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Zeke Marshall signs NCAA letter of intent with UA for 2009-10 season
By Tom Gaffney
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Thursday, Nov 13, 2008
The University of Akron men's basketball team made the most of the one scholarship it had available.
Literally and figuratively, Zeke Marshall was a big signing for the Zips when he returned his NCAA letter of intent Wednesday afternoon.
Marshall, 17, from McKeesport Area High School in western Pennsylvania, is big in size (7-foot), big in stature (one of the top centers in the nation) and big in importance (fills a definite need).
''We are extremely satisfied to get him. It's not very often you get a top-100 player at Akron,'' said UA associate head coach Jeff Boals, who was the point man in recruiting Marshall. ''When that player also is [a] big kid, that makes it better.
''He has gotten better and better, and has a great feel for the game. He can definitely be a difference-maker.''
Scout.com, a highly respected recruiting Web site, has Marshall rated as the 37th-best senior player and seventh-best senior center in the country.
''It's a huge boost for our program,'' UA coach Keith Dambrot said. ''You don't get a talent like that all the time. The key now is developing that talent.''
Boals first heard about Marshall when he was a sophomore at McKeesport Area. He saw him play soon afterward and liked his potential.
In his junior year, Marshall and his family made a series of unofficial visits to the UA campus. He had other offers but verbally committed to the Zips last spring.
''It's a good fit for me,'' said the 218-pound Marshall, who plans to major in computer science. ''It's a good campus, good coaches and good players.
''It fits everything I want to do. I wanted to go to a school that wasn't as well-known as others, and play well and do what I can to make the team better.''
Marshall averaged 10 points, 11 rebounds and nine blocked shots last season for a Mc
Keesport Area team that started four seniors, finished 20-4 and reached the quarterfinals of the Pennsylvania AAAA (highest classification) state tournament.
''He is very unselfish and very defensive-minded. Defense and rebounding, that's his thing,'' said Corey Gadson, the head coach at McKeesport Area. ''We didn't need him to score last year. We would like him to score more this year and we think he will, despite being a target.''
Marshall was not ranked among the nation's best players as a sophomore, partially because he didn't take up the game until he was 12.
He began moving up the recruiting lists steadily after his performances for the AAU Pittsburgh Storm and at various national camps.
In his junior year, UA and George Mason University moved into the picture and were his top two choices, he said.
Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech and Virginia came after him, too, but he did not waver after he verbally committed to the Zips.
''Akron is where I wanted to go,'' Marshall said.
Next season, he will join a Zips team that has plenty of young guards and forwards.
''The good thing is that, when he gets here, our young kids now will be experienced,'' Dambrot said.
Unless a player leaves the program, Marshall will be a one-man recruiting class for the Zips in the fall and spring signing periods.
More signings
Kent State added three players in the early signing period. Forward Greg Avila, guard Randal Holt and forward Robert Johnson.
Avila is 6-foot-6 and transferring from Harcum (Pa.) College; he will be a junior next season.
Holt and Johnson are both from Bedford, Ohio. Holt is ranked as the 32nd-best point guard prospect in the country. He is 6-foot-1 and plays at Glenville High. Johnson, who plays at Bedford High, is 6-foot-6 but has played more as a point forward, averaging five assists per game.
Lake High School announced that three athletes will continue their sports in college.
Girls basketball player Jordan Jenkins signed Wednesday with Tiffin University. Wrestlers Scott Mattingly and Zack Cline will sign letters of intent today to join the program at Central Michigan.
Tom Gaffney can be reached at tgaffney@thebeaconjournal.com.
The University of Akron men's basketball team made the most of the one scholarship it had available.
Get the full article here.
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