Three’s a charm: Cody Larson commits to Gators

By Adam Silverstein
April 20, 2010

Florida Gators head coach Billy Donovan added more depth to his frontcourt Tuesday, earning a commitment from three-star power forward recruit Cody Larson (Sioux Falls, SD), according to the Argus Leader. Donovan visited Larson’s hometown Friday, and the former Iowa commit returned the favor by taking a two-day trip to Gainesville, FL, beginning Monday.

At 6’9″ and 225 lbs., Larson is the second forward and third recruit Donovan has signed for his 2010 class in as many days. He averaged 19.9 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists at Roosevelt High School and was also being pursued by Kansas, Arizona State and Indiana (among others). However, per Big Ten transfer rules, Larson was prevented from receiving a scholarship offer from a conference team without an appeal.

He decided to seek a release from his commitment to the Hawkeyes after Iowa fired head coach Todd Lickliter and replaced him with Fran McCaffrey, formerly of Siena. The coveted student-athlete was reportedly suspended for the conclusion of his senior season, though the school did not make details public.

Larson is the second recruit Donovan has pulled out of South Dakota during his tenure as Florida’s coach (Mike Miller, 1998-2000). He may not even be the last high schooler on Donovan’s list this year.

The Gators’ coach is still reportedly pursuing two 2011 point guards who appear willing and able to graduate early in order to commit as a part of the team’s 2010 class. Either Matt Carlino (Bloomington, IN) or Scottie Wilbekin (Gainesville, FL) could potentially be Florida’s fifth 2010 commitment.

Whoever chooses to sign would join Larson, four-star forwards Patric Young (Jacksonville, FL) and Casey Prather (Jackson, TN), three-star Will Yeguete (Melbourne, FL) and Rutgers transfer guard Mike Rosario (Jersey City, NJ), though Rosario will not be eligible to play until 2011-12.

In order to sign five recruits to scholarships, further changes are likely abound inside the Florida program. Sophomore guard Ray Shipman has already decided to transfer, many believe freshman point guard Rod Tishman may return to Israel, redshirt sophomore forward Adam Allen could retire and junior forward Alex Tyus has submitted his name for evaluation for the 2010 NBA Draft. Florida would need either Tishman, Allen or Tyus to leave the program or else it would exceed its allotment of 13 scholarships.

Photo Credit: Des Moines Register

5 Comments

  1. Malikg says:

    Love the 4 assists a game the kid averaged from the forward position…

  2. G8R8U2 says:

    I like the pickup, and he’s actually only a 3* on Rivals (quite possibly the worst basketball recruiting site in existence). He’s a 4* player on Scout, and grades out at 92 on ESPN, which puts him just outside the Top 100 players on both sites. He was also all set to transfer to Ohio State after getting out of his LOI at Iowa when their coach was fired; but Big 10 rules prohibit players from moving on directly to another member school. So their loss is our gain… if tOSU was ready to snap him up, he can obviously play some ball.

  3. g8ter27 says:

    Well I said it the other day but this article just reminded me again…..Tyus…NBA….really? Did he announce that on April 1st?

  4. Tman28 says:

    Worst team player I have ever played (played two years with him at SF Roosevelt). Quick to throw teamates under the bus, accepts no responsibility, and absolutely no leadership. This kid is very immature has evidenced by being suspended by the school (selling prescription drugs) amidst a state tournament push and has a long way to go despite his God-given talent.

Leave a Reply to Adam Silverstein Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Top
WordPress Appliance - Powered by TurnKey Linux