John Meeks takes transfer route for final stop: TBS alum appreciates Bucknell, looks forward to College of Charleston
David Kehrli
Times-News
A meeting following John Meeks’ senior season with Bucknell coach Nathan Davis provided clarity and mutual understanding, with a path for the future laid out for the Burlington native.
Following a four-year career with the Bucknell men’s basketball team, one that will come complete with a degree in psychology later this month, Meeks has opted to go the graduate transfer route.
“I’ll be graduating here in a couple weeks, so I’m excited for that,” Meeks told the Times-News, “but I’m ready to take a new step in my life. I talked to my coach after the season and we kind of both agreed that I did what I needed to do here. So it was time to move on and explore new options, and that's what led to me entering into the (transfer) portal.”
The 2016-17 Times-News All-Region Player of the Year as a senior at The Burlington School will use his final season of college eligibility to play at College of Charleston.
“It’s just Coach (Pat) Kelsey, the energy he brings each and every day,” Meeks said. “Him and his staff, they're really excited about what they do. They're really passionate. That energy is very contagious within the team. It creates a good culture where everybody just wants to work hard. There’s a lot of excitement around our program and I'm excited to be a part of it.”
Thank you for being a subscriber! It’s your support that keeps The Times-News going.
Meeks is one of a handful of transfers Kelsey, the newly named College of Charleston coach, has brought into the fold since taking over the program in March following nine seasons at Winthrop.
“Just being comfortable,” Meeks said. “I really fell in love with Coach, talking to him over the few weeks of recruiting. A lot of new players coming in, a new system, it's gonna be very exciting. It’s funny that I say this, but I’ve been in Pennsylvania for the past four years and I'm kind of excited to get back down south and be on the beach. It can't get much better than Charleston.”
John Meeks
Meeks entered his named in the transfer portal in March, following a senior season in which he averaged 25.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and shot 49.5 percent from the field.
"John Meeks is an ultra-versatile player with size, skill and basketball IQ," Kelsey said in a statement. "He has tremendous toughness and has produced at a very high level in his college career."
Adding to his comfort at College of Charleston is his Bucknell teammate and roommate Jordan Sechan, a guard who also plans to transfer into the program, Meeks said. The two plan to live together in Charleston, as well.
“I only have one year," Meeks said. "I’ve seen a lot of people not be able to adjust in that one year. So I’m really excited to be able to go do this along with one of my best friends.”
Meeks played in just six games last season after missing several games early on with a concussion and later contracting the COVID-19 virus, he said.
“When I entered my name into the portal, I didn't realize how chaotic it would actually be,” he said. “I didn’t stop getting phone calls until I made my decision. It was bang, bang on top of school and everything. It was pretty stressful because you can't go and take visits, you can't set time aside. We did have online meetings over Zoom and stuff. It was a lot of phone calls and Zoom meetings.”
In February, the entire Bucknell team was forced to spend the month in a hotel to quarantine, Meeks said. The Bison played just twice in February (Feb. 27-28).
“That's the heart of our season when people are getting ready for playoffs,” he said. “So there's just little stuff like that, where you can't really do anything about it, but you just have to try to make the most of it. That's what we tried to do.”
College of Charleston is a member of the Colonial Athletic Association, as is nearby Elon. Meeks said the chance to play closer to home appealed to him.
“It’s something I think is pretty cool,” he said. “It's a pretty cool opportunity to be able to come home. I know with being so far away for the past four years, my family really hasn’t been able to see me play much basketball in person, especially with COVID rules. So I'm really excited to get back home and be around the people that I do miss and that have helped me get here.”
In four seasons as a member of The Burlington School boys’ basketball team, Meeks won two state championships and was a part of teams that posted a combined 119-6 record.
“The improvement from Day One to by the time he graduated was just tremendous,” said Will Roberson, a TBS assistant coach during Meeks’ four years at the school. “He came into the gym every single day with a focus and a relentless desire to get better every day. He bought into everything that we were doing as a team and everything for himself, and he reaped the benefits of that. He was willing to do whatever we asked him.”
Despite all the hiccups associated with the COVID pandemic, Meeks has found positives to lean on.
“It was very strange. It could have been very stressful, but with all the cons that COVID has brought out, it’s also brought a lot of good stuff,” he said. “I’ve really been able to, with all the uncertainty, really just focus in on each day. Each day, get better, 1 percent. It’s really helped me throughout the season, just staying focused on not worrying about what's down the road, but let's focus on today and get better today. That really helped me throughout all the chaos of COVID and the COVID rules and guidelines of the season.”
Meeks said he plans to work toward a master’s degree in communications at College of Charleston.
“I plan on being a leader,” he said. “I plan on coming in, taking my experience of actually playing college basketball for four years to help the younger guys. Not only that, but to keep working. Coach Kelsey has put together a great staff with amazing resources and people who really want us to get better. And that's my approach. I just want to get better every day. I just want to show, leading by example, that when you put the work in, it’s going to pay off, so you just gotta keep going at it.”
David Kehrli is a sports reporter at the Burlington Times-News and USA Today Network. You can reach him at david.kehrli@thetimesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidKehrliTN. Subscribe to the Burlington Times-News here.
David Kehrli
Times-News
A meeting following John Meeks’ senior season with Bucknell coach Nathan Davis provided clarity and mutual understanding, with a path for the future laid out for the Burlington native.
Following a four-year career with the Bucknell men’s basketball team, one that will come complete with a degree in psychology later this month, Meeks has opted to go the graduate transfer route.
“I’ll be graduating here in a couple weeks, so I’m excited for that,” Meeks told the Times-News, “but I’m ready to take a new step in my life. I talked to my coach after the season and we kind of both agreed that I did what I needed to do here. So it was time to move on and explore new options, and that's what led to me entering into the (transfer) portal.”
The 2016-17 Times-News All-Region Player of the Year as a senior at The Burlington School will use his final season of college eligibility to play at College of Charleston.
“It’s just Coach (Pat) Kelsey, the energy he brings each and every day,” Meeks said. “Him and his staff, they're really excited about what they do. They're really passionate. That energy is very contagious within the team. It creates a good culture where everybody just wants to work hard. There’s a lot of excitement around our program and I'm excited to be a part of it.”
Thank you for being a subscriber! It’s your support that keeps The Times-News going.
Meeks is one of a handful of transfers Kelsey, the newly named College of Charleston coach, has brought into the fold since taking over the program in March following nine seasons at Winthrop.
“Just being comfortable,” Meeks said. “I really fell in love with Coach, talking to him over the few weeks of recruiting. A lot of new players coming in, a new system, it's gonna be very exciting. It’s funny that I say this, but I’ve been in Pennsylvania for the past four years and I'm kind of excited to get back down south and be on the beach. It can't get much better than Charleston.”
John Meeks
Meeks entered his named in the transfer portal in March, following a senior season in which he averaged 25.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and shot 49.5 percent from the field.
"John Meeks is an ultra-versatile player with size, skill and basketball IQ," Kelsey said in a statement. "He has tremendous toughness and has produced at a very high level in his college career."
Adding to his comfort at College of Charleston is his Bucknell teammate and roommate Jordan Sechan, a guard who also plans to transfer into the program, Meeks said. The two plan to live together in Charleston, as well.
“I only have one year," Meeks said. "I’ve seen a lot of people not be able to adjust in that one year. So I’m really excited to be able to go do this along with one of my best friends.”
Meeks played in just six games last season after missing several games early on with a concussion and later contracting the COVID-19 virus, he said.
“When I entered my name into the portal, I didn't realize how chaotic it would actually be,” he said. “I didn’t stop getting phone calls until I made my decision. It was bang, bang on top of school and everything. It was pretty stressful because you can't go and take visits, you can't set time aside. We did have online meetings over Zoom and stuff. It was a lot of phone calls and Zoom meetings.”
In February, the entire Bucknell team was forced to spend the month in a hotel to quarantine, Meeks said. The Bison played just twice in February (Feb. 27-28).
“That's the heart of our season when people are getting ready for playoffs,” he said. “So there's just little stuff like that, where you can't really do anything about it, but you just have to try to make the most of it. That's what we tried to do.”
College of Charleston is a member of the Colonial Athletic Association, as is nearby Elon. Meeks said the chance to play closer to home appealed to him.
“It’s something I think is pretty cool,” he said. “It's a pretty cool opportunity to be able to come home. I know with being so far away for the past four years, my family really hasn’t been able to see me play much basketball in person, especially with COVID rules. So I'm really excited to get back home and be around the people that I do miss and that have helped me get here.”
In four seasons as a member of The Burlington School boys’ basketball team, Meeks won two state championships and was a part of teams that posted a combined 119-6 record.
“The improvement from Day One to by the time he graduated was just tremendous,” said Will Roberson, a TBS assistant coach during Meeks’ four years at the school. “He came into the gym every single day with a focus and a relentless desire to get better every day. He bought into everything that we were doing as a team and everything for himself, and he reaped the benefits of that. He was willing to do whatever we asked him.”
Despite all the hiccups associated with the COVID pandemic, Meeks has found positives to lean on.
“It was very strange. It could have been very stressful, but with all the cons that COVID has brought out, it’s also brought a lot of good stuff,” he said. “I’ve really been able to, with all the uncertainty, really just focus in on each day. Each day, get better, 1 percent. It’s really helped me throughout the season, just staying focused on not worrying about what's down the road, but let's focus on today and get better today. That really helped me throughout all the chaos of COVID and the COVID rules and guidelines of the season.”
Meeks said he plans to work toward a master’s degree in communications at College of Charleston.
“I plan on being a leader,” he said. “I plan on coming in, taking my experience of actually playing college basketball for four years to help the younger guys. Not only that, but to keep working. Coach Kelsey has put together a great staff with amazing resources and people who really want us to get better. And that's my approach. I just want to get better every day. I just want to show, leading by example, that when you put the work in, it’s going to pay off, so you just gotta keep going at it.”
David Kehrli is a sports reporter at the Burlington Times-News and USA Today Network. You can reach him at david.kehrli@thetimesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidKehrliTN. Subscribe to the Burlington Times-News here.
