March 20, 2007

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -

By David Smale

If the NCAA Division II issued its own license plates, chances are they would say, "Division II: Land of Opportunity."

Division II presents an opportunity to play collegiate basketball at a high level against good competition. For some who started out at Division I, it's an opportunity to get more playing time or to stand out more than they could at their previous school. For some who started out at Division III, it's an opportunity to get financial assistance to play or to prove that they could play at a high level when other doubted that they could.

For all, it's an opportunity to fit in.

While statistics are not kept on the number of student-athletes who transfer from one division to another, a quick scan of the rosters of the top programs in men's and women's basketball in Division II show nearly every roster with at least one transfer from Division I, and many with multiple Division I transfers making an impact on their rosters.

The numbers are not as great from Division III to Division II, but the chance to play at a higher level, and the possible chance to get some scholarship money, makes the chance to step up an attractive alternative.

"I'm happy here," said India Soo of Western Washington University, who transferred from Idaho State and is one of four Division I transfers on Western Washington's roster. "I feel like this is the place I should have been."

Many of the student-athletes who started at the Division I level did so because of the lure of being known as a Division I athlete. Amanda Holmes, a center for Washburn University, began her career at Texas Christian University. "That was a big factor," she said. "When I was a freshman in high school, I decided that I wanted to play basketball in college. I think everybody's dream is to start out at Division I, because it's such a big deal."

In a "grass is always greener" scenario, a lot of student-athletes found that Division I wasn't everything they thought it was.

Soo played one year at Idaho State before quitting the team and looking elsewhere. Daniel Blair went to Grambling State out of high school because his high school coach knew the coach at Grambling. "I just didn't feel right there," Blair said.

Holmes had plenty of reasons for choosing Texas Christian, besides the fact that it was in Division I. Ironically her biggest reason was also her reason for leaving.

"For some reason I really wanted to get out of Kansas," said the Topeka, Kan., native. "I wanted to be far away but close enough that if I really wanted to come home, it wasn't that long of a drive. It's about eight hours away. TCU was a top-25 program, and they had made the second round of the NCAA tournament. They also had a senior at my position, who ended up in the third pick of the first round of the WNBA draft, so I could learn from a player of that caliber. I loved the recruiting coach. He was such a great guy. He sold me on the school."

But the desire to get away from Topeka led to her coming back home.

"I grew up watching games and going to games at Washburn," she said. "I actually went in and talked with Coach (Ron) McHenry about the recruiting process--what I should look for and what I shouldn't look for. He always said, `If you need anything, give me a call.' It turned out that I needed a school to play at. It's worked out very well. I love Washburn and I'm glad I came back."

For Soo, it was more than just not fitting in with the team.

"I liked it, but I kind of jumped into something that wasn't right for me," she said. "Hawaii is very diverse and Idaho State was kind of a culture shock. I just wasn't happy. I was by myself in every situation."

Like many transfers who began at Division I, Blair was recruited by some mid-major Division I programs and thought that was the ultimate destination. But he found that just having a connection with the coach was not enough.

"My high school coach knew the coach at Grambling and thought I'd fit in," he said. One year there proved that wrong, so he went to another program with a coaching connection. His high school coach also knew Nelson Haggerty, who then was an assistant at Pittsburg State. "When I came on my visit, I liked what I saw. The coaches were friendly and the town was nice.

"When it all comes down to it, you know what's good for you."

For Magen McNeil, Division II does not represent a drop down a level. He was at Division III Arcadia University before transferring to Division II American International. He had received interest from one Division I school (Drexel) out of high school in Philadelphia. Although he also attracted interest from several Division II programs on the East Coast, he held out hope to get an offer from Drexel.

"I was recruited by the previous coach, who was fired," he said. "When the new coach came in, he insisted I go to prep school, because he wanted to make sure I could handle it academically.

"I was recruited by quite a few Division II schools: Mansfield, Cheney, Bloomsburg and Kutztown. But because I wanted to wait on the offer from Drexel, I turned down the Division II offers."

When the Drexel offer didn't come, he decided to enroll in prep school, but they were all full, so he looked at Division III schools. His choices were Arcadia and Cabrini, and he said he chose Arcadia because he "felt comfortable."

"I was named rookie of the year in the conference my first year and all-conference my second year," he said. "A lot of my coaches from AAU ball and high school kept telling me that I could play at a higher level. When I got the opportunity, I decided to go. When I came up for the visit during the summer, I played against some of their players and their alumni and I did real well."

But he still had to prove himself to earn any playing time.

"I know initially the coaches were wondering if I could play here. They took a gamble. They liked how I played, but they weren't sure how it would transfer.

"I knew I could play at a higher level for a good team. I had something to show them. I feel like I have showed them that. Hopefully I gave them a little impression that you can't judge someone from where they played previously."

So what separates Division II from Division I and III? The biggest difference, most agreed, is depth, going either direction.

"When I came here, I realized that these guys are as good as some Division I players," Blair said. "There just aren't as many of them." Soo takes it even further. In her mind, some Division I programs are closer to Division II programs than they are to others in Division I.

"It's because Western Washington is such a high Division II program," she said when asked why there are so many Division I transfers on the Vikings roster. "It's almost like you're not going to Division II. There are some smaller Division I programs that are almost at the same level. Western Washington has a really good program and it's a winning program. It's the place to be if you still want to play basketball and you still want that competition level. Carmen Dolfo is an excellent coach.

"In a way, Idaho State is closer to Western Washington than it is to the University of Washington."

"If you don't look at the size of the arena and the name on the jersey, the game is the same," Holmes said. "Everyone comes out wanting to win. Everyone has the ultimate goal of winning the national championship, realistic or not. You go out every day wanting to win."

And playing for a championship is the reason you play, according to Soo. Playing at Western Washington gives her that chance where Idaho State probably didn't. "It's the goal of every athlete and every team to win a national championship," she said. "Your chances of winning a national championship at Idaho State are not great, but the chances at a high-level Division II program like Western are pretty good."

McNeil says that the quality of depth is the biggest difference between Division II and Division III as well. "The biggest difference is the skill level of the players, and the depth," he said. "A lot of players who ride the bench for my team could start for most Division III teams."

At the same time, he just doesn't see that much difference in the front-line talent.

"It really didn't seem a lot different to me," he said. "I don't know if my game got better over the years, but I don't see a lot of difference. There are players who can play better, but the transition wasn't that tough for me."

There are, of course, differences in the way the programs operate off the court. Holmes and Blair both noted the amount of travel--and the style of travel--that their Division I programs experienced.

"I think the biggest difference is more off the court than on the court," Holmes said. "In Division I, you have a lot of talented players, but you also have a lot of talented players in Division II. I think the biggest difference is money. Division I schools get 15 scholarships while Division II schools get only 10. Division I programs fly to more places. Division I athletes just get more. Sometimes I miss that, but I wouldn't give up what I have on the court for what I'm missing off the court.

"I don't regret transferring. I do miss being able to play Division I, because that was the ultimate dream. I still play with and against some of the top athletes in the country.

"You have to have good people around you to make you your best. They'll push you, and pick you up when you're down and cheer you on when you're doing well. I feel like I really have that at Washburn."

Recently, Division II introduced a new "positioning platform" that explains the Division II athletic experience. It reads as follows.

"Higher education has lasting importance on an individual's future success. For this reason, the emphasis for the student-athlete experience in Division II is a comprehensive program of learning and development in a personal setting. The Division II approach provides growth opportunities through academic achievement, learning in high- level athletic competition and development of positive societal attitudes in service to community. The balance and integration of these different areas of learning opportunity provide Division II student-athletes a path to graduation while cultivating a variety of skills and knowledge for life ahead."

McNeil recognizes how this approach has helped him grow. Once he made the squad at American International, he quickly established himself as a player to be feared. He's averaging 16 points and 10 rebounds per game.

He's leading the conference in offensive rebounds and is one of two players in the league to average a double-double. He's 17th in the country in rebounding and has been named player of the week twice.

"Sometimes you get labeled," he said. "I played well in high school,. I didn't have a lot of buzz. There were a lot of good players coming out of Philadelphia that year. But I don't see how I got lost."

Others who had to start down a level attribute that to the fact that they may have had to play a different position in high school than they projected to play in college. It's just a matter of proving you can get it done on the college level. If you do, the opportunities will be there.

And when those opportunities arise, chances are you'll find a way to fit in. "If you need to transfer, find the right school and don't worry about what level it is," Holmes said. "because there's good basketball at more than just the Division I level. Whatever fits you, that's what you need to find."

Whether the Division II program is right in your hometown, like it was for Holmes, or a totally foreign concept, like it was for Blair, the opportunities are worth the effort it takes to find them.

"Growing up in Houston, all you heard about was the University of Houston, Texas and Texas A&M, or junior college," Blair said. "You never heard of Division II colleges. When I heard about it, I thought, 'I'm better than that.' It never even crossed my mind. But that's all different now.

"At the Division II level, you'll find out a lot about yourself. You won't find a lot of cockiness at Division II like you do in Division I. Things may not be as easy in Division II.

"You might learn to grow as a person, find things out about yourself that you wouldn't find in Division I, because everything isn't handed to you in Division II."

Put that on a license plate.