans. “You love feeling the energy coming from the crowd. In turn, you also enjoy being by yourself. Being on the court and shooting the ball, it makes you feel good about yourself when you see the ball going in.”
With the list of athletic and academic accomplishments that dress his steadily-growing resume, one would be hard pressed not to find a reason to feel good about Johannes Herber.
Not your average “Joe,” he’s a balanced young man who has earned the respect of his peers and the admiration of his elders. His intelligence and commitment to academics stand above par; his game, worldly. Herber is certainly fit to represent his country to the world, and for this basketball season and the next, this University to its country.
Lainie Guiddy is the assistant publications director in the West Virginia University sports communications office.
