University of Tennessee Athletics
Frykberg Accepted Into Medical School
May 06, 2004 | Men's Track
May 6, 2004
Tennessee junior Brett Frykberg (pronounced FRY-berg) announced he will forego his last year of athletic eligibility to enter the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth in August.
A high jump and javelin specialist, Frykberg graduates from the University of Tennessee Friday with a 3.6 GPA in biochemistry and cellular and molecular biology. He aspires to become a neurosurgeon upon completion of his med school requirements.
"He has been one of my favorites because of his big heart and a huge desire to accomplish something big, like he has in being accepted into medical school," head coach Bill Webb said. "I can't forget his first SEC indoor pentathlon [2002]. He had a huge shot put and rocked the house. He was yelling, jumping around and pumping his fists. It got everyone, including me, fired up for the rest of the meet.
After redshirting the 2003 season because of injury, Frykberg emerged for his best collegiate season in 2004. He gave up the decathlon because of his injury, but has become the team leader in the high jump and a contributor in the javelin. Frykberg owns a regional qualifier in the high jump after clearing 7-1/2 at the Sea Ray Relays last month. Frykberg's season-best 195-0 launch in the javelin earned silver Saturday at the Gatorade Classic. In the indoor season, Frykberg peaked at the SEC meet with a 7-1 3/4 leap to earn third in a hotly contested high jump. In a surprise to the Tennessee coaching staff, the clearance just missed qualifying for the NCAA indoor meet by one centimeter.
"We're proud of him and glad to have him for the SECs and the rest of the season," Webb said. "He always seems to be a guy who rallies people. He's always been a guy who comes out hours early to cheer on his teammates. I wish good things will happen for him because of all the energy and effort he puts into it.
Recruited as a decathlete, Frykberg posted a respectable 6,883 score in USC's 2002 Trojan Decathlon, his only collegiate decathlon. Frykberg helped the Vols to the 2002 SEC outdoor team title in Starkville, Miss. Injury forced a withdrawal from the decathlon at the meet, but he showed his mettle by returning to scrap for points in the javelin and high jump. At the SEC meet, Frykberg's then-lifetime-best throw of 195-8 in the javelin and a 6-10 1/4 leap in the high jump took eighth place and contributed points to the Vol coffers. At the 2002 SEC indoor meet mentioned earlier by Webb, Frykberg posted his lifetime-best pentathlon score of 3,827 to take fifth. Frykberg also entered the high jump in the meet where he finished fifth with a 6-10 3/4 leap to move the scoreboard again for the Vols.
"I've been impressed with his work ethic and the opportunities he's taken outside of school and athletics," Kay Shanahan, assistant director of the Thornton Athletics Student Life Center, said. "He volunteered at the hospital and did some impressive research. He's just balanced everything so well.
Frykberg, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., and graduate of Bishop Kenny High, concludes his career as a Volunteer in the coming month with the SEC, Mideast Regional and, perhaps, NCAA championships on the docket. He will be concentrating on the high jump and javelin next week at the SEC outdoors.
FRYKBERG STATEMENT
"I told the team I worked so hard to make this dream of being accepted to medical school come true. I could compete another year and try to apply again, but I've already been accepted into med school this year and see no choice. I love competing. I love my teammates. They understand and are for me. It was a hard decision.
"I did a lot of volunteer work with track and at UT and St. Mary's hospital and fell in love with it. Dr. Michael Fromke took me under his wing. I changed my major [from engineering]. I don't know that I would have stayed with it, except that my teachers were outstanding and kept me interested. In that whole image, it's selfless work where you can take what other people give and give back to help people.
"If it wasn't for track I don't think I would have kept going with it because it made time management so important. The coaches made me go to class and were always making a big deal out of making good grades. Then your teammates recognized you for that, and you didn't want to let them down. Track turned out to be a big thing in the med school interviews. It turns out that time management was one of the biggest things they looked for in med students.
"My class [of signees] with Justin [Gatlin], Leigh [Smith] and Sean [Lambert] and Stephen [Harris] coming on from the year before was the cream of the crop. I knew no one coming up here. Now I've met some of the best friends I'll ever have. Even though Justin left early, we still talk frequently. Leigh and I have become such good friends. I know I'll keep in touch with him. It's so hard to make friends when you don't know anyone, but everyone just takes you in. It's like a big family.
"Besides his knowledge of coaching, Coach Webb has always made me feel like I was a necessary part of the team. He does that by giving different awards to people to form a team atmosphere. He lets you know you did great to get everyone pumped up. Coach Watts and Coach Anderson are always positive. They're like friends of mine. Their attitudes have helped me out a lot. The coaches all believe in me and that's important. You can coach people until you're blue in the face, but if you don't believe in them you're wasting your time. Even though I was in a class with great athletes like Justin, Sean and Leigh, they still made me feel needed.
