Damarcus Harrison: Blessed Through Basketball

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBwniJ-ymb8IASO69-FswKUuJtyf85Nm1Db-RugwDDOV1g3LBroeUH4f9VPZQYNZgV_AuKe9RC6GvAe1N2rwcs1CE6Pp_ZeI3IEP7oNqVwoWbQZPmtaoRdAhZjrW45928G_VUwV9SbDYM/s1600/Damarcus+Harrison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBwniJ-ymb8IASO69-FswKUuJtyf85Nm1Db-RugwDDOV1g3LBroeUH4f9VPZQYNZgV_AuKe9RC6GvAe1N2rwcs1CE6Pp_ZeI3IEP7oNqVwoWbQZPmtaoRdAhZjrW45928G_VUwV9SbDYM/s400/Damarcus+Harrison.jpg" width="215" /></a></div>Yesterday on Sistas in Zion Radio we had the pleasure of talking to Damarcus Harrison about trading in his BYU blue to don orange for Clemson University, plus his plans to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Listen <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/sistasinzion/2012/08/19/damarcus-harrison-leaving-byu-future-mission-plans" target="_blank">here</a> if you missed the interview.)<br /><br />In 2011 as a freshman, Damarcus Harrison earned an athletic scholarship to play basketball for BYU. Despite being a member of the LDS church and his older brother currently serving a mission for his faith, Damarcus had made the decision that he would not be serving a Mormon mission. He credits his time at BYU and the opportunity to see other young men prepare for missions as the reason for his about face regarding going on a mission.<br /><br />His plan at the end of the 2011-2012 school year was to return home to Greenwood, South Carolina, head out on his mission and then return to BYU in two years. Since his mission paperwork would be delayed until January, Damarcus decided to return to the court and finish another school year before serving his mission. He approached BYU, but found out his scholarship had already been spoken for. BYU offered to allow him to walk onto the team, but Harrison could not financially afford to attend school without a scholarship.  <br /><br />Clemson University seized the opportunity to snag Damarcus and his talent and offered him a full-ride scholarship, which was an answer to his, family member's and supporter's prayers. While he will miss the opportunity to attend school with members of his faith, he is excited to be playing close to home and with great talent at Clemson. NCAA rules require a player transferring from one D-1 school to another to sit out a year so Clemson has applied for a waiver in hopes that Harrison will be eligible to play this season. Damarcus is grateful for both his family and church family and says that he can use the continued support as he goes forward into the school year with his mission on the horizon.<br /><br />Here are some of the highlights from our interview with Demarcus:<br /><br /><ul><li>Hearing about his recruiting trip to Provo, Utah. BYU had just had a big football win so there were lots of parties and Damarcus was under the impression that Provo was always as poppin' as it was that weekend. Fellow teammates didn't tell him that it was a rare occasion until he had already committed to BYU and relocated to Provo.</li><li>Him telling that the Sistas that we are allowed to text, tweet and facebook him to make sure he stays out of trouble and keeps mission plans in focus. (He doesn't even know what he agreed to, we'll be on him like white on rice.)</li><li>In response to concerns that his departure would lessen BYU's chances of recruiting Jabari Parker, he jokingly said that maybe he would have been a recruiting assest if he had been playing for BYU two years early with Jimmer Fredette and dropping 20 points a game. Damarcus says regarding BYU and Jabari, he has nothing to do with that.</li><li>Learning that he will now be attending school close enough to home that his mama can pop in and make surprise visits to campus. It will keep D on his toes and we actually think he really won't mind one bit since he has a very close relationship with his mom and wouldn't mind her stopping by with a home-cooked meal.</li></ul><div>Demarcus' future looks bright, we hope God continues to bless him and look forward to seeing him accomplish his goals.<br /><br />God is Love,<br />Sista Beehive & Sista Laurel</div>

Damarcus Harrison: Blessed Through Basketball

Yesterday on Sistas in Zion Radio we had the pleasure of talking to Damarcus Harrison about trading in his BYU blue to don orange for Clemso...

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