Christopher Obekpa - PF - Our Savior New American - Centereach, NY - ST. JOHN'S

Guy's I have posted only twice before and that was about the players in the 2011 class not getting cleared and we all know how that played out. As Fordham said, it has more to do with OSNA but if things don't turn out right, it will affect the players. Hopefully things will all get cleared up soon but I put up the post to keep us in the loop. Unfortunately I can't be too specific about the details due to regulations until someone else or the the news breaks out the story. I will do my best to keep you guys informed about the outcome.

The school is aware of the issue, OSNA has been on an NCAA watch list for awhile.  I believe QEA is on that list and it took Sir'Dom Pointer a little while to clear but it happened.

Staff is not overly concerned I was told as both Felix and Chris are enrolled and participating in off season workouts.  But it is worth noting and worth keeping in mind until it is finally resolved. 

Quote from: SuperStarOneO5 on July 14, 2012, 01:16:08 PM

Guy's I have posted only twice before and that was about the players in the 2011 class not getting cleared and we all know how that played out. As Fordham said, it has more to do with OSNA but if things don't turn out right, it will affect the players. Hopefully things will all get cleared up soon but I put up the post to keep us in the loop. Unfortunately I can't be too specific about the details due to regulations until someone else or the the news breaks out the story. I will do my best to keep you guys informed about the outcome.

The school is aware of the issue, OSNA has been on an NCAA watch list for awhile.  I believe QEA is on that list and it took Sir'Dom Pointer a little while to clear but it happened.

Staff is not overly concerned I was told as both Felix and Chris are enrolled and participating in off season workouts.  But it is worth noting and worth keeping in mind until it is finally resolved. 

Thanks Fordham

Isnt there some problem if a student enrolls at a university and he doesnt qualify?

See Derwin Kitchin

I hope this is much ado about nothing.  From what I can gather from the www and from its own website, OSNAS looks like a fine Christian school and its academic rigor and graduation expectations are all clearly set out, which more than meet the standards for NY state.  The SJU admissions office obviously knows the quality of local schools.  The NCAA clearinghouse has its minimum standards, all of which would be met for a student who graduates from OSNAS.  Why OSNAS is allegedly on a "watch list" is beyond me.

These student-athletes have, to my knowledge (from what I have gathered here) already started their educations at SJU in the summer session.  They have been admitted as SJU students, separate from basketball.  I suppose in a worst case scenerio, if the NCAA watchdog folks don't think OSNAS is legit (which could result in a potential lawsuit, since this is a real school with real supporters and not some diploma mill in a basement), it would mean some court eligibility issues and that the student-athletes need to take out student loans.  That would suck.

Why isn't there a system in place where coaches can find out if there are any potential problems with a school? prior to  the start of the recruiting process. I mean this kid has been on a D1 program radar for well over a year and the summer before the season starts now the ncaa wants to check it out. Once again the ncaa has no clue!

Maybe kids should go to real schools and not these basketball academies.

Maybe kids should go to real schools and not these basketball academies.

OSNA isn't a basketball academy.

The staff has no power to say or do anything, it has to do with the NCAA and the members on the SJU NCAA board of athletics who are given the information pertaining to the student athletes/school in question. The staff just gets the final results. It's the NCAA who has he power and the members on the SJU board of athletics who make the decisions. Trust me as of now this is a legimate concern.

Not a basketball academy, but I definitely never got the impression that it's even an average school.

The staff has no power to say or do anything, it has to do with the NCAA and the members on the SJU NCAA board of athletics who are given the information pertaining to the student athletes/school in question. The staff just gets the final results. It's the NCAA who has he power and the members on the SJU board of athletics who make the decisions. Trust me as of now this is a legimate concern.

That is not what I said.  That would not even make any sense anyway.  The staff cannot change a kid's transcripts or the school anyway so how would the power ever be in the staff's hands.

What I meant was that OSNA was on the NCAA watch list prior to Cincy or SJU or anyone else recruiting Chris or Felix.  The staff and other schools knew this and pursued his recruitment anyway.

Not a basketball academy, but I definitely never got the impression that it's even an average school.

It is a traditional school in every way except for the foreign kids playing basketball.

why wasnt penn state on the almighty ncaa watchlist......pathetic

PSU should get the death penalty if the ncaa had a set. But somehow St John's can't get an answer re: Chandler and now Chris and Felix..... complete joke

Quote from: gman on July 14, 2012, 07:01:13 PM

Maybe kids should go to real schools and not these basketball academies.

OSNA isn't a basketball academy.

I looked at their site and it does look like a legit school, but growing up on LI I never heard of it.  If it was St. Marys, LuHi, Chaminade, etc this wouldn't be an issue.  Probably the same thing with QEA.  Living in Charlotte I never heard of it until they started pumping out basketball player, never heard of a classmate of mine from Charlotte that went there.

I'm trying to figure out what issue the NCAA has with the school at this point?  What mysteriously happens all of a sudden in July, where a school that has been operating for 20 years an has had no issues, all of a sudden is a problem?  The NCAA is out of control.  They really should worry a little bit more about programs like the ones in the SEC where money flows like a river to the kids.  This stuff is making me nuts. I really thought we could make it one season without an issue.

I hope the worst case scenario is they go the Amir route. But I really hope this gets worked out in time for Sept.

I'm trying to figure out what issue the NCAA has with the school at this point?  What mysteriously happens all of a sudden in July, where a school that has been operating for 20 years an has had no issues, all of a sudden is a problem?  The NCAA is out of control.  They really should worry a little bit more about programs like the ones in the SEC where money flows like a river to the kids.  This stuff is making me nuts. I really thought we could make it one season without an issue.

I don't think this is an all of a sudden thing.   OSNA has been under watch it sounds like for awhile.   If you goto the NCAA's website, you can plugin a school and see what courses the NCAA accepts from that school.   If you lookup Our Savior it says:

"Additional Information:

This program is under an extended evaluation period to determine if it meets the academic requirements for NCAA cleared status. During this evaluation period, the courses listed below may be subject to further review on a case-by-case basis, which will require additional academic documentation. "

https://web1.ncaa.org/hsportal/exec/hsAction?hsActionSubmit=searchHighSchool


So it sounds like OSNA has been under watch for awhile.   The coaches definitely knew this when they recruited Chris and Felix.

There were rumblings (could have been fans making excuses) that teams like Cincy backed off on him.  Maybe this is why he was still around so late. 

There were rumblings (could have been fans making excuses) that teams like Cincy backed off on him.  Maybe this is why he was still around so late. 

Cincy never backed off him.