The Virginian-Pilot
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King’s Fork senior Jaquon Parker, who originally committed to play basketball at Old Dominion before changing his mind to consider other options, has signed to play at Cincinnati.
Parker, a 6-foot-4 multitalented guard, helped lead the Bulldogs to the Group AAA state championship and was named the Associated Press State Player of the Year.
Bulldogs coach Josh Worrell said Parker won’t have to go to prep school as originally thought, adding that Parker did well on the SAT and that two classes he's taking this summer would enable him to play right away.
“It’s a good spot for him,” Worrell said. “I think he realizes he can play anywhere. He went out there and worked out for them on an unofficial visit, and the coaching staff is gung ho about him. They think he’s going to be a special player in the Big East.”
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His Choice!
It is so funny to read all of the negative comments about Parker changing his mind. People please remind yourself that this is a 18 year kid, of course he is going to change his mind. This is his decision and not the ODU fans on this blog. I laugh at the comments that Parker could have gotten a great education at ODU, like he cannot do that at Cincinnati. You are not concern about his education but what he could do for your basketball team and that is why you are being negative about Parker. If you are reading this Parker please remember to live your life and make the best decision for you and not others and I wish you well in life!
sorry odu
keep whining monarchs fans, that's all you ever do anyway. i like to see odu, do well, it's good for the caa. odu will still be good without this kid. you can't blame him for going to a bigger basketball school. besides, he probably knew, as anyone with common sense knows, matt brady will win a caa title at JMU within a couple years and he didn't want to be a part of that odu team who gets waxed 2 or 3 times a year by the DUKES!
Defending Cincinnati
"From my one visit there, I recall Univ of Cincinnati as a pretty ragged campus and when Bob Huggins was coach, they reportedly hadn't graduated a basketball player in nine years."
As a graduate of UC, I'm going to defend my alma mater on both points. First, anyone who has been on campus within the past few years will have witnessed a virtually new physical plant. The campus has undergone a dramatic (and very expensive) transformation. It is home to 37,000 students, with a growing matriculation, after decades of decay. UC is the 2nd largest university in Ohio, behind Ohio State.
The graduation rates, as reported primarily by a non-fact-checking ESPN reporter, were nowhere close to 0 over several years. No, Bob Huggins certainly didn't emphasize academics over athletics. That all changed when he was unceremoniously dumped. The administration that cut him loose made it very plain to each coach in every program that UC will compete in the BE both athletically and academically. 100% of Mick Cronin's early recruiting classes graduated.
I would never try to compare UC to ODU. I'm sure ODU is a fine institution. But, the missions are dissimilar.
Parker is coming to U
Let's face it
If the boy is good enough to play in the Big East and maybe go on to play in the NBA or overseas, where would you recommend he go? ODU for the education? It's all about one's future career. I'm sure it's not the first time that a CAA school has lost out to a school from a more major conference.
Off to Cincy
From my one visit there, I recall Univ of Cincinnati as a pretty ragged campus and when Bob Huggins was coach, they reportedly hadn't graduated a basketball player in nine years. Shame. His family and friends could have seen him quite a bit at ODU, and he would have received a good education.
Have fun riding the bench
Have fun riding the bench there dude man. I was excited when he was going to go to odu but through all of this it appears he's lacks character and has found a place that will fit him just right. Peace out home boy
Let me get this straight. So
Let me get this straight. So first we read an article about how Jaquon is so excited to play in front of the hometown fans and solidify ODU in the major college basketball world. How he loved the players and coaches at ODU and he has committed to playing for ODU. They were going to help him get into prep school because he didnt have the credits to graduate but was out of basketball eligibility. Then after this commitment to ODU, he mysteriously goes on a visit to Cincy. The same Cincinnati that has a reputation as a less than ethical basketball program. They miraculously find a way for him to become eligible when no other school could. Hmmmmmm. Sounds to me like a guy who breaks his commitments and surrounds himself with people who encourage him to do so just might fit in well with the Bearcats. Somethings fishy.