Three Niceville Eagles Headed to West Point Together This Summer
By the time you are reading this, Niceville High School alumni Logan Michel, Jace Schmidt and Jocelyn Wheeler will have reported for Reception Day at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point for the summer
All three have earned appointments to West Point for the class of 2030, an extremely rare outcome for a single high school, much less a single graduating class.
At this moment, the trio is likely undergoing the first of several catalysts that turn teenage high school grads (and some prior enlisted soldiers) into Army officers. It’s as many academy graduates note, “the most fun you never want to have again.”
When we talked at the beginning of June, Logan said that even for already fit student‑athletes, the ramp‑up has been intense. Schmidt played on the offensive line for the Niceville High School Football Team. Jocelyn was on the Varsity Tennis Team.
The physical demands are only half the story. Jocelyn and Jace both emphasized the mental side of what’s coming: six weeks with no communication with the outside world, long days in the heat, and constant stress.
“It’s going to be a long six weeks without any communications with the outside world, and you’re going to be hot and wet and tired… just going through stuff with only your brothers and your sisters up at West Point,” Schmidt said. To get ready, Jocelyn and Jace have been rucking together and “psyching themselves up,” turning the looming challenge into something to anticipate rather than fear.
From competition to support system
Though they now form a tight support network, the three did not all start out as close friends.
Jocelyn and Jace became good friends early in high school. Their shared interest in the service academies kept them talking — and it ultimately changed Jocelyn’s path.
“I would not have actually applied to West Point had it not been for his encouragement,” she said. “I was very gung‑ho Air Force Academy, and he kind of made me start to think about West Point.”
As the application process ramped up, the three created a group chat to track milestones together: who got an interview, who secured a nomination, and who received which piece of mail. That chat became equal parts celebration, information pipeline, and emotional safety net.
“It was always encouraging to be able to pick up the phone and call my friend and have somebody who knew how hard it was to get that nomination or to get that interview or to get that acceptance,” Jocelyn said.
For Jace, seeing Logan in class wearing a West Point T‑shirt brought out a mix of competitiveness and motivation.
“I’d be like, ‘All right, I’ve got competition,’” he recalled. “When you see other people that want to go to a military academy, it kind of intimidates and also encourages you… you assume you’re competing for one spot.”
Instead of becoming rivals, they became examples for each other — proof that it was possible to push through setbacks, missed opportunities, and the long odds of academy admission.
“Thankfully having the encouragement and seeing how they’re able to overcome challenges… picking each other up when one doesn’t get into summer leadership experience, or one doesn’t get a nomination… in the end it turned out to be a net positive,” Jace said. “Nobody had to be the winner or the loser. We both got what we were trying to achieve.”
Why West Point?
Each of the three had a slightly different path to choosing West Point, but all shared a desire to serve and a respect for what the academy represents.
For Jocelyn, the original dream was the U.S. Air Force Academy, inspired by her father’s service. Along the way, extensive shadowing of surgeons — more than 200 hours — convinced her she wanted to pursue medicine.
That’s when the numbers started to matter. The Air Force Academy offers about 18 direct slots for medical school each year. West Point offers around 30, plus more research, shadowing, and internship opportunities in the medical field.
“My heart was set on going to an academy and commissioning directly as an officer,” she said. “As I did my research and got connected with various people through West Point who were going the medical route… for my field of interest, West Point was the better school option for me. And when I went and toured it, everything was just perfect there, and I loved it.”
Jace’s dream was West Point from the start.
“Growing up, my dream school was always to go to West Point,” he said.
For him, the academy represented a rare balance. “West Point gave a good balance between academics, but also athletics, and they care about you maintaining your integrity, your personal fitness, and also academic excellence,” he said.
Family tradition played a role: relatives on his mother’s side had graduated from West Point, and childhood trips to attend their graduations left an indelible mark.
“Seeing the long gray line… it’s really just kind of a moment that is ingrained into your head after you see it,” he said. “You’re just kind of like, ‘I want to be a part of that, and that brotherhood.’”
Logan’s motivation also came from family — and a little bit of service‑branch cross‑over.
“It was my dream to join the military, kind of follow in my dad’s footsteps, although he is Air Force, so I’m a little bit of a traitor,” he said with a laugh.
He considered the Air Force but ultimately felt called to the Army and to serve in the infantry.
“Army just feels right to me,” he said. “Service is very big to me with my faith, and I want to serve the country and serve my fellow Americans the best that I can.”
A long, confusing, and interview‑heavy process
All three agreed on one thing: getting into a service academy is complicated and starts early.
Jocelyn began her application in April of her junior year and didn’t receive her formal appointment until April of her senior year — a process that stretched across 12 months and included multiple applications, medical clearances, and interviews.
“Something that surprised me about the process was how early we had to start, and how many interviews and things we had to do to actually get in,” she said.
The nomination process — in which members of Congress and U.S. Senators can nominate candidates — was especially confusing.
“I kind of wish there was somebody to sit you down and walk you through the different nominations, because I honestly still don’t understand the whole process,” Jocelyn admitted. “Hypothetically, the three of us should not be sitting here together right now, because our congressman should only have one slot for his district.”
Despite that reality, all three managed to secure the necessary nominations and appointments, even as their paperwork and paths flowed through multiple offices and categories.
Jace recalled beginning his West Point application in February in order to attend the Summer Leadership Experience, a key recruiting and assessment program for prospective cadets. He wasn’t notified of his selection until late May — and he emphasized that similar timelines recur throughout the broader application.
His advice to future applicants: start everything early.
“Start your applications early, start your nomination applications early, start on medical early,” he said. “Sometimes there will be problems that you don’t even know about that aren’t your fault… it’s definitely a process that you want to get figured out before Christmas.”
Juggling that process with sports made it even harder.
“With me doing football and then right on to wrestling, there is no time in between to stop and be like, ‘Okay, let’s go get all this stuff done,’” he said. “So if you are able to, try to get medical done before Christmas.”
For the nomination and academy interviews, Jace urged future candidates to practice thoroughly and seek honest, critical feedback from adults they trust.
“Prepare what you’re saying a week before, and then have somebody — a parent or a mentor — the night before run through the speech, and have them be very critical,” he said. “They really like to see confidence and passion. I’d say those are two really big things they look for in the academy interview process.”
Looking ahead
Soon, the trio will trade the familiar halls of Niceville High for the granite walls of West Point. In just a few weeks, phones will be turned in, uniforms issued, haircuts administered, and the long days of Beast Barracks will begin.
They know it will be hot. They know they’ll be tired. They know they won’t be able to call home.
But they also know something else: when they line up in formation, they won’t be alone.
They’ll have each other.
And when they finally get their phones back and an internet connection after those first six weeks, they’ll be able to look back at this conversation — and the story of how three Niceville Eagles earned their place on the long gray line.
