Early signs in life often direct a kid toward a certain sport.

A behemoth-sized child may be drawn to the brutality of football. The kid who always enjoyed hitting things with a stick is likely to become baseball or hockey player.

Not being able to sit still as a child was an indicator for Ohio State freshman gymnast Jill Weber.

“I was 3 years old and I was kind of jumping all over the place and my parents were like, ‘We’re going to stick you in gymnastics so you can jump around without breaking anything or hurting yourself,’ ” Weber said.

Her parents decision has paid off for her and the No. 16 OSU women’s gymnastics team (8-4, 2-2 Big Ten). She is helping lead the Buckeyes to a winning season. OSU already has more wins than last season, when it won only three times.

“She started off a little slow because her summer she was healing from injuries and stuff,” said OSU coach Larry Cox. “But by the time the season came, every meet she seems to get better, and we enjoy that.”

As an all-around gymnast, Weber competes in every event, which includes bars, vault, beams and the floor routine.

“Being a freshman, it’s pretty impressive to compete in all four events,” said fellow Buckeye Megan Porter.

Weber has been consistent all season long. Her only hiccup came against then-No. 6 Michigan Jan. 11, in which she did not place first in any event.

Despite all the success, Weber is strikingly humble about her past performances, and driven to achieve that perfect score.

“I think I’ve been pretty consistent — not too many outstanding performances yet, but I’m hoping for one,” Weber said.

Weber got what she hoped for on Feb. 28 at No. 22 Utah State when she set a career-high score in the all-around event — a 39.450 — and placed first overall as the Buckeyes defeated the Aggies, 196.375-195.275.

“That was amazing,” Weber said. “It was a lot of fun, especially since we had to compete so early in the morning with the time change and everything. But we’ve been working really hard, so it’s about time.”

Much of Weber’s collegiate success thus far can be traced to the competition experiences she faced as a member of the Harford Gymnastics club team in her hometown of Bel Air, Md. She was Maryland State Champion in 1998, 2000 and 2001, and a six-time Junior Olympic qualifier at Harford.

“She’s used to the national caliber level of gymnastics,” Cox said. “She’s maturing as she is almost like a sophomore or junior competing now, so she is handling the competition very well.”

At Harford Gymnastics, where Weber was a member from 1987-2002, she also won the Maryland State Outstanding Gymnast Award in 2000, along with being regional all-around champion in 2001 and 2002.

Harford Gymnastics coach Paula Morrison instructed Weber for 12 years and said her strength is that she is a perfectionist who demands a lot from herself.

“Jill is a great competitor,” Morrison said. “She is level-headed and a team player — very genuine, very supportive and a candid person.”

Weber’s OSU teammates have noticed all the training she puts in to get prepared for each meet.

“She has a great personality, attitude and works really hard in the gym,” said fellow tumbler Julie Levi.

Weber said her first collegiate meet, which came against then-No. 6 Michigan on Jan. 11, was a little nerve-wracking.

“College competition is different — the crowd, the intensity and the enthusiasm,” she said. “When you’re up competing, you kind of block everything else out, you can’t hear the crowd or even your teammates cheering for you. You’re so focused on what you have to do.”

Yet Weber said one thing is surprisingly different at the college level.

“College judging is actually a lot easier than club, so I wasn’t too worried about that,” Weber said.

Like many other athletes who have certain pregame superstitions, Weber has a habit of her own that started when she was 14.

“I drink a bottle of Cherry Coke — I don’t know, I always do,” Weber said. “It’s good luck and has caffeine.”

With OSU’s regular season coming to a close March 22 against No. 22 Utah State, the ever-important postseason starts with the Big Ten Championships March 29, followed by the NCAA tournament.

“It’s going to be exciting; we expect to win this year,” Weber said.

Cox said Weber, along with the rest of her teammates, will be ready for the postseason.

“We’re getting toward the time of the year right now that people who do well in our sport, they know this is what it’s all about — the postseason,” Cox said. “So I’m expecting them to turn it up a notch.”