Here’s the story:
“He plans to gray shirt that first semester of hoops unless he is needed, but obviously could also go through spring practice with the football team if he plays both sports at Arkansas.
“I’m excited about it, but I think I am going to be eager to play once I get up there and see them playing,” Hill said. “I think it is a great situation for me.”
He has football offers already from Auburn, Memphis and Howard and would have to be on football scholarship if he plays both football and basketball at Arkansas."
Questions: Why would he gray shirt the first (spring) semester? Is it to save the scholarship for a player actually playing?
And, why would he have to be on a football scholarship to play both sports?
I believe because football season over lapses the basketball season. Football season doesn’t end until Late November/December (January for some). Basketball season starts in early November. So, if you play both football and basketball you’re going to miss at least a month of the basketball season. I don’t see any coach that’s going to give a full basketball scholarship to someone they know that’s going to miss a month or more of the season.
It’s an NCAA rule, passed to keep certain schools (like one with an elephant mascot) from signing 300-pound DTs to a swimming scholarship. If you’re on scholarship and you play football, you have to be on the 85 list. There’s a pecking order: Football, then hoops, then ice hockey at schools that have it, then everything else. Thus, Matt Jones and Joe Dean Davenport could play hoops without counting against our 13, but Mike Conley Sr., who was on a track scholarship, would have had to count against our 13 to play hoops for Eddie Sutton.
Bad idea unless he wants to be a second or third string PG for the basketball. You cannot play January thru March and expect to be the primary PG.
If that is what his goal is for basketball, go for it. Basketball can use a solid third string PG. Otherwise stay away from football.
Not a lot of 5-11, 175 point guards in the NBA.
There are some 5-11, 175 pound guys in the NFL.
Loves both sports.
May or may not happen.
But it’s his life so he needs to do whatever he wants, not what any of us think is right
Of course he should do what he wants. Right that at 5-11 he is not a probable NBA guy. I am just pointing out that he cannot be our primary PG playing January thru March, unless of course we don’t play in a bowl game, which I hope is not true. I just had high hopes for him to be a true PG for us. It just seems pure PG is always going to be an issue for us, even when there is one on campus.
So, is the likely scenario that he gets a football scholarship and plays part time basketball?
He’s going to listen to what Coach Morris has to say, how it would work and then he and his dad will make a well-thought out decision
Regardless, I kind a like the idea of and taking a football scholarship so we can add another basketball player to the team…
1 from 85 is a lot less of a deal than 1 from 13
On the other hand, Chad has to be convinced that Justice can help. There certainly is some evidence to think that’s true, but you don’t give up a scholarship for a guy who may not be able to get on the field just to help out the basketball team.
If Coach Morris thinks he is worthy of a scholarship, he should give him one.
If not, he shouldn’t.
I tend to agree with PJHawg here. Justice is perfectly welcome to play both sports if he desires, but one has to expect that in doing so, he will diminish his role on the basketball team. Not only would he miss a large part of the season, he would also miss out on lots of practices and other time with the basketball team. I don’t see any way he would be able to start or get starter’s minutes in that case. The decision to play both sports would make sense if he is looking more at a future in football, or if he figures that he would be a backup playing limited minutes on the basketball team regardless of whether he played football or not.
Charlie Ward says hello P.J.!
I thought of Ward There was also a player at South Caro who played WR and also starting PG. I don’t recall exactly who the other PGs were at Florida State and SC at that time. But in order for that to work, you have to be really really good PG or weakness at that position on the roster for you to be a starter.
And, IIRC, Georgia had a Tight End that played forward on the Basketball team about 20 years ago. I believe he was on that team when Andre Patillo placed the ball on the sideline and started the 5 second count while we were still in a time-out huddle in the SEC Tournament in Memphis. Don’t remember the Georgia guy’s name.
Point it, it has been done, occasionally. Just has to be the right fit, for the player, for the Football program and for the Basketball program. I trust our coaches and Coach Fitz to come to the right conclusion.
As a side note, here’s a little update on Patillo, who has been the AD at Moorehouse College (his alma mater) since he retired from officiating in 2000.
Starting PG role is a lot different than a forward. When you make someone your main PG, you are giving him the key to the team.
Believe Ellington was the football/basketball combo at SC.
Yep, Bruce Ellington. Still in the NFL with Houston.
Yeahp. Great example of if you aren’t blessed with height, the football route is always a great idea.