The Northfield Mount Hermon quartet of Ian Sistare, Aaron Falzon, Josh Sharma and AJ Broduer are taking a cross-country trip with coaches John Carroll and James Cormier to visit numerous schools. They will be contributing a Player Blog to ZAGSBLOG along the way. Check back later for future updates on visits and offers.
Hi, my name is Josh Sharma and I’m from Lexington, MA.
I attend Northfield Mount Hermon as a 7-foot rising senior. Since attending NMH, I have been a part of a National Championship team during the 2012-13 season and a run to the National Championship Tournament final four this past season.
If you haven’t read my teammates’ previous blogs, AJ Brodeur 16′, Aaron Falzon 15′, Ian Sistare 16′, and I have traveled halfway across the country touring colleges in the Midwest. Led by our head coach, John Carroll, and assistant coach, James Cormier,
we have visited a total of 11 great college over a 10-day period.
To finish up our trip, we visited Northwestern, Notre Dame, and Michigan. All three schools offer a different look to what an outstanding college experience could be.
Fresh off our visit to Wisconsin, we were able to rest and refuel for the night at our teammate Chris Sullivan’s house. When we first arrived on Northwestern’s campus we were greeted by their assistant coaches, who showed us around the basketball facilities. We then sat down with head coach, Chris Collins, who talked to us about the basketball program and his dedication and hunger to accomplish big things at the university. We were then able to sit down with heir academic advisor who spoke about the combination of Northwestern’s high level academics and basketball. We also met with their strength and conditioning coach who impressed me with his attention to detail and unique approach to weight lifting and training.
The coaching staff then gave us a tour of the Northwestern’s campus including a walk along Lake Michigan where we took in a breathtaking view of the Chicago city skyline. We them returned to their practice facility where we played some competitive pick-up games with some of Northwestern’s current and their recent alumni including a few of their pros. We really enjoy seeing so many alumni returning to their colleges for workouts and visits. I feel it speaks to their relationship with their college and how much they enjoyed their time in college.
After we got cleaned up, we finished up the visit with nothing else but classic Chicago deep-dish style pizza!
Next stop on the tour was the home of the Fighting Irish. Like many of our previous visits, we got a chance to tour their facilities before we went to eat lunch at one of their dining halls. Later on we had a chance to tour around Notre Dame’s more traditional campus with its historic buildings. I can’t forget about Notre Dame’s football program with one of the longest traditions in the country. We were honored to be toured around the football facility by Mike, who has been working there for over 40 years. We even touched the “Play like a Champion today” sign, which is a staple for Notre Dame football and a world famous image.
We also got a chance to sit down and talk with head coach Mike Brey about their style of play. He talked about the high-character kids he has in the locker room. Coach Brey also spoke about NMH alum, Ty Nash ’07, and his great contributions to the Notre Dame program. We saw an impressive highlight clip of Ty. It’s always great to make the NMH connection. Good luck to Ty and the Fightin’ Irish alumni playing in the Championship game of the TBT on June 28th. After our meeting he took us down to “the pit” or their practice gym where we had the opportunity to watch a couple of their bigs and a few of their guards go through their first workout of the summer.
We also had the chance to talk with Coach Brey individually where he offered both me and Aaron a scholarship. He talked about how great of a fit I would be for both their system on the court, but also within the Notre Dame community. Both Aaron and I were honored to receive an offer from Notre Dame.
On our final visit of this long but amazing journey, we visited the University of Michigan, home to our own NMH alum Spike Albrecht ’12. Right from the beginning Michigan blew us away with their top-notch facilities. The tour began with the coaching staff showing us around their basketball and player development center, showing off their touch screen tv’s and other “paperless” technology.
We then began our tour around the campus where we stopped by one of their academic advisors. Here their academic advisor stressed the importance of working hard both in the class room and on the cour.
Next, we made our way to the student union where we ate with the coaching staff. After returning back to the Crisler Center, I was able to watch a video on their style of play, specifically how their big men are used within the offense. To finish up the visit they showed all of us a video recap of their 2013-14 season.
I’d like to thank my coaches John Carroll and James Cormier for taking Aaron, Ian, AJ, and myself on this incredible, unimaginable journey. Truly a once in a life experience that none of us will ever forget.
Go NMH!
Previous Blogs:
Penn State, Ohio State, Xavier
