{"id":1079,"date":"2025-10-24T08:45:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T08:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/2025\/10\/24\/2025-10-24-standing-tall-life-at-69\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T23:07:26","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T23:07:26","slug":"2025-10-24-standing-tall-life-at-69","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/2025\/10\/24\/2025-10-24-standing-tall-life-at-69\/","title":{"rendered":"Standing tall: Life at\u00a06\u20199\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Jase Herrick<\/a> · Contributing Writer<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The tallest man on campus, Austin Johncour, plays varsity basketball for the college. \u2014 JOHN HAKE<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At six feet and nine inches tall, Grove City College junior Austin Johncour quite literally stands out in a crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether walking across campus or sitting in class, he\u2019s used to catching people\u2019s attention and answering the same questions repeatedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe first thing people always ask me is, \u2018How tall are you?\u2019 I\u2019ve probably answered that question thousands of times,\u201d Johncour said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While being tall comes with its advantages, Johncour admits it also creates a few everyday challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to find clothing that fits. It\u2019s also super hard to fit in the dorm beds here. One big thing is that I have to duck or slouch to walk under most doorways,\u201d Johncour explained. \u201cIt\u2019s something I\u2019ve just gotten used to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite those inconveniences, he keeps a good sense of humor about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople are always comparing their height to mine,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of funny. Everyone wants to see where they measure up and usually, they\u2019re disappointed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A close friend of Johncour\u2019s, junior Levi Teets, shared his thoughts when meeting Johncour for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFreshman year I just walked into my dorm floor, and I saw him standing there. I mean, I\u2019m no tall guy myself \u2014 I\u2019m standing there at 5\u20197\u201d, while he\u2019s literally looking down at me offering to shake my hand,\u201d Teets explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Johncour, the second question usually asked is, \u201cDo you play basketball?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, I play basketball for Grove City,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s something I\u2019ve always enjoyed, and being tall definitely helps on the court.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another fellow junior, Gabriel Ziccarelli, said Johncour\u2019s height is only part of what makes him stand out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAustin isn\u2019t just some tall dude: He is THE tall dude. He\u2019s a great player to watch on the court. I keep trying to get him to join our intramural basketball team, but I think that might be cheating,\u201d Ziccarelli said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the physical demands of both height and athletic activity can take their toll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy joints and back are under a lot of stress and hurt very often,\u201d he admitted. \u201cThere\u2019s definitely a physical cost that people don\u2019t always see that requires a lot of extra work and rehab.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still, Johncour wouldn\u2019t trade his height for anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m happy being tall,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are some challenges, but life is easier in a lot of ways too. Being able to reach things off the top shelf is definitely a plus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While his height often draws attention, Johncour has learned to keep his confidence high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople will try to tear you down out of insecurity. You just have to not listen to the noise. Everyone has something that makes them stand out. For me, it just happens to be my height,\u201d Johncour said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Johncour, that confidence has helped him embrace both the benefits and the burdens of being six foot nine. He sees his height as only a part of his identity rather than something that defines him completely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeing tall is just one aspect of who I am. It\u2019s taught me patience, confidence and to stay grounded, even when I\u2019m standing taller than most people,\u201d Johncour explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around campus, Johncour\u2019s height might be the first thing people notice, but friends say his kindness and humor make a stronger impression according to Teets. He\u2019s learned to balance the curiosity and attention that comes with his stature while maintaining perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe\u2019s just a great dude. We have a ton of the same classes together and he\u2019s always got something funny to say. But when it\u2019s time to lock in for class, he locks in. He\u2019s an overall great guy,\u201d Teets said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked if he had any kind of unusual story about his height since he has been at the college, he had a very insightful answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTypically, someone as tall as me would have a few funny stories, but I really don\u2019t. Besides hitting my head a few times or being too tall for some chairs, there isn\u2019t really anything interesting about it. I think that really says something. I\u2019m just another guy walking around campus,\u201d Johncour explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the end of the day, Johncour is just another student navigating college life \u2014 though he has to duck under a doorway a little more often than most people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeing tall has its challenges, but I wouldn\u2019t change it. It\u2019s just who I am.\u201d Johncour said with a smile.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At six feet and nine inches tall, Grove City College junior Austin Johncour quite literally stands out in a crowd. Whether walking across campus or sitting in class, he\u2019s used to catching<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":2116,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[211],"tags":[19,116,37],"class_list":["post-1079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-community","tag-jase-herrick","tag-issue-2025-10-24"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",1064,692,false],"thumbnail":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",150,98,false],"medium":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",300,195,false],"medium_large":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",768,499,false],"large":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",1024,666,false],"1536x1536":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",1064,692,false],"2048x2048":["\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/2025-10-24-09-standing-tall-life-at-69-1-v2.jpg",1064,692,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Ian Schartner","author_link":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/author\/schartnerij23\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"At six feet and nine inches tall, Grove City College junior Austin Johncour quite literally stands out in a crowd. Whether walking across campus or sitting in class, he\u2019s used to catching","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1079"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2209,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079\/revisions\/2209"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stuorgs2.gcc.edu\/thecollegian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}