UGA’s Mark Fox gives FATHER’S DAY gift: Rewards walk-on with SEC basketball scholarship (UPDATED*)
Georgia basketball Mark Fox gave away a Father’s Day gift worth thousands of dollars on Sunday.
YouTube rock star gets SEC basketball schollie (UGA SID)
Fox told walk-on Connor Nolte on Sunday to call his dad with the surprising news that he would be put on a basketball scholarship at Georgia. Connor’s father was at UGA basketball camp on Sunday with another son, Milton High’s Evan Nolte, who is one of the state’s top prospects for 2012.
Here’s the story: Fox huddled with Evan, and he sent a text message to Connor, asking what he did for his dad on Father’s Day. Connor, who is out of town for the summer, replied that he had called his dad earlier in the day to wish “Happy Father’s Day.” Then Fox told Connor he could call again with some great news — that he was being rewarded with an UGA basketball scholarship.
“So I’m standing about 10 feet away from Coach Fox and Evan, they walk up with smiles on their faces, and my cell starts ringing,” said the father, Kurt Nolte. “It’s Connor calling. He said ‘I’ve got a Father’s Day gift for you. I don’t have to pay my own way any longer. Coach Fox just put me on scholarship.’”
“I … got very emotional after hearing the news. I’m so proud of my son. I thanked Coach Fox, and [Fox] kept saying, ‘Connor earned it. Mr. Nolte, he earned it.’”
The 6-foot-6 Nolte signed with Furman out of Milton High, playing two years before deciding to transfer to Georgia. He sat out last season under NCAA transfer rules, and will have two years to play for the Bulldogs at swingman. Nolte is a campus celebrity after creating YouTube videos of “trick basketball shots,” involving Fox, UGA football coach Mark Richt and former NBA All-Star Charles Barkley, among others.
“It was a tough decision to leave Furman when you’re on a scholarship, but Connor wasn’t happy there,” Kurt said. “He had a dream of playing major-college basketball at the highest level, even if it meant walking on. That’s what he did at Georgia. And now it has come full circle, with Connor back on a basketball scholarship.”
Connor’s younger brother, Evan, attended Georgia’s camp on Sunday with his father. Evan is a 6-8 junior and was a major contributor this past season at Milton High, which won the state championship in Georgia’s largest classification. The younger Nolte has more than a dozen early scholarship offers, including UGA and Georgia Tech, and is being scouted this summer by Duke, North Carolina, Florida and Stanford.
There is speculation that Georgia put the older Nolte on scholarship to lure the younger one. “Let’s be honest, this won’t hurt Georgia’s chances for Evan,” Milton coach David Boyd said. “It almost wouldn’t be logical if they didn’t try to draw Evan, with his brother already playing for Georgia. I think it helps, but that Evan will ultimately sign with the place that is the best fit for him.”
Connor was not at Georgia on Sunday to get the news in person. He is a summer intern at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Conn.
BREAKING NEWS: Former Georgia Tech FOOTBALL RECRUIT to make baseball debut with Rangers on Monday (click here)
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79 comments Add your comment
WeKnowYourJealous
June 21st, 2010
12:32 pm
dawggrl, that is a good enough reason to give him a scholarship. Also, he may have proven more in practice and playing. It would seem pretty low of a coach to have a walk on scholarship getting significant minutes and not offering him a scholarship. He may play out to give good minutes and good production next year.
bruce mac
June 21st, 2010
12:32 pm
It is obvious progress is being made in Athens. That is all anyone is saying. Of course last place is not acceptable but anyone with a lick of sense knows that was not on CMF. Progress is signing players that Kentucky and other ACC schools recruited hard. Progress is getting your two best players (one of which is an all sec player) to return. Progress is beating NCAA tournament caliber teams. Progress is seeing a coach with enthusiasm for his job. Progress is spending Million of dollars on improvements for the BBall program. If you want to wait til the hay is in the barn fine, but the field is being fertilized and developed, the crops are going to be pleniful.
Buzz
June 21st, 2010
12:43 pm
You Georgia fans KILL me… The only reason he gave the kid a scholarship was to get his younger brother, Yes smart move by CMF!!! Does this sound like a certain football player that did the same thing to you??? ROGERS/NANCE????? Wow… HIPOCRYTES!!!! and LOSERS all DAWG fans!!!
DawginLex
June 21st, 2010
12:43 pm
Y why do you claim to be a Dawg?
Why do you post inane blather?
Why do you bash an up and coming coach and program like UGA basketball?
What do you see that everyone else isn’t seeing?
Everyone else sees improvement.
Everyone else sees an honest hard working coach who knows how to teach the game.
Everyone else sees a coach thought highly enough of by 2 NBA potential players that they decided to return and play more college ball.
Who are you, Phil Jackson?
More like Phyllis…………….
DawginLex
June 21st, 2010
12:45 pm
me thinks buzz is jealous because we have a real coach and you sill have paul blewitt hewitt……………………..
Hoops Dawg
June 21st, 2010
12:50 pm
In response to TRUE basketball desires–My desire is for CMF to transform this program once and for all to the point where it competes fairly regularly for SEC titles and ocasionally for national titles. It will require a transformation of the BB culture in Athens and the recruitment of at least a few 4- and 5- star players over the next few years. My aspirations for the program extend far beyond modest success and maybe I’m dreaming. But as a 33-year season ticket holder I know it CAN happen before i pass on to those bleachers in the (hopefully) heavens.
the TRUTH
June 21st, 2010
12:57 pm
All DAWGS live their lives by the pyramid. Maybe you tech and gator fans should do the same so you won’t be all JERKS.
POAD
June 21st, 2010
1:17 pm
CLEAR as CONCRETE Mr FOX.
meh
June 21st, 2010
1:32 pm
Y is an idiot. I guess there is nothing to be excited about regarding a team that stood its ground against some of the nations best and has two potential first round picks in the 2011 draft. It doesn’t matter how many stars you have when you sign with a team, it matters if it translates onto the court (not saying i want UGA turning down any five star recruits). Georgia Tech, for better or worse, has become the epitome of players failing to live up to there potential. UGA may not become world beaters overnight but they are competitive again and making a postseason tournament seems an achievable goal
Mr Nance
June 21st, 2010
1:37 pm
FYI, Nash was a legitimate D1 player. Perhaps not at a UGA, UT,FL,Bama etc. but time will tell on that part anyway. He did have afew D1 offers (including Vandy) which does play in the SEC (just ask UGA).
Mr Nance
June 21st, 2010
1:38 pm
Enter your comments here
BG
June 21st, 2010
1:52 pm
Fox is the man! Coach Fox is really doing an outstanding job for UGA.
BG
June 21st, 2010
1:53 pm
Mr. Nance everyone knows that you pimped out Rogers!!!
Favors Went to the Wrong School
June 21st, 2010
1:54 pm
Y – UGA was second in the SEC in free throw percentage behind Vandy, and improved that percentage over 10 pts from the previous regime. When you say “missed free throws like a Hewitt-coached team,” it shows you don’t know a thing about the improvements that were made.
1. Same exact team as the prior season, yet we could actually beat some good teams and comptete with other good teams. That NEVER happened under Felton…you knew we would lose to any team better than us.
2. Our free throws were actually dang good last year. Yes we had a few misses that cost us, but not all the players were the guys that you thought you could rely on to begin with, so it hurt more than surprised anyone that they might tighten up and miss a couple in the stretch. I bet there is a big improvement in free throws made with the game on the line this year, because Fox actually coaches FTs.
3. The amount of player development last year over the previous year was exponential. The fact that we had one player of major college program quality going into last season, then coming out with a pretty good team was outstanding. We are projected to have 2 first round NBA draft guys on next year’s team. That came from coaching and true player development.
4. The recruiting buzz has picked up. We got some good talent this year (with very few uncommitted guys available once the buzz about UGA and Fox started) and we are in on 5 big-time recruits for the 2011 signing period. I can’t remember the last time that many big time recruits even thought about us, much less had us in their finalsts.
5. The excitement of the games for the fans, even most of the ones we lost, was much better. I went to about 16 games last year, and the atmosphere got better and better as the season went on. Big hype for this next year, but since you don’t go to the games, you wouldn’t know.
And lastly, you are absolutely correct in that the SEC was horrible last year. But this year it will be very competitive with any other conference with UT, KY, UF and even Ala being pretty good if not each 25 game winners.Vandy always seems to get 20 as well, and then you will have a MSU or a SC pop up that you didn’t expect. Throw in UGA who will actually have a bench this year, as well as a high-quality starting 5, and you have a really good shot.
Amsterdam Sam
June 21st, 2010
1:57 pm
Because, POAD, and I doubt you would really understand since you do not ever use any name of any kind on any blog comment, I, as Popeye would say, ams, what I ams. Nothing to hide and nothing to hide behind. You could tell by the lack of vitriol, as well as the sentence structure and content you are in over your head if you only… well I guess I’d better not stoop to… well, I can’t say that either, for acting in any manner like certain other people robs one of their dignity and I will not go there. You would do well to remembe such and maybe we can get along. It is only the hate filled rhetoric I despise. Some people will get it, while some never will. As a UGA alum, I feel no need to knock Tech, other colleges, or players of other colleges unless they are deserving; usually they aren’t. Your behavior, however, elicits an entirely different response and justifiably so.
TROTTINGHOME
June 21st, 2010
2:06 pm
Basketball at Tech is going to be synonoymus with 1 – 9 vs the Dawgs of football.
OUCH!! thats got to hurt
Amsterdam Sam
June 21st, 2010
2:07 pm
PREDICTABLE
Monticello Dawg
June 21st, 2010
2:32 pm
“If enthusiasm and hope counted in college basketball you guys would be national champions,” saith Y.
Come on, Y, you make a statement like that and claim to be a Georgia basketball fan? The lack of the above in the fan base, and more importantly the UGA administration, is why a school like Georgia, in a basketball rich state, does not have a better roundball history.
Fortunately, the administration appears to have awakened to the possibilities of what a good program can mean to the athletic program, and long-suffering UGA basketball fans sense a seismic change in things, with the improvement in facilities and more importantly, a first rate coaching staff.
Y, you also grouped Duke, UNC, GT, Wake, and Kentucky together. I don’t think I would put Tech, and to a lesser extent Wake Forest in the same basketball sentence with Duke, Carolina, and UK. Kind of like talking about college football with Vandy, Rice, mingled in with Texas, Oklahoma, and Alabama.
Ted Striker
June 21st, 2010
3:02 pm
1) Connor earned the scholarship.
2) Mark Fox is a class act.
3) That’s all that really matters in this story.
Gt4ever
June 21st, 2010
4:03 pm
ARE YOU KIDDING…… He can thank his little brother for that scholarship. It really is pitiful how a coach will use or manipulate a young man to gain another young man….. Pretty pathetic, but hey, this is UGA athletics at it’s finest…..
bort
June 21st, 2010
4:23 pm
Connor has already done great things for UGA hoops and hasn’t even stepped on the floor with passer’s remorse and is therefore worthy of the scholly.
He’ll contribute next year on the court, and get UGA hoops even more exposure online.
Congrats Connor!
tjhook
June 21st, 2010
9:36 pm
I’m glad Fox signed the kid so Mercer has a chance at more mid-level talent. Fox might let one through the cracks and the Bears need to be ready to bring in some solid talent so we can move up the basketball chain.
tenn.DAWG
June 21st, 2010
10:13 pm
Bottom line is Coach Fox is a very good coach,and has for sure coached up this UGA team.He’s out coached Pearl,Billy D., and Coach Cal among others.The SEC East is gonna be pretty competitive in the near future.Go Dawgs!!!
guy
June 21st, 2010
10:21 pm
UGA better do what it needs to keep CMF where he is.I believe he will be offered some top $$$ to leave after this year.He’s a great and very smart person.
miltondad
June 22nd, 2010
9:55 am
Setting the story straight: Conner jumped the gun by committing to Furman a little early. His stock rose afterward but he kept his committment. He could have held out and gone to a better D1 school. But understandable for a kid who dreamed of D1 ball and was on the bubble of major/mid D1 in his junior HS year. He took the D1 bird in the hand. His little brother is clearly a better player, but big bro is no slouch. He is the reason little bro is so good – striving to be as good as big bro from a tender little age. In the process – with more natural talent as it turned out – he became an even better player than big bro. UGA, or a lot of other major D1 teams, could do worse than have either or both on their teams. They are both extremely competitive winners. Both can change a game from long range, Little Evan can just do more with the ball. I actually hope Evan give a good look to the ACC and continues to develop.
if so, I think there is a spot for him in the NBA. Two class kids with great parents. Same as Evan’s Milton teammates. Milton HS is blessed to have a collection of great kids and students who happen to be extremely talented ballers. Dai Jon, by the way, takes the cake. He is Beethoven, Hendrix and Michaelangelo rolled into one. Come on 2010-2011 season. Come on Wheeler, Centennial and Campbell. Let the fireworks begin.
Gt4ever
June 22nd, 2010
1:17 pm
can he make free throws, that would be a tremendous upgrade for our team at GT…. Just Sayin…
Dawgfan
June 22nd, 2010
2:16 pm
I know Connor personally and I can attest to the fact that regardless of his brother’s value, he deserves this scholarship. He works hard and is a good guy–and I think a few of my fellow bulldog fans will be pleasantly surprised by his shooting ability next season.
y
June 22nd, 2010
2:46 pm
Monticello Dawg …I group GT and Wake with those schools because they make appearances in the NCAA tourney pretty regularly….and this is what I consider “success” in college basketball because only 64 out of 300 D1 teams make it. My problem is not with UGA’s athletic program or its players…two groups that I fully support as a grad with my money and my attendance….its with the fan base that I feel indifference towards as they are automatically ready to anoint a coach who has proven very little… a coach that has not even added any elite talents to the roster yet….Marcus Thornton is only a three star recruit* Mark Fox could have a losing season next year…you just never know…especially with college basketball. I am sorry that reason and cautious optimism makes me less of a fan in your book…trust me it does not bother me.
y
June 22nd, 2010
3:00 pm
But I will admit the atmosphere was much better this year and fan support has improved vastly. We have two good players on our team who should see NBA time. This team could make the NCAA tourney but then again they could have a losing season. It all just depends on out of conference wins and obviously a 9-7+ record in the SEC to secure a seed. These should be the goals….not individual wins over teams or rivalry wins. We cant afford any injuries either….obviously.