John Fanta
College Basketball Broadcaster and Reporter
A former standout for Tom Izzo is taking his talents to the SEC to cap off his college career.
Michigan State transfer guard A.J. Hoggard announced on Saturday night that he is heading to Vanderbilt for his fifth season of college basketball, marking a strong pickup for first-year Commodores head coach Mark Byington and his staff as they start to rebuild the program.
Hoggard, an All-Big Ten selection this past season for the second time in his career in East Lansing, averaged 10.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game for the Spartans, who earned 20 wins and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament this year.
For Hoggard, Vanderbilt offers him a great new opportunity to charge the Commodores into a new era and to lead their backcourt. It also offers familiarity, as Izzo’s nephew Matt Bucklin is on Byington’s staff as an assistant coach, so there’s a relationship present.
A transfer class that also includes some really intriguing talent in Jason Edwards (North Texas), Tyler Nickel (Virginia Tech), Chris Manon (Cornell), Grant Huffman (Davidson), MJ Collins (Virginia Tech) and Alex Hemenway (Clemson) just went up a couple notches in talent and leadership with the addition of Hoggard.
With Izzo handing the proverbial car keys to Jeremy Fears and Jaden Akins for the coming season, this past year signaled an end for Hoggard in a way at Michigan State, but in Vanderbilt he finds an interesting new home under a coach in Byington who led James Madison to a historic 32-win season and the program’s first NCAA Tournament win since 1983.
Hoggard is a slam-dunk pickup for the Commodores as they enter a foundation year.
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John Fanta is a national college basketball broadcaster and writer for FOX sports. He covers the sport in a variety of capacities, from calling games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Network to providing commentary on The Field of 68 Media Network. Follow him on Twitter @John_Fanta.
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