Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 1, 1993 TAG: 9302010028
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHRIS BACHELDER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: FERRUM LENGTH: Medium
FERRUM STANDOUT A QUICK STUDY ON AND OFF THE COURT
QUINCY QUICK may not be playing Division I basketball, but he has earned a high level of respect at Ferrum College.\ Ferrum basketball coach Bill Pullen left the makeshift interview room at Swartz Gymnasium as point guard Quincy Quick quietly answered questions about fast breaks and jump shots.
Pullen returned 30 seconds later.
"Quincy doesn't talk much about himself, so he might not tell you everything you should know," Pullen told a reporter. "He has a 3.0 grade average in premed and he may graduate in three years. He is also a hall adviser in a dorm on campus and he is a Bonner Scholar.
"Basketball is only a part of it."
Or, as the sophomore standout would later say, "Basketball is just basketball."
Those words may not rest easy with some hardwood hardheads, but Quick's passions and pursuits at Ferrum College extend far beyond the baselines.
"Quincy is an overachiever, both on the court and off," Pullen said. "He demands a lot of himself."
As one of 50 Bonner Scholars at Ferrum, Quick volunteers 10 hours per week in exchange for scholarship money. Each week, he spends five hours as a tutor in the Academic Resource Center and five hours - one hour each weekday morning - as an aid in the Creative Learning Center, a preschool in the bottom floor of the college's chapel.
At the preschool, Quick is part of a staff that includes two other Bonner Scholars and two full-time employees. He reads to and plays with the children.
"The kids have to feel you out and get used to you at first," Quick said. "But once they get to know you, it's remarkable. They'll give you a hug and they're so glad to see you each day.
"It just brings a smile to your face and shows that life is worth living."
Shonda Wilson, Ferrum's Bonner Scholar adviser, said Quick has lived up to the expectations of the scholarship program.
"The kids are really attached to him," Wilson said. "They know he plays college basketball and they admire him. Quincy is a very good role model."
Quick is also a community adviser on a floor of Bassett Hall, a campus dorm. He oversees 80 residents, counsels, keeps order.
"Quincy is very quiet, but he gets his point across and he's well respected," said Leslie Holden, the Coordinator of Residence Education, Quick's direct supervisor and also a resident of Bassett Hall.
"He is very responsible and well-rounded. He works around a difficult schedule with his basketball and school work."
Quick, who wants to become a pediatrician, is a biology major with a 3.0 grade point average. He is carrying 17 credit hours this semester and can earn his degree in three years if he takes 14 hours this summer.
With all of his outside responsibilities, Quick remains worthy of sports-page acclaim. He is Ferrum's first sophomore co-captain since the school went Division III and he leads the team - ranked fourth in the South Region - in scoring, assists and steals.
Asked when Quick is at his best, Pullen responded: "When we have to have it. That's the sign of a great player. He wants the shot and the more pressure there is, the more likely it's going down."
Quick played at Petersburg High and earned team MVP honors on a 25-1 team his senior season. He also averaged 18 points on a Richmond AAU team that qualified for the national tournament in the summer of 1990.
While Pullen hopes his floor leader sticks around for two more years, Quick said basketball will not affect his decision.
"Sports are not a big deal in my life," he said. "I mean, I love playing and I will continue to work hard, but so many people are too wrapped up in athletics.
"I've enjoyed my time here. I needed a change [from Petersburg]. This area is isolated and there aren't many distractions. It's easy to concentrate on what you have to do.
"But I'm eager to move on and see the other things I have to do in my life. Everybody has to move on."