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No scholarship, no financial aid -- and no promises. All Jason Orzesik is asking for is a new start at Northwestern.

The junior guard from Fenwick High School has transferred to Northwestern from Rice as a walk-on. He will sit out next season as a transfer and return as a walk-on junior for the 2006-07 season.

The hope for more playing time at NU and the opportunity to play in an offense more suited to Okrzesik's skills was worth the price, a year's tuition. Of course, he wouldn't mind playing his way into a scholarship from coach Bill Carmody.

"That's what I'm hoping for," Okrzesik told nuhoops.com from his parents' home in Wood Dale. "I think there's a chance. And for this type of situation, it's worth it to me."

Okrzesik (pronounced Oh-kress-ik, the Z is silent) had interest from several schools out of high school, but used only one visit to Rice before making his decision, a decision he came to regret.

Okrzesik averaged only 7.5 minutes of playing time last season for Rice, an NIT tourney participant. He averaged 0.8 points per game and 1.5 assists per game in mostly garbage time.

So, as soon as the season ended, he made the decision to transfer and called up Northwestern to see if there was interest. Already in the middle of recruiting season, Carmody could not commit to a scholarship for Okrzesik.

"In my situation, Carmody really hasn't seen me play in two years. And it's hard to give a scholarship to a player you haven't seen since high school."

So, Okrzesik will try to force his way on to the Northwestern roster as a scholarship player over the next year. He's working out in Chicago and has even played pickup basketball with the team.

He came away impressed with the level of play at Welsh-Ryan.

"They have a lot of people that can play, that can score," Okrzesik said. "They really play well together. At Rice, sometimes pickup games would become more 1-on-1 play. There wasn't a lot of 1-on-1 play here. I was surprised and impressed at how together they played as a team."

The Princeton offense should suit his style. Okrzesik has a reputation as an excellent passing guard. He also said his AAU team ran a similar offense with a lot of cutting and passing.

"I've always been a point guard and passing is my strength," Okrzesik said. "Northwestern cuts and scores."

In playing with the current squad, Okrzesik got a good taste of the Princeton offense.

"I've never seen so much cutting."

Okrzesik will also learn more about senior walk-on Michael Jenkins, who started 14 games last year and earned the trust of Carmody.

"They've (the coaches) brought him up," Okrzesik said of Jenkins' success as a walk-on.

And if his story turned out in a similar fashion, that wouldn't be bad, either.

Posted by nuhoops at 04:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Daily Herald reported that the medical non-counter for Ivan Tolic is official. Tolic's career is over due to injury and his scholarship can be used for another player next year.

With point guard T.J. Parker's decision to turn pro, Northwestern now has two scholarships to fill for next year. Graduating senior Davor Duvancic's scholarship was filled by recruit Craig Moore for the upcoming season.

Posted by nuhoops at 06:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Assistant coach Craig Robinson was mentioned by ESPN's Andy Katz as a prime candidate for the recently-vacated Air Force job. The loss of Robinson would be a significant blow to Northwestern. Robinson is a key recruiter. That being said, he'd be a great choice due to his familiarity with the Princeton offense that Air Force has run with success in recent years.

From Katz's column:

Air Force assistants Larry Mangino and Mike McKee are trying to get the job to replace Chris Mooney, but the Falcons are serious about looking outside the Academy. Northwestern assistant Craig Robinson has a great shot, because his Princeton-style offense has been successful. Air Force is facing a crossroads since it had the two best years in the program recently followed by a coaching change after each. …

Posted by nuhoops at 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Daily Northwestern reports that Jason Okrzesik will transfer to Northwestern as a walk-on pending his admission to the school, which should be a formality.

A walk-on? What a coup for coach Bill Carmody.

Okrzesik has the opportunity to learn the Princeton system as he sits out a year and then compete for a scholarship the next year. Here's thinking that Carmody and staff will find a scholarship for him after this upcoming season, if not sooner.

The signing upgrades the roster without wasting the final scholarship for this upcoming season (which may already be spoken for with another signing, we hope). We'll try to contact Okrzesik for additional comments.

Posted by nuhoops at 01:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Houston Chronicle reported Wednesday that guard Jason Okrzesik  is transferring to Northwestern. Although there has been no confirmation on the signing from Northwestern coach Bill Carmody, Okrzesik would sit out the 2005-06 season and compete for the point guard position in 2007 as a junior.

Okresik has Chicago ties as a graduate of Fenwick High School, the alma mater of NBA star Corey Maggette. On the surface, this is a signing of another classic Princeton-style player. A profile of Okrzesik in high school classifies him as a great passing guard. (Wow, he and T.J. Parker should meet.)

Okrzesik should be in the mix for a 2006-07 backcourt of Brandon Lee, Craig Moore and Sterling Williams. As of now, the 2006-07 lineup could feature a three-guard offense and look something like this:

PG - Brandon Lee
PG - Jason Okrzesik or Craig Moore
SG - Sterling Williams
PF - Bernard Cote
C - Vince Scott

The lineup is really going to rely on Williams and Cote to be stars. A lot is riding on those two players for the future. However, there may be more news on the recruiting front soon.

Posted by nuhoops at 05:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)