April 12, 2007
Columbia, Mo. - Head Coach Mike Anderson added size and versatility to his program on Wednesday when he announced that athletic forward Justin Safford (Bloomington, Ill. / Charis Prep) has signed a national letter of intent to play for the Tigers next season.
An improving post player who shot up the national recruiting rankings during his final season at Charis Prep in Goldsboro, N.C., Safford averaged 17.8 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.1 blocks for the Crimson Tide, while leading the team to a 36-8 overall record. The power forward also ranked among team-leaders with 57 three-pointers to earn a three-star national ranking from Rivals.com and earn high-major scholarship offers from Oklahoma and Providence, in addition to NCAA Tournament teams Winthrop, Virginia Tech and Xavier.
"We are certainly excited to bring in a young man of Justin's ability as well as character," Head Coach Mike Anderson said. "He's a guy that made great strides over the past year and that has made him a better player and a better student. We were able to be very selective in the recruiting process and with Justin, we found a young man that has the "want to" to improve and more importantly, the worth ethic to make it happen.
"Justin gives us size, athleticism and versatility and now you are seeing us add the types of players that fit our system and fit the direction that this program is headed," Anderson continued.
Prior to his one season at Charis Prep, Safford attended high school at Bloomington Central Catholic in Bloomington, Ill. A three-year starter for the Saints, Safford earned honorable mention Class A all-state recognition and was a first team All-Cornbelt Conference pick, averaging 15.2 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Safford missed most of his junior season due to a pinched nerve in his back, but still managed to earn honorable mention all-league consideration.
"It was well worth the wait to sign with Missouri," Justin Safford said. "Needless to say, I am excited to be a Missouri Tiger. It's a program I am familiar with and of course I watched the Braggin' Rights Game while growing up. Honestly, living in the state of Illinois, I grew up an Illinois fan, but after talking with my family, we know Coach Anderson has something special going on at Missouri and we are excited to be apart of it."
Safford will enter the 2007-08 season as a freshman for Anderson and the Tigers. He will be joined by fellow newcomer, DeMarre Carroll, who signed with Missouri last season, but sat out the 2006-07 campaign due to NCAA transfer guidelines. Like Safford, the 6-foot-8, 225-pound Carroll will give Missouri added size and versatility in the post. Prior to transferring from Vanderbilt, Carroll averaged 10.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game as a sophomore for the Commodores, but saw his statistical averages increase during SEC play to 12.1 points an a team-leading 7.4 rebounds. Carroll will be junior eligibility-wise for MU next season.
Quotes on Missouri's Signing of Justin Safford
Quoting Carlos Peralta, Head Coach Charis Prep in Goldsboro, N.C.
Can you speak about the improvement Justin Safford has made over the last few months:
"First of all, and I want it to be known, that Justin had a very good skill level when he arrived in North Carolina and that is a tribute to his coach at Bloomington Central Catholic, Jeff Wulbrun. The three main areas we focused on with Justin were tightening up his game, helping him recognize when to use and how to utilize his advanced skill set and the third area was improving his overall toughness. Not that Justin lacked physical toughness, it was teaching him how to play every play and play it at a level where you could make an impact each time down the floor. If I had to rank those three areas, his gains in that overall toughness category would rank near the top with regards to his improvement."
How difficult can that transition be for someone coming to a new school:
"A lot of kids come to us in a similar situation as Justin, but not all of them respond in a similar fashion. I attribute his response and subsequent improvement to him wanting to make the most out of this opportunity. Living in rural North Carolina is much different than living in Bloomington, Ill., and the people out here are different from the people in Illinois, but Justin made it a great situation at that speaks to his character. All the credit goes to Justin."
Quoting Dave Telep, Recruiting guru from Scout.com
Talk about Justin Safford's development over the past year:
"Justin was always a Division I player, but he went from being a mid-level player to a high-major player. Over the past year I believe Justin learned a great deal about himself. He worked hard in the classroom and I believe that contributed to the rapid strides he made on the basketball court. At the end of the day, and because of his improvement over the past year, I believe Justin is one of those players who will play his best basketball at the collegiate level.
Tell us about Safford's game:
"Justin is a player that can do a little bit of everything. He's a 4-man (power forward) that can face the basket. He's not grounded by any means. He can get out and run the floor and with his size (6-foot-8) the buzzword with Justin certainly is his versatility. That will allow him to be successful in Coach Anderson's system."
Quoting Justin Safford
What made choose the University of Missouri:
"It was actually the relationship I was able to develop with Coach Watkins and Coach Anderson. Before they even started the recruiting process with me, they made a point to speak with my AAU coaches, my high school coach, my mom and my dad out in California. It was a unique approach and one that I really appreciated. When I came in contact with them, I already had a great deal of information about their program and they knew about me, more as a person and not just as a basketball player."
Talk about your visit to Missouri in December:
"I made it to campus when Missouri played Southern and my mom and I arrived early, so we had a chance to drive around campus and see the town. I enjoyed it, of course when we got to Mizzou Arena, Coach Watkins showed us around and that facility stuck in the back of our minds. It was hard not to walk away impressed with everything we saw."