How Tuscaloosa Academy's Jonni Kneer has become a six-time tennis state champion

A typical day for Tuscaloosa Academy's Jonni Kneer is as follows: wake up, morning workout, go to school from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., go home, do homework, practice from 4-6, come home for a family dinner, finish any remaining homework and go to sleep.

"And then the next day starts," Jonni said.

Such is the schedule of a six-time tennis state champion (and two-time soccer state champion), most recently bringing home the Class 1A-3A boys No. 1 singles and doubles state titles at the 2024 AHSAA tennis state championships. It was Kneer's first AHSAA title, having previously won four AISA tennis state titles — two singles and two doubles — along with two AISA soccer state titles along the way.

"It felt amazing to do it," Jonni said. "Of course, I was so happy when I won singles, but I was even happier when Holman (Bearden) and I won doubles. It was cool to see how much better we got from the beginning of the season to the end of the season."

Kneer had previously played tennis and soccer in the spring but decided to give up soccer this year to focus on making it to the AHSAA tennis state tournament in April. It was a decision that paid off for the 17-year-old.

The son of German immigrants, the Kneer family moved to Tuscaloosa from Germany for good in 2009. After both boys, Jonni and older brother Oli, were originally held back a year due to language barriers, they soon were enrolled at Tuscaloosa Academy, where they have been ever since.

Tennis originally began as more of a fun activity for Jonni, but it quickly turned into something more, and by the fifth grade, he was playing on the Tuscaloosa Academy tennis team for coach Clete Browder. Two years later, when he was in seventh grade, he hoisted his first state title at the 2021 AISA state tennis tournament.

"Jonni is very committed, he is a very disciplined athlete," Browder said. "He has a ton of natural ability, obviously in talent, but his work ethic is second to none ... He's just an unbelievable competitor. His attitude and his effort, just his mentality, it never waivers. He is extremely disciplined and focused when he practices and trains and also when he competes."

Jonni grew up competing against his older brother Oli, who is a 2023 graduate of TA and currently plays soccer at Queens University in Charlotte. Growing up with an older brother, Jonni said, led to much of his competitive nature.

"I get very pushed by brother," Kneer said. "Ever since an early age, he was always better ... Tennis is a sport where there is a winner and a loser. I don't like to lose, but I also like to learn from losing."

Outside of high school tennis, Kneer competes year-round in the USTA, spending most of his weekends with his father at different tournaments around the Southeast, typically either in Rome, Georgia, Jackson, Mississippi or Mobile, Alabama.

USTA has taken the Kneer's to some of the biggest tennis tournaments in the world, including the Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships in Miami, Florida, which is the largest junior tennis tournament in the world.

In 2019, Jonni went to Miami for the Orange Bowl, ultimately losing in a qualifier match. Despite the loss, it is now a goal of Jonni's to make it back to the Orange Bowl in years to come.

"It was just a quick (trip) back home," Jonni said. "But it was good experience, because you saw the best of the best there. Just to be part of them, it was great."

As for college, the recruiting process has not yet begun for Jonni as he is only a sophomore. Playing college tennis, though, is definitely a goal of his, especially playing at the University of Alabama, where he attends all home tennis matches if he can make it.

"I do want to play tennis in college," Jonni said. "I want to play at a top college and see how far I can go."

Jonni currently has 98 wins in the No. 1 spot for the Knights, and currently ranks as the No. 5 player in Alabama and the No. 998 nationally per USTA rankings.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: AHSAA tennis: How TA's Jonni Kneer has become a six-time state champion