Ryan Pettis determines what he needs and goes after it. There are no embedded flights of fancy in his decision-making and pursuit. With a total of nine scholarship offers, he whittled that number down to a final five colleges/universities and basketball programs consisting of Montana, Long Beach State, Pacific, Weber State and Fordham. The 6-foot-4 Serra High guard selected the latter, choosing to head 3,000 miles away from the West Coast.
Why so?
"Fordham is a best fit for me academically and the coaching staff will make me a better basketball player," he explained. With the East Coast reputation for greater athletic toughness and grit than its counterpart out west, Pettis observed, "I believe I belong out there."
He added that from his three years playing for Serra Coach Chuck Rapp as well as his time with the Team Lillard travel team, "I've learned to value defense, play in a system and play hard."
What he also desired during his college visits was seeing the possibilities of new friendships developing into the equivalency of what he calls the Serra 'brotherhood.' He wants similar connections at the collegiate level. What especially struck him was recently seeing people from so many different grades and times in his life show up at Serra's official announcement of his commitment to Fordham. "There were people there from back when I was in kindergarten and like fourth grade and fifth grade. It was so genuine and meant a lot to me to see those people show up."
As his father Larry wryly noted about his son's decision, "it's the trifecta," since his son attended Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Redwood City (a Roman Catholic middle school), attends Junipero Serra High in San Mateo (a Roman Catholic college preparatory high school) and soon enough Fordham University (a private Jesuit research university in New York City). But as the younger Pettis explained, "They (the religious affiliations) didn't play a major role in any of my decisions."
Pettis is very proud in this day and age of players moving from one program to another with nanosecond frequency about having never transferred from a school. "When I get there, I'm there." Grades K-8, 9-12, he has remained steadfast and loyal.
Another point of pride for Pettis is never having lost the Jungle Game pairing with St. Ignatius during his Serra tenure. "I have all the respect in the world for (SI) Coach (Jason) Greenfield but I want to keep that streak intact," he stated. Besides the St. Ignatius rivalry, matchups against fellow West Catholic Athletic League members Archbishop Riordan and Archbishop Mitty are also must-wins for Pettis.
How the Pettis - Fordham connection came to be is humorous and quite unusual. At a tournament hotel this summer in Texas, "my Dad passed by a young man, thought he was a player and asked 'what team do you play for?'" It turned out the young man was Fordham Director of Player Development & Recruiting Coordinator Dwan McMillan and they began talking. Despite the brief connection, Fordham started eyeing the younger Pettis. At another tournament later on in South Carolina, Fordham Head Coach Keith Urgo began watching Pettis. Then the relationship expanded in seriousness.
So what will Pettis be bringing to his new team? Offering an ode to hustle that simply requires a certain mind set, he said, "I play hard, I take charges and dive on the floor for loose balls."
Regarding being a mentor, "I do see myself as a leader," Pettis said, crediting former Serra teammates Miles Klapper, Garret Keyhani and Brady Smith as team leaders to emulate. "I've been a shy, quiet guy but now I know I have to do more. I learned a lot from them."
Fearful of leaving someone out, Pettis gave his best shot at crediting those who have aided him in his hoops journey. "Most definitely, my Mom, Dad and family plus Coach Bill, my early AAU coach who took me in when he didn't have to. (Former Serra star at Princeton and then Santa Clara) Henry Caruso who has provided me with very good advice and all the Serra High and Team Lillard coaches who helped me get better."
Pettis will be a business major.
