Ross excited to change his stripes

Last week, Earnest Ross told PowerMizzou.com he could very well commit during an official visit to Columbia. On Tuesday afternoon, he did just that, sending out a text message and a tweet shortly after committing to the Tiger coaches.

"Everything went great. I flew in there, met with the team and went to dinner with the coaching staff on Sunday. My mom didn't get a chance to make it out there Sunday, her plane got cancelled because there was a really bad storm in Baltimore so she flew in on Monday," Ross said. "We met with her on Monday. We really enjoyed our time, the visit went well, the fan support is crazy. I really love the fans out here they're very supportive about basketball. And the campus is great. It seems like a great place to spend a couple of years."

Ross, after transferring from Auburn, will have to sit out next season. He will be eligible to play two years, beginning with the 2012-13 season. In essence, Ross could step into the role vacated when Ricky Kreklow transferred earlier this week.

"I will play the two and the three," Ross said the coaches told him. "Scoring the ball, rebounding at a high level like I did at Auburn and being a lock down defender…I have a chance to come in here and make an immediate impact on a very good team. Missouri is a really good basketball team, 11th ranked in the top 25 pre-season for next year."

It was not only Frank Haith and the new Mizzou coaching staff that sold Ross, but the support he sensed for the program around Columbia.

"The fan support. The fan support was very big," Ross said when asked what sealed the deal. "Coming from Auburn where the fans, I'm not gonna say aren't supportive, but aren't supportive as Missouri fans are. They really care about their basketball team a lot here."

Ross said his mom was just as happy about the choice.

"She was actually probably a little more excited than I was. She was very supportive of the decision I made," Ross said. "I didn't decide till she came because I wanted her to feel the same things I did when I got here. It was a family as if I was at home. She felt the same way when she came down and that's when I knew it was a go."

Ross said he will sign scholarship papers when he gets back home to North Carolina and will return to Columbia in time for the second session of summer school, which begins on July 5th.

Nobody covers the Tigers year-round like PowerMizzou.com. If you are not yet a member, just try out our free trial.