Healthy competition and family history helped get Colin White to Ohio State
OTTAWA, Ohio – It took about three weeks for Colin White to commit to Ohio State. From the date the long-awaited scholarship offer arrived to the day he decided to become a Buckeye, White did his due diligence in deliberating before making his decision.
On Nov. 8, White walked into the media center at Ottawa-Glandorf High School clad in an scarlet Ohio State hooded sweatshirt. There, he was embraced by his sizeable family, grabbed a white piece of paper and publicly celebrated his future in a succinct press conference for National Signing Day. There were no lengthy speeches from school administrators, no hats representing finalists for White don and a general lack of fanfare.
White will be a Buckeye next season. But getting to this point was the product of a competitive family, a supportive community and a dogged dose of self-belief.
“He is a blessed kid,” Sandy White, Colin’s mother, said. “He was born with some natural talent, but he’s always had the right people in his corners. He’s had great coaches from the beginning. He’s had great teammates. Our community support has been great. He’s been blessed, but he’s also not rested on being blessed.
“He’s pushed himself to be even better than even I thought he could be.”
White’s mother knows what she’s talking about better than most. As a three-time all-American at Capital University, Sandy Buddelmeyer is the school’s all-time leader in both scoring and rebounding. From 1990-93, she scored 2,248 points and grabbed 1,365 rebounds and also holds the single-game and season records in both categories. Her husband, Terry White, is quick to mention that she had 32 rebounds in one game and scored 41 in another.
A shooter and perimeter player, Colin White didn’t inherit his game from his mother, who excelled in the low post. His drive and competitive nature, though? All mom.
“Maybe subconsciously I pushed him to be better at the things that I was never good at, but honestly we never had to push him,” she said. “I just feel so proud of him. He really has had to work hard and eh has had some doubters along the way. He didn’t let that get him down.”
Terry White didn’t play beyond high school, but in a family with seven kids, Colin quickly got a taste in what it meant to have to compete.
“It’s been everything,” Colin White said of his upbringing. “From a little kid, I felt like I was competing for the last sandwich in the fridge. It’s in our DNA to compete here at O-G and especially in my family. We compete in everything. That’s really driven me in my basketball and in other sports to be competitive and not back down from anyone, just go at everyone.”
It’s fitting, then, that White had to battle to get to this point. A three-star prospect in the 247Sports.com rankings, the 6-6, 200-pound wing is the No. 117 national recruit and the No. 5 player from Ohio. He’d landed offers from Northwestern, Butler (from former Ohio State coach Thad Matta), Nebraska, TCU and others, but it wasn’t until last summer that Ohio State joined that list.
It was during White’s sophomore year, coach Tyson McGlaughlin said, that he saw a shift in his focus that would lead to his chance to play for the Buckeyes.
“He’s always been an extremely athletic kid,” the coach said. “(That year), he had that decision of where do I want to be? If I want to play at this high level, what do I need to do to get there? Being an Ohio kid, wanting an Ohio State offer but not receiving it pushed him. I’m telling you, it did. It probably pushed him to be where he’s at right now.”
Along the way, White had been in contact with the Ohio State staff about what they wanted to see from him in order to earn a scholarship offer. He worked on getting stronger, improving his shooting and growing as a defender, and eventually he got to the point where the long-awaited Ohio State offer arrived. Within about three weeks, he was a Buckeye.
“When the offer finally came, it really was a feeling of joy that the hard work and the effort he put forward was recognized,” Terry White said. “Coach (Chris) Holtmann and coach (Jake) Diebler have been tremendous through the whole thing and very open and honest with what their expectations were with him.”
He’s the first Division I basketball player from Ottawa-Glandorf since Noah Bramlage signed with Princeton in the class of 2015 after having helped the Titans win the 2013 Division III state championship. Ottawa-Glandorf has finished as state runners-up for the last two seasons, dropping the two title games by a combined 10 points. White has scored 18 points on 6 of 15 shooting in each game.
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This year will be his third as a captain. Before he gets to Ohio State, there is one goal still at the forefront, and it was clear when the proceedings quickly wrapped and the Titans headed to the gym for practice.
“Obviously you want to put that ring on your finger at the end,” Colin White said. “You want to hoist up a gold trophy and win the state championship. We’ve been close, but close isn’t close enough so trying to get there at the end of this year. That’s the main goal.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Colin White's family, upbringing helped lead him to Ohio State
