Football OR basketball

[Tigermike 3,078]

Auburn gets desperate

Tight end joins basketball team; Lebo joins practice

Thursday, January 20, 2005

By PHILLIP MARSHALL

Times Sports Staff pmarsh9485@msn.com

AUBURN - The scout team point guard was a balding 38-year-old and one of the post players was a moonlighting tight end as Auburn's basketball team practiced Wednesday for Saturday's visit to Arkansas.

Such is the state of Tiger basketball.

Backup point guard Brett Howell is ill and out for at least two weeks. Forward Ronnie LeMelle is gone for the season with a foot injury. That leaves first-year coach Jeff Lebo so short-handed that even practice can be difficult.

That's why Lebo, a former All-American at North Carolina, found himself playing point guard. And that's why Kyle Derozan, a 6-foot-5, 252-pound reserve tight end found himself on the basketball court.

"I told the kids that I want them to play hard against me, but if they hurt me, I was taking their scholarship," Lebo said, laughing. "It's kind of the situation we are in."

Derozan, a sophomore from Morganza, La., was a three-time all-district selection at Pointe Coupee Central High School. He was a hotly recruited football prospect. Missouri, Southern Mississippi and LSU offered him opportunities to play both. He chose to concentrate on football at Auburn, but his love for basketball never waned.

"I've always wanted to play college basketball," Derozan said. "I've watched the team play a couple of times this year and they lack a little size. I figured I could help the team out and show my athleticism."

Derozan visited with assistant basketball coach John Cooper during football season about the possibility of joining the basketball team. Basketball players had urged him to do it after playing pickup games with him last summer. He got football coach Tommy Tuberville's permission and started practice Tuesday.

"Coach Tuberville said it was fine as long as I got my workouts with Coach Yox (strength and conditioning coach Kevin Yoxall)," Derozan said. "I'll miss some of spring practice, but I'll be there."

Lebo welcomed any help he could get for his struggling team. The Tigers are 9-7 overall and 0-3 in the Southeastern Conference.

"We appreciate Kyle wanting to join our team," Lebo said. "He will help us practice. That's the main thing for him right now. He has to get in basketball shape and learn what to do. It's going to take him a while."

Derozan is no taller than Auburn's other undersized post players, but he is easily the heaviest player now on the roster.

"I can knock some people around, rebound the basketball and help defend the low post," Derozan said. "It's fun and it's tough. The transition from football shape to basketball shape is a lot harder than I thought it would be."

Derozan was a four-year starter in high school. He averaged 18 points and eight rebounds per game in his junior and senior seasons.

kink

[vatz22au 142]

Well I hope everything works out....I am tired of a crappy basketball program... =/

[PChamp119 96]

I have played ball with Kyle on a couple of occasions. He is OK, but I really don't know how good he would be. Courtney Taylor is great and Marcus McNeil is a beast at basketball. Kyle can hit the 3's ok, but I duno how he can do with a fast paste SEC program.

[Erik81 0]

with mckenzie and trott coming I'm not too worried about kyle losing any football shape

[PChamp119 96]

Kyle... I like the guy... nice guy... but he doesn't have an SEC Football body when I look at him. He has speed, he has power - he has everything you ask for, but for some reason - it just doesn't dwell all together. They tried him at DE, but he wasn't good enough. They put him at TE, but he wasn't good enough. He got some decent playing time, but let's be real. There's really nowhere else for him to go, except maybe a LB position, but I don't think he's good enough to handle it.