Eric Howard '12 Recruiting Profile

I have been an avid swimmer ever since I was eight years old. When I first started it was something I did for fun just a summer team where I had a good time and got to make some incredible friends. As I got older I began to realize that I really had some natural talent. But as I got more serious about the sport, I also came to realize how much work it truly was. In 8th grade my local YMCA team really started to amp up the intensity. At first this didn’t appeal to me. I was still looking to just have a good time and the extra commitment did not necessarily get me too excited. I had an awful year in 8th grade. I was miserable at practices and I was no longer having much fun meets because I was not dropping any time. At first, I contemplated quitting the sport, but then I looked back and realized something. I realized that I loved swimming and I had no one to blame but myself for the crappy year. Right then I made a commitment to myself that I would try much harder in the next season. Ever since that day I have been 100% committed to my sport, my team, and myself. Every day at practice I work as hard as I can to be the best swimmer possible. It’s a large commitment and it most certainly has its ups and downs. But I do it because I love the sport and because at the end of 8th grade, I realized that one day, I wanted to swim for college and hopefully do great things with my talent. Because of my intense commitment to practicing and working hard, I managed to drop a massive three seconds in my 100Y Backstroke this past year and I hope to do it again this winter. I was honored to be a team captain in my junior year for both my high school and my club teams. I feel that as a swimmer, I am very gifted in self coaching and understanding what it takes to be a better swimmer. I can easily feel or see when something is not right and I feel I am very good at correcting whatever it is. I can and have also used this talent to help those around me. Teammates often ask me for help in issues regarding their strokes, their diet, and any other thing that is on their minds. Since freshman year I have been working towards the goal of swimming in college. This year, I am hoping to qualify for Junior Nationals. I only need a little bit more time in my 100Y Back and I believe I can do it with some more hard work. I am hoping to attend a school that I can not only swim at, but is also a good fit for me academically. I understand that school comes first and I have managed to maintain a solid 3.35 GPA through diligent studying and hard work. I would like a medium or large school because I went to a smaller high school and I want to get away from the small town feel that often creates so much drama. Ever since I was younger I have had the goal of working in Law Enforcement as an adult. I want to study something along the lines of Criminal Justice, Forensics, or even Pre-Law. Crime is compelling to me and there is nothing better than being able to put away the awful people who put our lives in danger.