LATEST HEADLINES

Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Army adds to its stash
James Haarsma, a 6-6 all-state forward from Wisconsin, is headed to Army. He will make a stop in Jersey first, though.

Haarsma, who averaged 19.3 points and 9.5 rebounds for Wisconsin Division III state champ St. Catherine, will spend a year at Army's prep school before joining Jim Crews' squad at West Point.

According to the Racine Journal Times, Haarsma, the Racine County Player of the Year who plans to become a cardiologist, has a "3.0 grade-point average at St. Catherine's, but will attend prep school at the request of the Academy's admissions board to adjust to the school's demanding academic life."

As we have reminded you before, next time you hear folks talk about how tough it is to recruit at the military academies, ask how many other Patriot League schools can recruit kids who don't meet their academic standards and stash them at a prep school for a redshirt year of seasoning. While you are at it, also ask how many can bring in more than five freshmen every year.

Yes, there are unique challenges recruiting at both of the academies, but the field is not anywhere near as uneven as folks at Army and Navy want you to believe when they are having down years. Remember, Don Devoe didn't start complaining about those difficulties when his Navy teams were finishing in the top three in the standings eight years in a row -- a stretch that included three league titles.

Labels: ,

Published at 6:20 AM by Hoop Time.
Help Hoop Time