Matthew Murrell and his mom fell in love with Ole Miss
When Matthew Murrell committed to Ole Miss early Saturday afternoon, it was a shock by a lot of people in his presence when he made his announcement. The 6-foot-4 guard chose the Rebels over Florida, Auburn, Texas and Vanderbilt. Many…
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Continue ReadingWhen Matthew Murrell committed to Ole Miss early Saturday afternoon, it was a shock by a lot of people in his presence when he made his announcement.
The 6-foot-4 guard chose the Rebels over Florida, Auburn, Texas and Vanderbilt. Many who have followed Murrell throughout his high school basketball career thought he was heading to Nashville to play for the Commodores since his former high school basketball coach Faragi Phillips is now an assistant coach under first-year head coach Jerry Stackhouse.
But his mom, Gladys Robinson, wasn’t shocked at all as her and her son fell in love with Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis, his staff and the campus.
Murrell is the Rebels’ first commitment in the 2020 class and Davis’ second four-star prospect at the school – the other being Austin Crowley out of Sunrise Christian in the 2019 class.
“Kermit Davis is an excellent coach. We have looked at the team for the past two years he’s been there, looked at the existing team now and the team that will be there in 2020, they have a really, really good core,” Robinson said.
“Matthew just felt good. He felt like he was at home. He felt like he would go in and impact the team, make an immediate impact.”
Robinson didn’t interfere with her son’s college decision. She gave him the proper space to consider every option on the table.
“So, of course, Matthew is a free thinker. He’s pretty intelligent,” Robinson said. “We have always said that we would allow him to make his own decision. You can’t go wrong with the SEC.
“He felt like Kermit would help him develop further and get him in a better position where he can eventually get into the league, along the way help him win a championship.”
Murrell, now at IMG Academy, improved on his outside shooting during his junior season at Whitehaven High School. He was already athletic and could jump out of the gym, but to play in a power five conference, Murrell knew he had to improve his offensive game.
Midway through last season, Phillips allowed Murrell to play point guard because he felt the Memphis native would play that position in college.
I asked Murrell, who averaged 21.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.6 steals per game last season, about the feeling of playing in a conference where there are talented guards at every program. His response: “That just means I have to work every day to make sure I will be able to compete.”
Robinson is happy that her son is close to home and has plans to travel to Oxford, Mississippi to see her son play.
“I’m going to make every home game,” Robinson said. “I will do some traveling, depending on the weather conditions.”