Senior Profile: Double trouble on football, futbol fields

Mercy High football and soccer opponents might think they're seeing double when going up against the Warriors, and you can hardly blame them.

That's because twins Juan and Jose Rosales have been major threats in both sports, and share one view when it comes to any talk of competitiveness or sibling rivalry.

Playing for a smaller school with a smaller pool of athletic talent, the brothers Rosales are realistic about what they hope to accomplish on the football field or soccer pitch.

"You rely on everybody to do their best and see what happens; you can only do the best with what you have," said Jose, the younger brother by all of five minutes.

"It's mainly about doing your best," chimed in Juan. "Playing for a small school you help others learn and it gives you a competitive edge by the end of the season, as the team grows into competitiveness."

Juan and Jose obviously showed their best for the 5-5 Warriors during the football season, as both earned spots on the All-League team for the California-South 8-Man League. Jose split time at running back, fullback and linebacker, while Juan was a running back and middle linebacker.

Despite their success on the gridiron, both brothers say soccer is their favorite sport and cite the same reason - they've been playing it most of their lives. Juan is a center-back and Jose a forward for the 1-4 Warriors.

While a great deal has been written about the mysterious "twin connection" and of twins following each other on similar career paths, Juan and Jose insist that they don't finish each other's sentences or share the same goals (no soccer pun intended.)

Jose plans on attending college, hopefully somewhere in the southern part of the state to major in civil engineering, while Juan is looking for a college where he can continue playing soccer.

According to Jose, the brothers are happy to compete against whoever is lined up across from them on the playing field, but are not bent on showing the other who is the superior athlete.

"We're competitive as a team, but not with each other," Jose said. "We play different positions so we help each other out on the field. We compete, but in the end we're pretty much equal."

It is that sense of equality that Mercy principal Paul Weber said typifies the Rosales' approach to campus life. While the pair may be regarded as standouts athletically or academically - Juan's GPA is currently 3.9 and Jose's 3.8, with both taking AP classes in Spanish, calculus and American government — none of that causes them to act any differently.

"They don't 'clique up,' they hang out with everybody on campus," Weber said.

And they lead by example, mentoring students who are new to the campus or being "go-to's" for campus project.

"If kids need a role model, we can say, 'look at them and how they carry themselves,'" Weber praised. "When the girls volleyball team was making its section run, Juan and Jose were leading the cheers. They support the school and students in every way."

Jose summed it up nicely, saying, "You just need to have a positive attitude and try your best, and see what you can do."

CONTACT Craig Purcell at 824-1036 or cpurcell@tcnpress.com