Campus star Sterling Chapman, WSU’s only 2021 hoops recruit, is now uncommitted
The lone commitment in Wichita State’s 2021 men’s basketball recruiting class announced Friday he’s no longer pledged to the Shockers, citing uncertainty surrounding head coach Gregg Marshall after national reports surfaced this week that he would be parting ways with the program.
Sterling Chapman, a 6-foot-5 senior guard at Campus and three-star prospect, confirmed to The Wichita Eagle on Friday that he will be reopening his college recruitment. The story was first reported by KWCH’s Braxton Miller.
The Wichita native gave a nonbinding commitment to the Shockers on Oct. 6, just two days before allegations of physical and verbal abuse by Marshall was publicized in a national report from Stadium’s Jeff Goodman. Goodman reported on Tuesday that WSU and Marshall were expected to part ways by the end of the week.
“We’re 100% behind Coach Marshall, but under the circumstances we have to do what’s best for our family,” said Les Chapman, Sterling’s father. “The way we see it, Marshall was the one who offered us the scholarship and that’s where our loyalty lies. He had a vision for Sterling.
“But if you bring in another coach, they might not feel the same way about a feel-good story for a hometown kid. Somebody else might have a different vision, so that’s why it’s in our best interest to at least open Sterling’s recruitment back up.”
WSU hired a St. Louis-based law firm to conduct an investigation into the allegations made against Marshall, which is now headed toward its 11th week. Marshall has not been at WSU’s practices this week due to “personal reasons,” according to a university spokesperson.
Chapman said he will still strongly consider WSU in his recruitment, but felt like it was the best decision for himself moving forward to reopen his recruiting.
“I committed and was ready to go play, it was like a weight was lifted off of my shoulders,” Sterling Chapman told KWCH. “But then all of the allegations came out and right now I don’t really know what is going on at the college that I am supposed to go to or my next step.”
Wednesday marked the first day that 2021 recruits could sign a national letter of intent, making a commitment binding. It was a day that Les Chapman thought would be a celebration of Sterling’s hard work that led him to officially becoming a Shocker.
“I’m supposed to be celebrating with my son right now and having a cold beer and eating my Buffalo Wild Wings,” Les Chapman said. “Right now that’s not the feeling we’ve got.
“People think these kids are immortal and basically have scholarships handed to them. That’s not the case. We can’t sit here in a bubble and wait to see if a new coach comes along at WSU and see if we still have our offer. We have to be smart about this and I really hope Shocker Nation understands that.”
Les Chapman said that he has spoken with Marshall this week and that the coach understands that Sterling Chapman has to do what’s best for his future.
“I really appreciate Coach Marshall because he answered my call in all of this chaos and we had a real talk,” Les Chapman said. “He understood the circumstances and the situation. It wasn’t like he was talking to me like a coach, he gave me advice like he would give a friend or a family member and I appreciated that.
“I know the way things are being perceived and I was disappointed to hear a lot of the things I heard, but he really does have a reasonable explanation for these things that are going on. That’s why we’re still behind him.”
Before committing to WSU, Sterling Chapman had narrowed down his finalists to also include SMU, Tulsa and Grand Canyon. Les Chapman said Friday though that Sterling’s recruitment is now a “clean slate.”
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