That was Chris Singletary

Posted on: October 30, 2018 at 08:54:45 CT

Singletary was in the class with Ty Morrison/Keaton Grant. None ended up showing up at MU with the coaching turnover, the only member that arrived was the 'package' part of the package deal to sign Ty Morrison, his JUCO teammate Vaidotos Volkus.

Here is a pretty good article on Singletary in terms of what became of him:

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-03-21/sports/ct-spt-0321-chris-singletary-illinois-ken20100320_1_kent-state-college-basketball-geno-ford

Chris Singletary made new name for himself at Kent State
Former Farragut player matured as a player and person after struggling with troubled past

At some point in the next two weeks, Chris Singletary will wear his Kent State basketball uniform for the last time.

It might be Monday, when the fourth-seeded Golden Flashes (24-9) take on top-seeded Illinois (20-14) in the second round of the NIT, or it might not be until April 1, after the championship game at Madison Square Garden.



But it will be an emotional moment for Singletary, a Chicago native and former Farragut High player. That's because through four tumultuous years, the school has stood by and supported Singletary in some of his most trying moments when other schools may have sent him packing.

"I go on ESPN.com everyday and see different situations where guys are getting into trouble and getting into situations on campus and off campus, being dismissed from their university," Singletary said in a phone interview Friday. "At Kent State, they stood by me through everything."

Singletary, a muscular, 6-foot-4 guard, endured childhood and teenage years fraught with personal problems such as friends and family members being killed. While at Farragut, he developed a reputation for being tough to manage, a stigma that made its way to Kent State.

"I think with his physical stature of being such a big, tough, imposing guy that everyone just expected him at 17 to have everything figured out," Kent State coach Geno Ford said."

It took a while for that to happen. He was charged with driving while intoxicated in 2008. Later that year he was arrested for a noise violation and resisting arrest. And he has had some problems on the court as well. He was suspended multiple times, including last season, when he punched an Akron player during a game.

"When Chris makes a mistake, he has been overly apologetic and wanted to genuinely learn from it," Ford said. "When you deal with other kids that screw up, they cop an attitude or those kinds of things. Those types of kids, they're usually written off."

But the coaching staff and the school saw the type of person he could become, someone who has tried to be a better father to his 5-year-old daughter, Makayla, and someone who has been an ambassador to his community. Eventually, Singletary saw that too.

"There must be a reason I'm still here," Singletary said. "I said, ‘You've got to straighten up. You have a daughter at home that you have to be able to provide for and you're not going to keep getting these opportunities and these second chances to be a college basketball player.'"

This year has been one of his best, both personally and professionally. Singletary will graduate in May with a degree in general studies. He averaged 12.1 ppg, was named to the All-Mid-American Conference first team and helped Kent State win the MAC regular-season title. In the process, he brought a lot of pride to the uniform on his back.

"You can't really do better than that on your way out the door," Ford said.