April 16, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA., April 16, 2008 - Penn State basketball coach Ed DeChellis received National Letters of Intent from a pair of 6-5 shooting guards on the first day of the late signing period Wednesday, as Chris Babb (Arlington, Texas) and Cammeron Woodyard (Westminster, Md.) officially joined the Nittany Lions' class of 2008.
Babb and Woodyard join 6-8 forward Billy Oliver (Chatham, N.J.) and 6-10 Villanova transfer Andrew Ott (Abington, Pa.), who will have sophomore eligibility beginning in the second semester of next season, to bring the Nittany Lions' class of 2008 to four with one scholarship remaining.
"Both Chris and Cammeron had outstanding senior seasons at their respective high schools and bring terrific size and athleticism to our roster of perimeter players," DeChellis said. "They are both skilled shooters and ball handlers and young men whose attitudes and desire to work hard and win fit perfectly in our program."
Babb (6-5, 215 pounds) helped lead The Oakridge School in Arlington, Texas to a 30-6 record and a district championship with an 8-0, district mark. He posted 31.2 points, eight rebounds and seven assists per game totaling a school record 1,125 points on the season and making 73 three-pointers (2.0 per game).
"Chris is really a great shooter and a very strong two guard," DeChellis said. "He has very deep range and gets the ball off very quickly. He comes from a terrific family and will fit in very nicely with our team."
Babb, who scored more than 40 points in eight games including a school record 51-point outing, was named to the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches All-State team for large private schools and was named to the TABC 4A & 5A All-Star Team. Oakridge plays in a private-school league that spans the Dallas/Fort Worth area as well as schools in Tulsa and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He played AAU ball with Team Texas, which produced two other high-major signees this year.
"Babb has the ability to score in variety of ways," ESPN recruiting coordinator Antonio Williams said on ESPN.com. "He has a very reliable perimeter stroke, with range that extends out to the three-point line, where he converts rather easily. He can also put the ball on the floor and get to the rim using his relatively quick first step."
"Babb's addition will give (Ed) DeChellis a versatile perimeter threat with the size that the trio of (Talor) Battle, (Stanley) Pringle, and (Danny) Morrissey currently lacks." Williams continues. "Babb should see plenty of scoring chances due to the penetrating and play-making abilities of Battle and Pringle."
Babb is listed as a three star recruit by Rivals.com and rated No. 34 among shooting guards in the nation. Described as a very strongly built perimeter player who is a terrific shooter with a quick release and deep range, Babb chose Penn State over Iowa and was also recruited by Iowa State, New Mexico, Kansas State, Baylor, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Tulsa and Bradley among others.
Woodyard (6-5, 195) led Winters Mill High School to a 21-6 record and Class 2A Maryland state championship earning tournament MVP honors as he led the Falcons to wins over highly ranked and favored teams from Gwynn Park and Randallstown in the final two games. It marked the second straight year and second time in school history that Winters Mill reached the state semifinals and the school's first state title. Woodyard was named the Carroll County Player of the Year and a second team All-Metro selection by the Baltimore Sun. He also earned All-MVAL league selection as Winters Mill finished the year ranked No. 2 in the Washington D.C./Baltimore metro area.
"Cam Woodyard is a very skilled player who I think can play multiple positions for us," DeChellis said. "He's a good shooter and ball handler and a very skilled perimeter player. We think he can play all three, perimeter positions at the Division I level. He's a winner who really raised his level of play in his biggest games and has a terrific demeanor and a great family that will fit right into our program."
Winters Mill was one of the metro area's hottest teams at the end of the year. Woodyard averaged 20.3 points, five rebounds, three assists and 1.5 steals per game to lead the Falcons to 12-straight victories to end the season as they claimed Class 2A West and Carroll County championships. He is the first county player to commit to a major Division I program since Connecticut's Josh Boone in 2002.
Described as fantastic in transition with a well-rounded game and the ability to shoot the three with accuracy, Woodyard made big improvements in his senior campaign at Winters Mill and just began to emerge on the recruiting map.
"I have never had a kid get better in a year like Cammeron," said Winters Mill coach Dave Herman. "We're a newer school. We're kind of stuck in the middle of nowhere. I think that hurt him a little bit (in recruiting). The bottom line is the kid can play."
Woodyard, who played for the Maryland Mavericks AAU team, raised his scoring average from 13.7 ppg as a junior to 20.3 ppg as a senior to lead all public school players in Carroll County. He had a season high 33 points against Tuscarora and scored more than 20 points in 16 of his 27 games, including eight of his last 10 through the playoffs.
Woodyard posted just the second triple-double in school history with 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a 71-49 win over Middletown in the Class 2A West Region final. He had 22 points and 12 rebounds in a major upset of 10-time state champion Gwynn Park in the state semifinals. Woodyard was then named the Baltimore Sun Boys Athlete of the Week after posting 13 points, nine rebounds and five steals in a 54-47 upset of three-time defending champion and No. 2 ranked Randallstown that gave Winters Mill its first ever state title and the first for a Carroll County team since 1947.
"[Woodyard] is probably the best player we played against all year," Randallstown coach Kim Rivers said following the game. "All around. And we played against some tough, tough players."
Penn State, which posted a 15-16 record (7-11 Big Ten) and best Big Ten finish (7th) since 2001 last year, will return seven players that started 12 or more games and averaged more than 14 minutes per game in 2007-08, including team Co-MVPs Talor Battle (10.2 ppg) and Jamelle Cornley (12.1 ppg). The Lions return their top two leading scorers and five of their top six overall, four of their top five rebounders and their assist leader and top four in assists.