Update, Jan. 11: This post now includes a quotation from Oregon head coach Kelly Graves.
Jayde Woods, who transferred from Oregon following the holiday break, has committed to TCU, she announced on Twitter Sunday night.
Woods visited TCU and Vanderbilt this past week. She was granted a full release by Oregon.
“TCU recruited me out of high school so I was already very familiar with their program and coaching staff,” Woods said. “That was one of the schools that I was really considering when I first started the recruiting process in high school.”
Woods, a Los Angeles native, said after she asked for her release at Oregon, she got in touch with her club and high school coaches to determine her next step. She said her decision to transfer was difficult, given how close she was with her teammates in Eugene.
“I loved every single one of them,” Woods said. “They were amazing. That was definitely the hardest part. Especially the freshmen. We lived right across the hall from each other. We were all so close. It was especially difficult to leave them.
“I just think that it wasn’t a good fit for me. I realized that and decided it’d be best if I pursued my basketball career somewhere else.”
Oregon head coach Kelly Graves said before Oregon’s Jan. 11 practice that he served as a resource for Woods during the transfer process.
“I think it’s great,” Graves said. “She deserves the best and I hope the best for her. She had texted me before it became public and we were texting throughout the whole process. Every time I got a call from a coach, I texted her and let her know who, what and gave her — if she asked me — thoughts about that said coach or program. … I’m happy for her. It’s great.
Woods will enroll at TCU later this month when the semester begins on Jan. 17.
“I just felt really comfortable with the coaching staff and the players,” Woods said. “I also wanted to find a school that was going to [help me] pursue different internships that would help me in the future when I’m applying for law school. I just fell in love with the school.”
She hadn’t previously visited TCU in high school. Woods was the first of seven recruits to commit to Oregon’s 2016 recruiting class, ranked No. 3 nationally by espnW HoopGurlz. Woods was ranked No. 78 in the 2016 class by PropsectsNation.com.
“I got a really good vibe,” Woods said of TCU. “I left TCU thinking that I could be here.”
Woods said the timing of her transfer didn’t play a factor in her decision. She will be eligible to play midway through TCU’s 2017-18 season.
“The whole situation was difficult because I loved my teammates [at Oregon],” Woods said. “That’s just what made this whole thing hard for me.”
Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne
Guard Jayde Woods commits to TCU after transferring from Oregon
Jonathan Hawthorne
January 7, 2017
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