Effingham County High School

Arrington to take his shot with East Georgia College

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Playing for his dad was hard. So too was Chase Arrington’s path to playing college basketball.

The Effingham County High School senior, with parents Donnie and Lisa beaming, signed a letter of intent with East Georgia College on Wednesday morning, reaching an objective he wrote on his wall four years ago.

“I know his commitment,” said ECHS head boys basketball coach Donnie Arrington. “I know how much time he’s spent.”

Chase also pestered his dad for the keys to the gym to keep working on his game.

“I’ve worked my tail off for four years,” Chase Arrington said. “Since the summer after eighth grade, I’ve wanted to play college basketball.”

The younger Arrington heard the talk in his younger days that he was playing because his father was the coach. To that end, he scored 15.2 points per game and had 3.8 assists per game in his senior season, earning first-team all-Region 2-AAAA honors. He shot 38 percent from 3-point range this past season and was an 82 percent free throw shooter.

“It ended up being a good thing,” Chase Arrington said of his playing for his father at Toombs County and at Effingham County. “But I’ve had to work three times as hard as anyone else. He’s helped me to get a lot better. He taught me how to play, how to shoot and getting to play for him was really cool.”

Arrington finished with more than 1,200 career points between Effingham County and Toombs County. He was twice a member of the all-region first team, a second-team selection once and honorable mention as a freshman.

And his dad pointed out, only 3 percent of high school basketball players get the chance to play college basketball.

“For a small kid to have a chance to play at the college level is a great thing,” Coach Arrington said. “It’s a tribute to his work ethic. We’ll miss him as a player here, too. But we’re excited about what he might be able to do.”

The veteran coach, who’s been through the recruiting process before, cited that Division I schools have only 13 scholarships to offer.

“It’s just tough for a high school kid to be recruited,” Coach Arrington said. “It’s a numbers game. It has been a grind on us as a family where he’s going to go. Being recruited as a guard is tough. There’s a lot of 5-foot-10, 5-11 guards out there. But we feel good about his choice.”

Chase Arrington echoed his father’s sentiments on the process.

“It’s been really tough,” he said. “Everybody knows what they’re going to do, and here I am with four weeks left in school.”

Chase Arrington decided on East Georgia, a two-year school in Swainsboro, last week, and he watched them play against Middle Georgia College. He liked their style of play and also noticed they didn’t have a reliable 3-point shooter.

“He’s a good shooter,” said EGC coach Neil Bailey. “He’s a true point guard who’s good at setting up his teammates. He plays like a coach’s son.

“Chase is a person who we really need to build our program,” Bailey added. “He’s a great student and a great person. We’re glad to have someone of Chase’s caliber.”

Dad also can’t wait for what his son will be able to do in the Bobcats’ fledgling program.

“I think his best basketball is ahead of him,” Coach Arrington said.