ESPN Ranks Jeffrey Carroll Among 25 Best College Players in 2016-17

After a breakout junior campaign in which Jeffrey Carroll averaged 17.5 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, he’s slated to shoulder an even bigger load in Mike Boynton’s inaugural season at the helm. With both Jawun Evans and Phil Forte finished at OSU, it leaves Carroll as the lone returning player who averaged more than 5.7 points under Brad Underwood last season.

Carroll turned down the chance to pursue a professional career and will be OSU’s most important player to build around after bolstering his stock as a future pro last season. ESPN, which ranked college basketball’s top 25 players headed into next season, sees him as the 25th-best player in college basketball next season.

Assuming Carroll’s able to duplicate what he did last season and do so without the benefit of the incomparable Jawun Evans (now pursuing professional opportunities) as his point guard, it will be time to officially recognize the senior as the proverbial Great College Player. Maybe the next level won’t get overly excited about a 6-foot-6 guy who’ll be almost 24 by the time of the 2018 draft, but Carroll has made believers out of several opposing college defenses. [ESPN]

Although OSU lost three starters from last year’s NCAA Tournament team, it has loads of new talent coming into next season highlighted by four-star freshman Zach Dawson and St. John’s transfer Yankuba Sima — the latter of which will be eligible in the spring semester of 2018.

Carroll will be taking on a new role as the likely No. 1 option on offense, something he’ll have to grow into as teams game plan to take him out by shading extra help on him. But as we saw last season, he has the chance to become a do-it-all college player and lead the team as the No. 1 guy.