ORMA announces basketball signings for next Thursday November 11(Lawson, Neal, Jones and Parker)

from the Basketball staff at Oak Ridge Military Academy:

We are proud to announce that three Oak Ridge Military Academy boys basketball players (Chris Jones, Jacob Lawson and Michael Neal) and one girls basketball player (Jasmine Parker) will be making their verbal commitments official by signing their National Letter of Intent on Thursday, November 11th at 3:30 PM in Bonner Fieldhouse on the campus of Oak Ridge Military Academy.

Chris Jones will be signing with the University of Tennessee, Jacob Lawson with
Purdue University, Michael Neal with Appalachian State University and Jasmine
Parker with the University of Maryland at Eastern Shore.

The players and their parents will be in attendance to sign their Letters and
then be available for comment afterwards.

In addition to the signings, you will also be afforded the opportunity at a
sneak preview of the ongoing Bonner Fieldhouse make-over. New scoreboards,
glass backboards and new bleachers are being installed in addition to a new
heating/air system as Oak Ridge Military continues to enhance its facilities and
the educational experience that we offer all cadets.

We look forward to you joining us on this special day for our student athletes.

24 thoughts on “ORMA announces basketball signings for next Thursday November 11(Lawson, Neal, Jones and Parker)

  1. And the beat goes on, and the beat goes on. come see the signings in the “house that coach johnson built”.

  2. Congrats on the BBall signings. However I keep hearing about the advancements that are being made at ORMA. the only problem is all the enhancements and so called advanceents are tied to the Athletic Dept. Don’t get me wrong I love sports as well but what is being done to provide a better education for the cadets and promote the military experience. I hear if anything the military experience is taking a back seat and a step backwards. by this I mean changing the rules about uniforms and haircuts for the althelets that are being brought in. How is this promoting the deep military roots ORMA was founded on.

  3. thats funny dale when stan was at northern you wasnt saying johnson built northern stop hating on that man just cause he got connections and he look out for his kids, he might not be the best coach but he for sure one of the most accomplished

  4. ORMA has done an excellent job changing with the times in an attempt to preserve its history. There are no schools that can go 100 years and never change its approach. If that were the case, then UNCG would still be for woman only – UNC Chapel would still be for whites only (thus, no MJ’s or Harrison Barnes from the sports angle). The world is different today. While the military is without a doubt one of our countries greatest resources and assets, it is not the 1st choice for enough kids that a school like OMRA can solely rely upon it to stay financially sound. The mixture of military, education and sports is an outstanding set of standards. They all require a high level of personal commitment and a dependence on others to achieve success.

    Great job to the young lady and gentleman on Thursday with their college choices. I hope they reach high levels of achievement with their school choices because that will bring a lot of positive attention to all of the area kids, Oak Ridge and the surrounding Greensboro/Guilford Co area.

  5. My question is this. How can you go from not even being able to pay your teachers and or utilities, etc, to having everything under the sun? aRE THEY SACRIFICING THEIR HERITAGE JUST FOR SPORTS?

  6. Wes, if it wasn’t for someone stepping in (Stan), then ORMA would have empty buildings right now. Appreciate what has been done to try and turn things around and stop hating. What have you done to help at any school?

  7. Stan stepped in because he would be able to coach there. He has helped the school get back on its feet, but he wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t get something in return. That is the way the world works. ORMA is attempting to become the Oak Hill of North Carolina. Let’s just hope that they help these kids academically as much as they help athletically. ORMA has the structure in place to help these kids excel academically, but I just wonder if this is being utilized to the fullest.

  8. My only problem with ORMA is its use of 5th year players. To me if you have to go to high school for a 5th year, then you need to concentrate on hitting the books, not sports. Other than that I can not see anything wrong with what ORMA does, except the level of competition. But you can only play who is scheduled!

  9. Look at ORMA you have street coaches nothing more, they have been kicked out of so many counties for coaching as well as UNC @ Chapel Hill. Coach K is a man with good money and will take his ball and go home if he does not get his way. Greensboro high schools get ready because if you have any really good athletes they are going to end up at ORMA. Like Scarface once said this place is like a big me** waiting to get stomp^^…..

  10. SG Supporter, are you talking about re-classing? What players are you referring to being 5th year Seniors? ORMA basketball team have players that re-classed just like GDS, Westchester, HPCA and HP Wes. If that is your only problem then you have no problem with ORMA.

  11. Post from Prime Innovation and this would not go through for him earlier this morning:

    #1 – ORMA and GDS both use 5th year players so let’s not make it seem like
    ORMA is doing something that other private schools are not doing. GDS has
    been using 5th year players for as long as I have been aware of their
    program.

    #2 – The reason that people go after ORMA is because of Stan and the fact
    that the school is attracting a lot of the best boy and girl players
    throughout the county. This school is actually attracting a lot of high
    level players from around the world. You do not hear people attacking
    Delaney Rudd with all of the new girls that he has brought to the school.
    That is because people do not have the same pended up anger with Delaney
    that they have with Stan or other coaches.

    #3 – This school has a clear record of success with its graduates in the
    military and their schools of choice. The school will more than prepare
    their students from an education stand point. The culture will obviously
    evolve slightly but there are other examples of high school locations thru
    the country with similar structures (military, education, & sports)

  12. Very well said, Tom! I was gonna put it in a way of “Hey Guys, Look at me, I have all this money and desperately want to be accepted by the basketball community”! “And I got the boot cause I got caught by GCS for doing something unethical so now I have to go to a private school!” But you put it in a less judgmental and sarcastic tone! Lol!

  13. CONGRATS to all the kids in the county who will have that chance to sign with a school next week! If your hating on coaches for helping get kids a free education….Well HS sports aren’t for you! Keep up the good work players and coaches!!!!

  14. Andy, make sure you have your facts right. I know you aren’t a basketball guy, just a local sports guy in general, so let me help you out.

    Using the term “5th year” player is very dangerous by basketball standards. There are several types of ‘fifth year players’ but two primary examples when addressing athletic requirements.

    The first example is a student-athlete who has reclassified (a ‘nice’ way to say repeated a grade) without having graduated high school. Some of the excuses you’ll hear for taking this route include a player being young for his grade, wanting to improve grades/understanding of course material, or simply wanting to be recruited in general or recruited at a higher level. Sadly, this is usually caused by ambitious parents who live their unfulfilled list of sports accomplishments through their children, and the kids simply go along with the move (thinking that their parent has their best interest in mind).

    There are also post-graduate students (similar to the program that Hargrave Military has, not Oak Ridge or Oak Hill, VA, or Greensboro Day). Post-graduate programs allow high school graduates to take additional electives and allow for 3 replacements of core credits (as designated by the NCAA).

    The reason programs like Laurinburg Institute (transcripts no longer accepted by NCAA), Mt. Zion, and soon-to-be programs like Quality Education, Brittain Academy, Body Of Christ, etc. stay in trouble with the NCAA and constantly fail to qualify student-athletes is because they do not have curriculum nor the instructors to properly educate these kids.

  15. Maybe then it is a problem I have with all Private schools that use 5th year players. Now I am sure that some are re-classified for good reason. But when you put sports into the mix it makes you wonder if that sport did not have anything to do with that kid doing a 5th year. If it were strictly for academics then the kid could go to a school that has no sport and concentrate. But the rules dictate that they are able to do such. My only thing is if the coach got in trouble at Northern, what makes you think now that he has more freedom and power he isn’t flexing it? I like the guy, but it seems like for a lot of these guys sports are more important than academics, and that is sad.

  16. On this board we have a classic case of old school versus new school.

    In the old school corner are the supporters of Greensboro Day School who feel their institution provides a better combination of academics and sports than anywhere else, period. This arrogant bunch refuses to acknowledge that they have been robbing area public schools of athletes (mainly basketball players) since the 1980s. Lowering academic standards to accept athletes, while providing little support with regard to admissions for struggling students who are not athletically-inclined is a staple of this school. So for GDS supporters to act as if they place a higher emphasis on education is false, they simply have more resources than any other school (sorry Stan K, your income/IRA doesn’t compare to the majority of these families).

    Equally as guilty in the new school corner are the Northern Guilford exiles now moonlighting as Oak Ridge Military Cadets. Just as GDS supporters are loyal to a fault for Freddy ‘The Legend’ Johnson, the Oak Ridge crowd thinks Stan K can do no wrong. Denying that the basketball state title shouldn’t have been stripped is like pretending you didn’t see a particular starting forward’s father sweeping the floors each day for an inflated salary. Now out at Oak Ridge and free of any type of regulating body, these overzealous parents live through their children in the form of their own local powerhouse hoops team. Don’t fool yourself and think Oak Ridge is already at the national level.

    BUT, the potential is there for Oak Ridge to emerge as a national power. Blame the lack of intelligence and overzealous parents again. How ironic that the ‘high-lifers’ over at GDS are so obviously jealous of this. Meanwhile schools like Wesleyan, Forsyth Country Day, Caldwell, High Point Christian, and others just try to keep up with the Jones’ and use these ridiculous examples of leadership (Oak Ridge and GDS) to build their school profiles after. Damn, should’ve just left the kids in public school after all.

    Now you all can go ahead and run me off the board, because this will be my last post anyway. I prefer http://www.sportscarolinadaily.com/ to this mess of a website any day. How many people will read this before Andy deletes my post?

  17. I know I am older, but I do remember that there is no way I wanted to spend one more second in high school. Kids are being reclassified so that they can get one extra year in order to develop athletically. There are others doing it so they can qualify academically in order to play sports on the collegiate level. If these kids were not athletes, they would be graduating in the normal amount of time. I agree that this is normally caused by over ambitious parents. I don’t think the majority of kids want to spend an additional year in high school.

  18. What audacity you have to come on this web-site and bash Andy…if you don’t like the website don’t post…..PERIOD….

    Good riddens and Gods speed…see ya

  19. Hey, good times are being had by all and people love to come on here and talk…We have given them a good outlet and as long as we don’t have any bombs going off we will be OK…

    As far as the hoops goes, I have been out there working on that shot four nights this week, time to switch back over to football for a few days now….I’m going to have to ask that old basketball in the back of my car if I’m still a hoops guy…He seems to sucking in his gut/air with this cold weather coming on…

    Time spent out there….Tough to put a handle on it…..

  20. GDS requires some transfers to repeat a grade because they are not ready for the academic rigor of the school. They do this with many non-athlete transfers, as well.

  21. Dan L,

    1 – Oak Ridge is a different model than Wesleyan, Westchester, GDS, Caldwell, HP Christian, FCDS, Calvary Baptist. Oak Ridge is not a sanctioned private school. Regardless if they choose the unsanctioned private route or the military route it is a different model. Oak Ridge provides a much needed niche and so do each of the other schools. The Guilford County public schools provide another needed niche. In today’s world, everyone wants options.

    2 – You posted a negative comment towards Andy that was not necessary, had no basis, and from left field.

  22. Dan L, I can’t blame you for deciding not to come back to the website — if I posted a rant as long as yours that was filled with as many factual errors as yours, I’d be embarrassed too and would be afraid to face the other posters. Good call on not coming back.

    GDS probably does offer a better combination of academics and sports than any school in Greensboro. They had nearly 60 AP Scholars this year, which is about 30-40% of the eligible juniors and seniors at the school. Their college placement is extremely strong. They have represented Youth Leadership Greensboro at a level far higher than their respective percentage of total high school students in the Greensboro area. And, as we know on this site, their sports teams are pretty strong. They also have some ridiculously high participation percentage in sports in the Upper School — something like 80-90% of the student body plays on at least one JV or Varsity sports team each school year. So there is certainly a strong athletics culture.

    Not sure where you get the “lowered standard” for athletes claim from, especially vis-a-vis (your other unfounded claim) of not helping other struggling students. What do you mean by “struggling”, anyway? Financially struggling? You’d have to be privy to some extremely confidential information to make a statement like that. So let’s just call this one like it is and say your full of it on this particular argument.

    “So for GDS supporters to act as if they place a higher emphasis on education is false…” Do you really want to go there? Once again, another clear example that you have no idea about that which you post. Not even worth the time to comment, other than to give you this link so you can inform yourself: http://www.greensboroday.org/page.cfm?p=477

    But you’re probably too lazy to read it.

  23. Who really cares, I hope all schools do well both athletically and academically, play your best and be your best and quit worrying about everybody else. That is whats wrong with the world nowadays, everyone into others business and not taking care of there own.

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