Lamar Hurd decided he wouldn’t attend Northwestern – and so did the NU coaching staff.
Hurd’s high school coach, Jerome Tang, said NU assistant Craig Robinson called him last week to rescind NU’s scholarship offer to the point guard from Cleveland, Texas.
According to Hurd, he had essentially eliminated NU from his options by that time.
“(NU) gave him a deadline and he couldn’t give them a decision by the deadline,” NU Director of Athletics Rick Taylor said. “They decided to go other places.”
But Hurd said he wasn’t aware of any deadline set by NU. The high school senior said he decided not to join the Wildcats at the beginning of last week, following his trip to Oregon State. Hurd said Robinson called him to say that NU head coach Bill Carmody was considering rescinding the scholarship offer.
“I didn’t want them waiting on me when I thought I wasn’t really going to go,” Hurd said. “So it didn’t affect me much.”
Tang said the decisions by Hurd and NU came at about the same time.
“The bottom line is that both (Hurd and NU) came to the conclusion that it was not the best fit,” said Tang, the coach at Heritage Christian Academy.
Hurd was initially offered a scholarship by Carmody within a week of their first meeting in the fall. But he held off on a decision, opting instead to make a scheduled visit to Houston.
As of Monday night, Hurd was contemplating offers by Houston and Oregon State. Houston, which was Hurd’s top choice in the fall, has recently re-entered the picture. Tang said a final decision should come within the next 48 hours.
“I think when I went on my visit to Oregon State, there were a couple of things that I didn’t see at Northwestern,” Hurd said. “I think both schools need me, but I feel Oregon State needs me more.”
Hurd averaged 9.7 points, 10.1 assists and 8.6 rebounds per game during his senior season, competing on a team that included six future Division I basketball players. He also averaged 1.6 turnovers per game.
Tang said NU recruit T.J. Parker, who is also a true point guard, figured into Hurd’s decision not to attend NU. Parker signed a letter of intent in the spring, well after Hurd was first offered a scholarship.
The graduation of three-year starting point guard Collier Drayton left a hole at the point guard slot. Parker could be the only true point guard on the Cats’ roster for the 2002 season.
“(The decision had) nothing to do with coaches or with players already on the team,” Tang said. “It was a basketball decision. (NU was) maybe not the place to go basketball-wise.
“It was a tough decision. Time will only tell if he made the right decision.”
