by Alex Schwartz

As first reported by Northstar Basketball, Tamir "Pop" Jackson '09 of St. Benedict's (NJ) de-committed from UAB in early July. Since then, Jackson's recruitment has taken some twists and turns, including the Blazers dropping his scholarship offer. I got in touch with Tamir today and he told me that he has cut his list down to five schools, but that other could join the list "if they show a lot of interest," but he did mention that no one outside of his list of five, which is Harvard, UPenn, Rice, South Carolina, and Virginia Tech, is seriously recruiting him right now. "Rice is the number one choice," is what "Pop" told me when I asked him what is going on with his recruitment. His top five in order is as follows: Rice, Harvard, UPenn, South Carolina, and Virginia Tech. The 6'2 combo guard will "academics" and "playing time" when it comes to choosing a college. With his list including two Ivy League schools it's clear that Tamir is gifted in the classroom as well as on the hardwood. He is unsure of when he will make his choice, saying that is could come in either the early or the late signing period. I will keep you updated on the recruitment of Tamir "Pop" Jackson, one of New Jersey's top seniors.