College Commitment: Eddie Turner (2018 Garfield HS/St Thomas More)
A few months ago, things were going nuts for Eddie Turner. The quick 6-foot-1 guard was receiving scholarship offer after scholarship offer from Division I schools and he even took some campus visits. The decision was made for the Garfield High School graduate to attend prep school and Turner recently decided to end his college recruitment by committing to Columbia.
“The education and the opportunities were the main reason,” Turner said. “I want to set my own path and become legendary – whenever everyone goes right, I go left. I’m hoping to win big and turn the program around.”
The decision definitely had educational and basketball-related reasons but there was a bigger picture involved for Turner as well. “The coaches really treated me and they care about me more than just basketball but as a person and I really appreciate that,” Turner said. “That’s what made them really stand out. They said what they could do for me and my family and how they could change the direction of our family’s life.”
“Less than five people in my family have graduated college, so I wanted to take the opportunity to go to the Ivy League and change it for my little cousins, my nieces,” he added. “It was a family decision. I want to be a resource for people who don’t have much or don’t know people. I want to be in a position to give back.”
Turner took his time with his college recruitment as he could have gone to places like Loyola-Chicago, Cincinnati, and Minnesota among many others after the summer. Instead, he has been at St Thomas More since the fall and it’s been an enjoyable experience for him. “St Thomas More is a great place and I love it,” Turner said. “They treat me as family and I’m close with a lot of the staff. It’s different in that I’m focusing on more than just
basketball as they emphasize different aspects of life that weren’t emphasized before. I love it here.”
The commitment closes out a winding road for Turner, who noted that he would like to thank Jeff Harris Basketball and some others for helping him get to this point. “When people said I was average, (Harris) said I would be great,” Turner said. “When no one stood up for me and no one believed in me, he did and he worked with me every day. So Jeff and my big brother, Sam Cunliffe, they were a big part of who I am today. And Carl Howell gave me the opportunity and put the ball in my hands in the AAU season. Those three are ones I would give a shout
out to.”
The journey will continue too as Turner is still focused on improving himself for the next level. “Every part of my game can be worked on and I’m just touching the surface,” Turner said. “There’s not one thing I’m particularly great at right now. Obviously a lot of people would say that athletically I’m fast and stuff like that, but I never put a limit on myself. I need to improve on all areas of my game because there are people better than me and I want to be the best.”