Rodney Pryor Set To Transfer
Robert Morris star and soon to be graduate, Rodney Pryor, will in fact, be playing another season of college basketball.
Pryor is set to transfer and has drawn interest from big time schools, including: Florida, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Minnesota, Mississippi, Georgia and Oregon (first reported by Evan Daniels of scout.com). Pryor told me he has three official visits lined up in April. He will be visiting Georgetown (April 9), Florida (April 18) and Gonzaga (April 21).
There has been some confusion regarding Pryor's eligibility, but Pryor confidently told me that he will receive his final year of eligibility.
Reflecting back on his past, Rodney has seen some dark times. He had two significant injuries that made him question if he would ever be able to return to playing at a high level of basketball. Fast forward a couple of years, and Pryor has an NEC POY award and an NEC championship under his belt.
"Man it is a blessing! I just want to give God the glory first. Without him, none of this would be possible. After my second injury, I hit a low point, but through prayer and family and friends giving me confidence to come back better, I believed in myself to get back and compete," Pryor said.
While playing DI basketball has always been his dream, Pryor himself, legitimately questioned if that was possible.
"The goal was always to compete for a championship anywhere, but following through after all this is a blessing. Then to play well enough and have an opportunity to play in a power 5 conference is a blessing too because that's what you dream about as a kid," Rodney added.
Pryor is a gifted athlete who has carried the Colonials since he's been here. Any fan of Robert Morris who has any ill will towards Pryor is fooling themselves because what he did for this University can't even be put into words. The excitement that he brought to this campus was similar to what Karvel Anderson brought; and that's saying a lot. He deserves the chance to be seen on the big stage. Every Colonial fan should be thankful and appreciative for what he's done.
"I am very thankful for all of the opportunities I've had," Rodney said.
When asked what he will bring to whatever program he ends up going to, Pryor had this to say:
"I will bring leadership experience, toughness, scoring ability and that edge and competitiveness that a team needs to win games and go deep in the tournament."
Many have questioned Rodney's decision to play another year of college basketball, but in his mind, he made the right choice. His goal is still to play in the NBA and what better way to get that kind of exposure than playing in a big time conference?
"The NBA is still the goal and that is the reason why I did the extra year," Pryor said. "So I can be seen on the big stage and be measured better by NBA guys," he added.
With that being said, Rodney will forever be grateful to coach Andy Toole and Robert Morris University.
"Toole blessed me with the opportunity to play division one basketball. Being here helped me grow mentally because of the daily challenges I faced. Toole challenged me during my two years, which helped me have the success that I've had. I am just blessed and thankful they took a chance on me," Rodney stated.
As we all know, many players have transferred out of the Robert Morris basketball program. However, this one is different. Pryor is thankful and very appreciative for everything that has happened during his two years in Moon Township.
Here's Rodney Pryor's final message to Robert Morris University and RMCMB fans:
"If I had one thing to say, it is thank you for being a chapter in my life that helped me grow as a man and a player. The ups and downs are important because that helped teach me how to handle different situations. God put me on this journey for a reason and one thing I can take away is being humble because we didn't have the greatest thing, so it taught me to be appreciative for everything and to not take anything for granted. Moving forward, I believe that will help me stay grounded with the success I plan to have by the grace of God. Thank you, Robert Morris."
No Rodney, thank you.
Once a Colonial, always a Colonial.