The Illinois men’s gymnastics program unknowingly began recruiting freshman Joey Peters since he was a young boy. Former Illini Adam Pummer, who competed alongside current Illinois head coach Justin Spring, caught Peters’ attention as a young gymnast and shortly after, became his idol.

“I was always striving to be like (Pummer),” Peters said. “I wanted to go to Illinois when I was a little kid and then it left my mind when he graduated. But once I was getting recruited, it came back again.”

During the time when Peters was being recruited, the 2012 NCAA Championship title was a far-off goal the Illini had set. For Peters, that title did not play a factor in his decision. He wasn’t looking for the biggest or the best school, Peters wanted to replace something that he would be greatly missing when he left for college.

“Growing up, I was always working out by myself,” Peters said. “In club gymnastics, it is very individualistic. This was totally different and it was the biggest factor for me. Not so much joining the best team or the best academic school, it was finding the closest family.”

Peters competed not only on the club level, but the national and international level as well. He was a national team member in 2011 and 2012 and recently competed in the Junior Pan American Championships in Colombia this past summer. These experiences and the success he achieved made Peters a top recruit for many schools. But after visiting with the Illini, Peters connected with a new role model. He was someone who Peters was closer in age with and whom he would be able to compete alongside. His name was C.J. Maestas.

“I had Paul (Ruggeri) when he was a senior and I was a freshman, so I had someone to look up to a little bit to feel that college vibe,” Maestas said. “When (Joey) came in, the roles reversed. I was now the older guy and he was the younger one. He pushes me and I push him. It’s nice to have that duo again.”

Peters refers to Maestas as his “big brother” and attributes a big part of why he chose to come to Illinois to him. Maestas tore his tricep during the preseason, not too long after Peters had officially joined the program. Though he no longer trains with him, Maestas continues to play a huge role in Peters’ gymnastics career.

“Even though I’m not there gymnastics-wise, I still want to have my energy felt in the gym and I want to feel like I’m still part of the team,” Maestas said. “As long as I bring that emotion in everyday to the gym, then he will vibe off that. Even though I’m not pushing him in the gymnastics sense, I’m pushing him emotionally and I’m still that shoulder he can lean on.”

Last Saturday, Illinois participated in its season opener against Illinois at Chicago. A combination of the hard work Peters had put in during the preseason, along with injuries to the roster, allowed him to make the all-around lineup with junior Jordan Valdez. This was the first time Valdez had competed in the all-around since his freshman year.

“We bounce ideas back and forth off each other,” Valdez said. “I kind of help make him more efficient. He likes to warm up every single skill one or two times. So I tell him: ‘You aren’t going to have time for that in a meet, you need to get it down to two turns. Figure out what you need to warm up.’ I keep the flow of practice moving.”

The meet against UIC was Peters’ first time representing the Illini. Wearing orange and blue, he surpassed Valdez in the all-around, scoring an 84.650. Peters was awarded the all-around crown as well as the parallel bars title.

It can be hard to keep a mental focus during a competition when fans’ screams are echoing in the arena and your competitor is performing on an event at the same time as you are, but Peters doesn’t hear or see either. After canceling a morning workout to give the team a break, Spring was told that Peters woke up early, walked to the ARC and did weight training alone.

“I actually had to yell at him and tell him, ‘You need recovery!’,” Spring said. “The funny thing is, that’s just Joe.”

Peters’ mental focus is what led him to the top of the leader board against UIC and is part of who he is as a gymnast. Though it provided great results for him in the first meet, Spring said it could become his enemy if he doesn’t find a balance.

“It’s almost his weakness as much as his strength,” Spring said. “He’s almost too much in the zone and so he fails to see the bigger picture sometimes. As a coach, I’ve got to constantly pull him out of his stare. … It’s easier to do that then to have to motivate someone to give everything they have every turn they take. I’ll take 10 Joey’s over the counter.”

Starting off the season with the all-around title seems to be just the beginning for Peters’ career at Illinois. Spring said that “he is going to be a leader no matter what” this season for the Illini. Though Peters is only a freshman, he not only leads by his performances, but also through his character.

“Joey is the type of kid that will be the first one in the gym and he’s the last one to leave,” Maestas said. “He wants to do anything and everything to be the best gymnast out there. If it was snowing outside, he would give me the shirt off of his back to walk home, so I would be warm. That is just the type of personality he has. I think he is going to do great things with this program and keep the legacy going on.”

Gina can be reached at [email protected] and @muelle30.