University of Toledo senior Chris Darrington was speaking off the cuff following the Rockets’ win over Eastern Michigan in what would be his final game at Savage Arena, but his speech struck a chord with the Toledo faithful.
As he declared that he was “419 forever,” the crowd burst into applause, sensing the sincerity of Darrington in what Toledo meant to him.
“His speech on senior night was one of the best senior speeches I have ever heard, and it was off the cuff and from the heart,” Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk said. “Since then, I can’t tell you how many people in this community have talked to me about Chris Darrington and about how touched they were about his pride for Toledo and his thankfulness. He’s very thankful for his opportunity that our program and this institution have given him.”
It has been a long and winding path for Darrington to get the opportunity to play for his hometown college. He starred at Scott High School and was The Blade player of the year and first team All-Ohio his senior season.
Because he was a late bloomer in high school — plus, he admits he didn’t apply himself in school as much as he should have — junior college was the avenue his basketball career took.
Darrington went to Vincennes University in Indiana to play for coach Todd Franklin. With little to do in the rural town of Vincennes except focus on his basketball and his academics, he flourished on the court.
“We thought when we took him — and we wouldn’t have taken him otherwise — that he was very underrated for where he was being rated in Ohio in all of the recruiting stuff,” Franklin told The Blade in 2017. “He was kind of an off-the-radar recruit, but he had a good senior year. We liked his ability to put the ball on the floor and attack the basket. We liked his first step and the fact that he had a good pull-up jump shot.”
His final season at Vincennes, Darrington was a National Junior College Athletic Association All-American after averaging 20.7 points and 5.1 assists per game.
Darrington caught the eye of Rick Barnes and Tennessee and transferred to play for the Volunteers. Barnes was intrigued by what he saw from Darrington at Vincennes.
"Chris brings two qualities we were looking for: confidence and the ability to score the basketball,” Barnes said when Darrington chose to play for Tennessee. “Chris' experience at Vincennes was valuable, because he has developed an appreciation for what goes into winning. A lot of guys can score, but not many can do so and win.”
After a season of limited playing time at Tennessee, however, he decided to transfer to Toledo and was granted a waiver from the NCAA so he could play immediately for the Rockets.
This season, Darrington has accepted the role of super sub, averaging 9.1 points per game off the bench. As he mentioned in his senior speech, he has chosen to be grateful for what he has rather than dwell on the fact, for example, that he isn’t in the starting lineup.
“I feel like a lot of people take things for granted,” he said. “We are getting the chance to run up and down the court, and there are people who can’t run. We take our kids for granted, and there are people who lost kids. We take our paychecks for granted, because we want more money. There are people who don’t get paychecks. Me not being happy with not playing a couple more minutes, I have a lot of other things to be grateful for, and I’m just looking at it that way.”
Kowalczyk said he is pleased with the way Darrington has accepted and thrived in his role. He predicts there is more to come from Darrington on the big stage.
“When we started recruiting him at Vincennes, I just felt he was a guy that once you get him to Cleveland, he is going to make big plays,” Kowalczyk said. “He likes the big stage and has always played well on a big stage. Look how he played at Bowling Green [where he scored 20 points]. He plays better against better competition, especially when the lights are bright.”
Coming from Scott High School, Darrington has appreciated what will be his lone season at Toledo and takes pride in representing the City League.
“It means a lot, because a lot of City League players sometimes don’t go to college and sometimes don’t get to Division I,” Darrington said. “That’s big, and I think maybe this made a bridge for new and up-and-coming players to get a chance to understand they can play here. As long as you are doing what you need to do and handling your business academically, if you are good enough, they will take a look at you. I think I’m the one who created that bridge for the kids to come.”
First Published March 13, 2019, 11:00 a.m.
