This past November, Eric Moreland decided that his college destination would be UTEP. As he was academically set, he was able to leave Ocean Academy in New Jersey and enroll at UTEP at mid-year. The plan was to redshirt for one semester and begin playing his freshman year in the fall of 2010. When Tony Barbee took the head coaching job at Auburn, Moreland felt the need to look elsewhere. This past week, UTEP granted Moreland his release. At this present time, Moreland is working on his hardship request, and has hope that it will be granted, so he can get on the court this fall.

Moreland is a below the radar prospect with intriguing size, at six-foot-nine, two hundred pounds. In his senior year at Hightower High School in Missouri City, Texas, he averaged a moderate ten points, eight rebounds, and two blocks. His team at Hightower had two other Division I prospects, in Pitt’s J.J. Richardson, and TCU’s Garlon Green. In hopes to gain more exposure and develop his game, Moreland chose to take a post-graduate year at Ocean Academy, where he was able to develop his game at a quicker pace. Additionally, his time working out with the UTEP team has already accelerated his development, according to Moreland.

The scouting report on Moreland is that he excels at running the floor, blocking shots, and getting on the boards. Over the course of the past two years, Moreland has gone from six-foot-four to his present height of six-foot-nine, so he is getting acclimated to his new size and has been working on adding the strength needed for a taller prospect. However, having spent much of his basketball career at the size of a guard/wing, Moreland brings with him the dribbling abilities of a guard, and has range to his shot. As his experience as a post player is limited to a short few years, he is more consistent at the three, but is dedicated to put in the hard work to improve his play at the four.

Presently, Moreland mentions that Oklahoma and Texas are two schools who are pursuing him, as they are aware that he has obtained his release. Moreland is hoping that as more schools learn of his release and subsequent hardship release request, interest in this late-bloomer will increase. So for schools with an open scholarship for 2010 and are interested in a late-bloomer with size and skills, Moreland just might be your guy.

Originally published by PrepPhenoms.com. Republished here with permission.