Michael DeJulius '29 Recruiting Profile

Hi, my name is Michael Thomas DeJulius. I usually go by Mikey to those who know me. I know Mikey might sound like an immature name to some, but as a JR to my dad, I have always been Mikey. I am of half Irish and mixed European descent, and my last name has a very cool background to it. It came from the name "Julius," which was a popular Italian name. My early family though is from the Czech Republic. My ancestors immigrated from Italy to the Czech Republic and then to America. Now, you might be saying, "Mikey, your last name is DeJulius." Well, this is because when my ancestors went into the Czech Republic, they said their name was "of Julius," which translates to De Julius. The Yugoslavians thought it was DeJulius, which is also why there is a capital "J" in DeJulius.

Ever since I was in 6U tee-ball, I have known I wanted to be a baseball player. I still remember having a Chicago Cubs game on the TV, my dad grilling hotdogs and burgers, and playing catch in the backyard. I will always remember the season I fell in love with the game. I was eight years old playing little league for the first time. I finally got a chance to play second base, as I could barely catch the ball, so my coach would not play me in the infield unless the team was up by a lot and the other team didn't have strong hitting for safety reasons. That inning, the first ball was hit on the ground to me, and I made the play. The next ball was a line drive that I ended up catching, or maybe it caught me. The third ball was yet another ground ball my way. After completing the play, I ran off the field and told my dad/coach that I wanted to play the infield more often. He told me I did a great job but would have to work on becoming stronger at catching and fielding. That was a great goal. By the next season, I was the starting shortstop on my travel ball team and hitting 3rd. Ever since, I have been working towards my goal of playing college baseball. My dad and I still bond a lot through baseball. He coached me from when I was 8 years old until I was 13, when I decided to play more competitively and took the first step towards taking my baseball career into my own hands. For example, my dad put a batting cage in our garage, and I could spend hours in that little cage hitting, doing plyometric drills, and fielding drills. But also, my favorite time of any day is when my dad gets home, and we go out there and hit baseballs while talking about our days or anything in general.

Recently, I have received my instructional permit to drive. This was a very big accomplishment for me because I was the only person to get a permit out of all my friends (I am the youngest in my friend group). Now, I have started my driver's ED process, which is very challenging. Not only do I have to do an hour lesson every day, but I also have driving lessons early before school every day. While it might be a challenging bit for me, I think of it as a good thing. Not only will I get my school permit in about 3-4 months if I succeed, but I also like the discipline it sets for me. Waking up at 5:30 every morning to get ready for the 1-2 hours driving session. I also like the fact that going into school, I am awake and ready to start my day.

I play two sports other than baseball, hoping to make that three sports. The two sports I'm playing now are football and basketball, and I am thinking about doing track in my freshman year, as I have no sports in the early spring. These two other sports are not nearly as important to me as baseball, and I think of them kind of like "conditioning" sports for me. But when it comes to games, I take them just as seriously as I would any other sport. I grew up in a household of very good basketball players. My dad had college offers for basketball, but he decided to go to a more academically gifted school for engineering. He picked Marquette, where he was then asked to walk onto the team when he showed up. My mom was also very gifted and still is at basketball. She very well could have played varsity as a JR, but stayed down. They both continue to be active in sports, whether it's coaching my sister or me or just being my biggest cheerleader.

While I may spend a lot of my time training, whether it be hitting lessons or weight training, I take academics very seriously. I am in accelerated math, which requires me to go to my local high school for first period. I take this class very seriously, as well as my other classes, which are 8th-grade classes. My parents have instilled in me since I started kindergarten that grades are extremely important. I have all A's in my 8th-grade class and a 4.0 for now in my high school class. This class is very important to me since it will make me used to the high school life as an 8th grader. Additionally, it sets me up for college credits before I'm even in college.

This is my story as a kid from the middle of nowhere trying my best to improve and become the best version of myself. Thank you very much for reading this long essay of mine. Just know that this essay here, this is my life.

Sincerely,

Mikey DeJulius