Being accepted into the University of Florida is a difficult feat; however, being offered a position on their baseball team accompanied by a scholarship for their efforts is a whole other feat within itself. This is a phenomenon known all too well by Jordan Olivia (11). 

Olivia plays baseball at Plant as a catcher.  

“I played baseball my whole life,” Olivia said. “My dad played baseball at Hofstra University in New York, so I always knew I wanted to play baseball at a college level.” 

Even with the inspiration from his father, playing baseball at a collegiate level is not as simple as it seems. According to NCSA Sports, less than two percent of baseball players in high school make it to play at the division one level. This means that in order to play baseball at a college level, let alone a division one level, there has to be an extreme level of dedication. The question is – What does that look like for Jordan Olivia? 

“In a typical day, I wake up at 7:30, eat breakfast, workout, eat a snack, workout, eat lunch at about noon, eat a snack, do FLVS, eat dinner at 8, hang out with my friends, and then go to bed at around 10:30,” Olivia said.  

In order to give himself more time to train, Olivia sacrificed his in-school career in order to have the freedom to structure his day around working out. 

“It was a difficult decision,” Olivia said, “I loved going to school and learning in person and getting to do that with my friends, but doing FLVS was the best idea in general for the success of my career.” 

Olivia made this difficult decision following his freshman year of in-person high school at Plant when he started to become truly serious about playing baseball at a college level. 

“I have been dedicated to the sport since I was a kid, but my dedication really kicked into gear when I switched to all FLVS sophomore year,” Olivia said. “It was hard to leave all my friends behind, but I had to move on to achieve my dreams.” 

As stated by Olivia, this decision did not just affect him, but also his friends and family.  

“I moved here from San Diego California in seventh grade,” Olivia said. “So, making sure that the friendships I’ve created over the past four years was very important to me.”  

Thankfully, Olivia’s friends reported being supportive of his decision.  

“Jordan is a very well-rounded person. He is always looking out for others and is good at balancing his friendships and his baseball career,” Ella Graham (11) said. “I have never felt abandoned by him at all he was good at making sure his friends were maintained.” 

Another person in Olivia’s friend group, Carlos Velasco (11), concurred with Graham’s conclusions.  

“Jordan is one of the most dedicated people I know,” Velasco said. “He tries his hardest in everything he does, and I have never been more proud of a person.” 

With the support of his friends and family, Olivia was finally able to push himself enough to receive that recruitment call.  

“Head Coach O’Sullivan called me on September 5 to offer me a position as a catcher on the University of Florida baseball team,” Jordan said. “I had never been happier.”  

Once the call came, Olivia could have chosen to slack and take time off; however, that was not the mentality that got him to the position he is in now in the first place.  

“I could’ve just slacked off, but that following day I just kept working out and grinding baseball to keep being the best player I can,” Olivia said. “I am never going to reach the success I want to in college, and hopefully the MLB one day, if I take days off.” 

Olivia’s dedication to his sport, education and relationships put him in the successful position he is in today with a scholarship and position on the University of Florida baseball team.