Joshua Jerome: Basketball means everything to me. It’s where I get most of my happiness from. It has become a lot more serious over the recent years and only forced me to take it to the next level. It’s a beautiful game and I never take it for granted.
Joe Gaiter: Everglades, Somerset, Everglades and Pembroke Pine. Tell us about your high school athletic career?
Joshua Jerome: I went through a lot in high school but I felt it was all just a lesson learned for me. Going from school to school trying to find a home hurt me in a way but I grew up faster through it all. It made me a lot more independent and focused on myself. My senior year is really when I started getting notice. It was short lived but I feel like I made the best of the moment and got the looks I needed to continue on to the next level.
Joe Gaiter: How was your recruitment experience?
Joshua Jerome: My recruitment experience went smooth I’ll say. I wasn’t recruited by many schools so it wasn’t the hardest decision I’ve made.
Joe Gaiter: Why did you choose Albany State?
Joshua Jerome: I chose Albany State because of the determination my coach was showing to get me to commit. It showed me that he really needed me and my decision was always to go to a school that needed me. Being able to come in my first year, start every game and getting the chance to make an impact right away was big for me because I felt as though I was ready for it.
Joe Gaiter: What was your contribution to your team this year?
Joshua Jerome: Being a team guy, scoring the ball, play making and playing defense.
Joe Gaiter: What are your strengths and weaknesses on the court?
Joshua Jerome: One strength I’ll say is I like to think of myself as good 3-level scorer. I can get to the basket with a mid-range and 3-ball so it’s harder to guard me one way. A weakness I’ll give you is having the mental strength to bring it every game, getting to the level. I need to be at consistently is something I plan on working on this off-season.
Joe Gaiter: How did you face adversity this season?
Joshua Jerome: Just dealing with a couple loses. I wish I could have back and going through a shooting slump at the beginning of the season, it was hard to find my rhythm early and shook up my confidence a little but I found a way to get back to what I do and my team picked it up from there.
Joe Gaiter: ASU lost to Miles College in the SIAC Championship. What went wrong in that game?
Joshua Jerome: I just think we didn’t continue with the intensity we came out with. We were up big early and they fought their way back. We believe we beat ourselves. It wasn’t so much about Miles College.
Joe Gaiter: What is your major and how do you plan on using it?
Joshua Jerome: I’m a Health & Human Performance major. My plan is to be able to stay around sports long after I’m done playing.
Joe Gaiter: How are you preparing for next season?
Joshua Jerome: A lot of hard work, my role next season will be a lot bigger so I’m preparing to take it to the next level. We lost in the SIAC Championship game and I never want to go through that feeling again.
Joe Gaiter: Do you feel like the underdog?
No, I don’t go into any game thinking the opposing team or player is better than I am. I like to believe I’m the favor in every matchup so i feel that way.
Joe Gaiter: How hungry are you to make it?
Nothing else I want more than making it to the next level, it’s considered a failure if I don’t and I don’t want to let all my people down. I go hard for them.
Joe Gaiter: What are some things you learned from the graduating seniors?
Joshua Jerome: Never take this game for granted. For us, we didn’t really know when our last game together was going to be, we were just going for it all and when it ended it hurt a lot more than we thought it would so just too always go hard, never take shortcuts. You get what you put in.
Joe Gaiter: Do you have any regrets?
Joshua Jerome: No, I don’t regret things because I’m blessed to be able to do what I do. I just learn from it and move on.
Joe Gaiter: What do you want your legacy to be?
Joshua Jerome: At this point in my career I just want to be the best version of myself whatever that may be. Of course, I want all the accolades that come with it but that’s my main focus right now.
Joe Gaiter: What is your untold story?
Joshua Jerome: I didn’t have much growing up so all I know was work for everything I want so that’s what I do. My life is a story and is still going as we speak but my journey has been far from easy. I’m grateful for everything I’ve been able to accomplish thus far but I’m far from done. I’m just blessed to be able to play college ball now.
Joe Gaiter: Final Words?
Joshua Jerome: I’m just getting started.
Joe Gaiter: Shoutouts?
Joshua Jerome: I just want to give a shoutout to God, my family for the support and my coaches for giving me an opportunity. All my brothers out there y’all know who y’all are.
Instagram & Twitter: @Rome2_
Joshua Jerome, Albany State, Interview with Joe Gaiter was last modified: April 17th, 2020 by Joseph Gaiter
