SFA Signs Harrison Smith
6/26/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
June 26, 2009
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Stephen F. Austin basketball head coach Danny Kaspar completed his 2009 recruiting class earlier this week with the addition of transfer guard Harrison Smith. Smith, who has played the last three years at Texas, is set to join the Lumberjacks this fall and will gain eligibility for the 2010-11 season after sitting out a year to fulfill NCAA transfer requirements.
"Harrison was a very highly talented and hotly recruited player out of high school," Kaspar said. "He has excellent offensive skills, and I'm sure he has learned a great deal in three years playing for Coach Rick Barnes."
Smith is a 6-2, 195-pound guard from Houston. The Jones High School product was listed as the nation's No. 96 prospect by Rivals.com following his prep career and earned all-state and All-Greater Houston honors as a senior.
In three seasons with the Longhorns, Smith saw action in 34 games, averaging just over five minutes per contest. He averaged 1.9 points and 1.6 rebounds per game in 7.2 minutes per appearance last season. During his junior campaign, Smith scored a career-high 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting -- including a career-best 2-for-3 from 3-point range -- at Oklahoma State.
During his three years on the squad, Texas finished among the Big 12's top three teams twice, including a championship run in 2007-08. The Longhorns reached the NCAA Championships all three seasons, playing in eight tournament games total, including a trip to the Elite Eight in 2008. Smith was named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll in Spring 2008.
"We obviously think a lot of Harrison's ability to bring him in for one year of eligibility," Kaspar said. "I am confident he has the basketball skills, athleticism and personality that we are looking for."
Smith's parents are both accomplished former athletes. His father, Doug, played college football at Auburn and later spent eight seasons as a defensive tackle with the Houston Oilers. His mother, the former Becky Jackson, played basketball at Auburn, where she was an All-American and holds the school's records for both career scoring and rebounding.
Smith marks the eighth player added to SFA's 2009 signing class, tying the 2007 class for the largest brought in during Kaspar's tenure. He joins prep recruits Cory Garrett (Center, Texas) and Will Reinke (Lawton, Okla.), along with collegiate transfers Jordan Glynn (Waco, Texas, by way of McLennan Community College), Mark Gomillia (Atlanta, Ga., by way of Neosho County Community College), Lionell Holmes (Oswego, Ill., by way of Antelope Valley College), Orren Tims (Ruston, La., by way of McLennan Community College), and Denzel Barnes (Oakland, Calif., by way of Howard College) in the 2009 class.
-- SFA --
