LOS ANGELES — Some 6,000 miles apart, Ben Phifer isn’t fully aware of the impact he has on his younger brother, Josh.
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Stationed at a United States Army operations center in Poland, referred to as “Victory” as the exact location can’t be divulged for security reasons, Ben holds the position of logistics officer. He works for a signal company responsible for communications between infantry and sustainment units. They deliver mail and coordinate meals for soldiers.
Each morning, Ben beats the sunrise. Under the pink Poland sky, his division lines up in formation to salute the American flag and recite their ballad. They break for showers, eat breakfast and spend the day in and out of meetings.
Back in Westwood, it’s this routine that inspires Josh Phifer to expend his all on and off the field. The UCLA senior tight end has helped set a baseline for the Bruins’ culture after following coach Bob Chesney as a transfer from James Madison.
His older brother’s constant discipline pushes him to be a leader with his voice and effort.
“He really inspires me every day,” Phifer said at UCLA’s media day Aug. 19.
Growing up, Josh Phifer needed no influence from his older brother to get on the football field. From the age of 5, that was his sport while Ben focused on swimming. But as his older brother pursued his dream of representing the U.S. in the Olympics, it was his regimented schedule that taught Josh to remain grounded.
The Phifer family lived in Fayetteville, Georgia. Each morning before high school, Ben would trek the hourlong drive north to Georgia Tech’s Atlanta-based campus for swim practice with his club team. Some afternoons after school, he’d return to the state’s capital for a second practice. Almost four hours in the car daily to dive after his dreams.
Monday would be a distance practice. Tuesday, a sprint set. Wednesday, high-intensity training. Thursday, recovery. On Friday, the club combined each of those drills, focusing on technique to prepare for Saturday’s race day.
“I saw him, every morning, just prepare like no other person I’ve ever seen in my life,” Josh Phifer said of his brother.
“It was definitely taxing,” Ben Phifer said. “Some days, I would go crazy.”
Ultimately, Ben earned a swimming scholarship to Yale, but with the COVID-19 pandemic curtailing his training, by his sophomore year of college, he was no longer at the level required to compete in the Olympics. He switched to playing water polo.
As he took up the new sport, he realized many of his teammates participated in The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. While he never enrolled in ROTC, those peers influenced him to apply to work for the military. During his senior year of college, he researched and reached out to recruiters from each branch, deciding the Army was his best fit. From there, he had to advance through basic training, attending officer candidate school in Georgia and a four-month logistics officer leadership course.
Eventually, he was assigned to a base in Fort Riley, Kansas, and three months later, deployed in Poland.
His athletics career was on the backburner, but maintaining a rigorous routine to excel in the Army, similar to what was required in sports, appealed to Ben, and continued to motivate Josh.
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“It was pretty incredible to see him keep fighting after he was done swimming, because if I didn’t have football, I’d be a little lost too,” Josh said.
Josh Phifer could still have years of his football career ahead of him, including his current senior year, a fifth collegiate season and professional opportunities. After missing UCLA’s games against San Diego State and Purdue, Phifer returned for the Bruins’ 54-3 victory at Maryland. At JMU and now at UCLA, he’s been an integral part of offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy’s versatile offense, which involves tight ends as pass catchers and blockers in the run game and pass protection.
He’s setting the edge to help the Bruins’ dynamic three-headed ground attack, helping launch running back Wayne Knight into the Big Ten lead in rushing touchdowns (9). He’s firing up his teammates to be the best versions of themselves, leading with his own flare.
When he sees Knight exhausted after a rushing attempt or rep in practice, he’ll “talk crap to him to make him laugh a little bit.”
“I go up to him in the huddle and I’ll be like, ‘Don’t be on that soft (stuff) today, Wayne,’” Phifer said. “‘Let’s go. We got to go today.’ I want him to feel like he can run behind me every single play.”
When center Riley Robell was managing a knee injury during fall camp, Phifer pushed him to keep motivating the offense as he does when he’s present in the middle of the offensive line.
Behind the Bruins’ ball-of-fire tight end, who carries an unabashed enthusiasm into each practice, is a role model four years older, sharing the same last name. A brother who’s providing an example, simply, by being his own diligent self.
The Phifer brothers connect with weekly phone calls that, for a moment, erase the nine-hour time difference between them. It’s nothing like when Ben would sit in the stands for Josh’s high school football games, or when Josh would sit through hours of meets to see Ben swim the breaststroke or medley relays.
During those impressionable years, they constantly competed, whether it be in video games or for grades. They shared friend groups. Their support for one another was tangible, mutually understood.
With Ben in the Army and Josh at UCLA, the visual reminders of that support have faded, to the point where Ben reacted surprised when he learned of the effect his mentality still holds on Josh. Josh’s perseverance is felt in Poland, too.
“He inspires me because he’s able to be on this big team and rally.” Ben said. “I’m inspired by him because he’s resilient. I know he’s come out and he’s leading his team well this year.”
“I just want to give my job my all,” he continued. “I try to stay in the moment and I hope Josh takes that away, just being able to cherish the time that he has on his football team.”
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Reporter Ethan Hanson contributed to this story.