THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 8. 1979

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PAGE 17

Rick Harmon - To Play or Not to Play

By Bill Sherman Should Rick Harmon, the best basketbal) player in South Jersey last year, be sitting on the bench at Syracuse? Or should Rick, rated by one basketball expert as the Sth best guard in the United States, be playing alongside such players as Roosevelt Bouie, 6 foot, 11 inches tall without his “Afro,” a Junior, Dale Shackleford, 6 feet 6 inches, a senior, Louis Orr, 6 feet 8 inches, a junior, Eddie Moss, 6 feet 2, a sophomore, Marty Headd, 6 feet 2, and Hal Conengfeet, a junior? That is the question. And the answer lies with one man, Jim Boeheim, Basketball Coach at Syracuse. If this man had such an abundance of talented players coming back this year, why did he make Rick his number one choice in recruiting? Why did he personally make at least two trips to this area to see him and his family? Why did he lead Rick down the primrose path with promises to use him as a guard, because at 6 feet 4, he was no match for taller forwards? And Rick is not the purestshooter in the gamers forte is getting the ball off the boards, passing the ball through the packed zone defenses to an open teammate. He can block shots; he can play defense. So why is he now being used as a small forward? Is there a future for Rick at Syracuse? Not if y ou consider who is coming back next year. ( Will he gain valuable experience sitting on the bench? Will he replace Louis Orr, 6 feet 8 or Chris Jerebko, 6 feet - 6, as a forward? Or will he develop a deadly shot to replace sharp-shooting Hal Cohen and Marty Headd? It is difficult to predict. This observer agrees with an article written by Mike Candel in Eastern Basketball Magazine, entitled “Let’s Put the Blame Where it Belongs.” Big name stars recruited by basketball powers have the same complaints:

a) “I’m not getting enough playing time;” b) ‘Tm being forced to play out of my natural position;” c) “I dont like the style of play here;” d) \*‘The situation here is not what! expected;” e) 'Tm not getting a chance to show what I can do.” ' Sounds familiar doesn’t it? “Where were these young men last year when they were being recruited? Were they too busy playing to research any of the colleges they were considering” says Candel. “Did they assume that because they were high school stars the path to. college stardom would automatically be cleared? "Did they think that the returning players would simply lie down and give away their positions?” Then he mentions the case at Syracuse where Ed Gooding, Ricky Harmon and Ron Payton were unhappy just six weel« after the start of the season. Gooding has left Syracuse and enrolled at Iona in upstate New York. Ricky Harmon and Payton are back at Syracuse after missing the Cornell game and thinking things over. The author goes on to state “And if Ricky Harmon, an FB All-East High School selection last year insisted on being a guard, why did he select a school which had two talented sophs, Marty Headd and Eddie Moss and returning junior, Hal Cohen?” In a telephone interview with this reporter from the Hilton in Phila., where he was interrupted while eating breakfast, Rick didn’t appear to be too happy with the situation at Syracuse. Answers to questions about college life were "O.K.” His studies kept him “busy” and he ! devoted “2 hours a day” to basketball. Was he happy "most of the time.” As to the concept that a freshman has to spend a year on the bench this is nonsense. Rick has played in all-star

competition with the best high school players in the country at Pittsburgh in the Dapper Dan Gassic, at Philadelphia in the MacDonalds Classic and in the Catskills. If he is not ready to play college ball now he never will be. Howard McNeil from Glassboro is playing on the Seton Hall team as a freshman. And New York City players go down south to basketball factories like Duke, North Carolina, South Carolina, etc. and immediately get playing time. And the argument that Rick comes from a small high school and is competing against superior players from larger high schools is refuted by the case of McNeil and by the fact that Rick held his own in the all-star competition. All of which leads to one conclusion by this reporter. How serious is Ricks knee injury? Coach Boeheim says he lost six weeks of fall practice an^ then hurt it.again. News of his'lnjury

was never disseminated in this area. Is Coach Boeheim convinced that Rick Harmon has a doubtful future at Syracuse? Perhaps Rick should transfer to another college that could make use of his talent. Or is Rick determined to get a good college education and enter the field of law enforcement? And is Syracuse the only university where he can get that training? Only time will give us the answer. But Rick can rest assured that everyone in this area is rooting for him and hope he can successfully solve his problems.

El

MIDDLE GIRLS BASKETBALL After beating the Buena Giris 54-26, the Lady Panthers are now 14-2 and have been awarded thytop seed in the Group H South Jersey State Tournament and rank 6tH in South Jersey in the Press Poll. Kirk Gaines of Wildwood scored his only 2 points of the night in overtime with 12 seconds left to give Wildwood a 53-51 win over Middle Township High School in a heart-breaking loss for the Panthers. The Panthers ihad tied thygamc at 49-49 after being 8 points down in the 4th quarter. For Wfldwood, McNeal was ^ the game’s high scorer with 27, Ransom had 11 and Bakanowsky had 6 points. Watkins led the scorers for Middle .with 17, Jaudon had 14 and Thompson 10.

Rioky Harmon in action during his glory day* at Middle Township High School. V.\\ Y.Y.V.W V.V/.V.V.V.Y.Y.Y.. VAVWV\V.V\\\\UAV.*.V

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