TAMPA ? University of South Florida men's basketball coach Stan Heath announced today that top prospect Gus Gilchrist has been granted a transfer release from the University of Maryland and signed a grant-in-aid to attend USF.
He originally signed with Virginia Tech in November 2006 but was granted a release from his National Letter of Intent. Gilchrist then enrolled at Maryland in January but the Atlantic Coast Conference ruled he would not be eligible until the completion of the fall 2008 semester and would lose a year of eligibility because of ACC intra-conference transfer rules.
"Current NCAA rules will require Gus to sit a year in residency before he can compete,” said Steve Horton, Associate Director of Athletics/Compliance. “However, Compliance will begin working on a waiver request to the NCAA asking that Gus, due to a number of extenuating circumstances, be permitted to play immediately this upcoming academic year. We hope to have this request to the NCAA for their review by next week."
The 6-10, 235-pound Gilchrist was ranked 52nd nationally by Rivals in the 2007 class and 55th by Scout. He was rated the ninth best center by Scout and the 14th best power forward by Rivals. He was named MVP of the 2007 Capital Classic after scoring 24 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Gilchrist attended Progressive Christian Academy (Md.) as a senior after spending his first three seasons at Friendly High School (Md.), where he was a teammate of current USF guard Chris Howard as a freshman. As a senior he averaged 24 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots per game. As a junior, Gilchrist averaged 16 points and 11 rebounds. He played for the D.C. Assault AAU program.
“I'm very excited about Gus's commitment to USF,” said Heath. “He has the potential to have a tremendous impact on our program. His versatility to play inside and out makes him a dual threat and a very difficult matchup. I am very confident in our compliance staff that they will work vigorously in helping Gus gain his immediate eligibility. This is a quality high character young man and one that our fans will be excited to cheer for.”
Gilchrist will join guard Gabriel Belardo, junior center Alejandro Rivas Sanchez, point guard Dwan McMillan, center/forward Eugene Teague Jr. and forward Eladio Espinosa as part of the incoming recruiting class. Junior guard Mike Mercer, a transfer from Georgia, will also become eligible in December at the end of the fall semester.
Gus Gilchrist, Forward/Center
High School: Progressive Christian Academy
Hometown: Clinton, Md.
6-10, 235
First name is Augustus... Spent senior season at Progressive Christian Academy in Camp Springs, Md.... Attended Friendly High School in Fort Washington, Md. for three years where he was a teammate of current USF guard Chris Howard as a freshman... Coached by Curtis Malone as a member of the D.C. Assault AAU program... Son of Augustus Sr. and Donna... Born October 15, 1989.
