Eighth grader commits to USC

[Dos Equis]

This is nuts.  There ought to be a law . . .

Eighth grader commits to USC  
Jeff Goodman
FOXSports.com, Updated 39 minutes ago   STORY TOOLS:                         

For the second straight year, USC basketball coach Tim Floyd has received a verbal commitment from an eighth-grader.

Ryan Boatwright, a speedy 5-foot-10, 145-pound rising freshman point guard from Illinois who has yet to make a decision on where he's headed for high school (he's choosing between East Aurora High and West Aurora High), accepted Floyd's scholarship offer while at USC's camp this past weekend.

"They were the first one to show interest in Ryan," said Boatwright's father, Mike. "A lot of people have said Ryan isn't that good, but he went to USC's camp and played well."

Boatwright played well enough that Floyd put forth a scholarship offer on the final day of camp. DePaul, Indiana and a few smaller schools had expressed interest, but USC was the first to step up with an offer.

"It shocked me," Mike Boatwright said of the offer. "But Ryan loved it there and he decided on his own."

"The campus is gorgeous," he added. "It's a private school and both myself and his mom were impressed with the academic standards at USC. That's really what got us."

A year ago, Floyd and the Trojans staff stayed local and got a verbal pledge from then-14-year-old Dwayne Polee Jr., a 6-foot-6 forward who had yet to play his first high school game at Westchester High (Calif.).

Mike Boatwright said the biggest concern surrounding his 14-year-old son's decision is the potential local reaction.

"I'm tremendously concerned," he admitted. "It could get ugly as far as kids getting jealous. I also don't want it to get to his head. I want him to stay humble."

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/6938958?MSNHPHCP&GT1=10136

[Parker]

 5'10 145, dude needs to eat. And it will turn out that he will sit on the bench, because I doubt his developmental  and decision making skills have not matured yet. It is sad, they will f this boy in the head like this, hype has gotten to USC, and hype will bring them down.

[Dos Equis]

5'10 145, dude needs to eat. And it will turn out that he will sit on the bench, because I doubt his developmental  and decision making skills have not matured yet. It is sad, they will f this boy in the head like this, hype has gotten to USC, and hype will bring them down.

He's 14.  If he's going to play the point in college he only needs to add 5 to 10 pounds a year, which should be a piece of cake over the next four years. 

But recruiting 8th graders is just crazy. 

[jerseyhurricane]

I'm surprised NBA teams haven't gone after him...that's how bad that league has gotten.

[Parker]

Mentally he's not ready for college. that means he has to take college courses, and deal with adult situations at 13-14 years old. And it 's not like he is a genius, so he can at least do some classes.

I think the parents need to be slapped, because in a sense it is child abuse, but they only see the dollars that he might get if he goes into the NBA, which by the time he gets there, might be a totallly diff league, like back to the 90's version.

[Dos Equis]

Mentally he's not ready for college. that means he has to take college courses, and deal with adult situations at 13-14 years old. And it 's not like he is a genius, so he can at least do some classes.

I think the parents need to be slapped, because in a sense it is child abuse, but they only see the dollars that he might get if he goes into the NBA, which by the time he gets there, might be a totallly diff league, like back to the 90's version.

Parker you might be thinking he is going straight to USC?  He still has to finish four years of high school. 

[Tre]

But recruiting 8th graders is just crazy. 

It has to stop.

But everyone is so scared of the NCAA.

Thank god I'm not. 

[Parker]

Parker you might be thinking he is going straight to USC?  He still has to finish four years of high school. 

Damn, I forgot to read, I was thinking that....Good thing