Rompza felt at home with UCF

Chicago (Ill.) Whitney Young point guard A.J. Rompza could have had his pick of a lot of schools, including many closer to home in the Midwest. But after seeing everything the University of Central Florida had to offer, both athletically and academically, it made the decision pretty easy.

UCF has signed a couple Chicago players in the past, but their key recruiting areas consist mainly of the Southeast.

Point guard is a priority in recruiting this year, so when the basketball staff got wind of Rompza they quickly flew to Chicago to check him out. They watched him play in an open gym and offered the next day.

"UCF recently got in contact," Rompza said. "My mentor was talking to them and I guess they said they had heard a lot of good things (about me). I went down there on an unofficial visit and I fell in love with the campus from there.

"The team really reminded me a lot of my high school team, just how the players were blending together and how they were pretty much a family. It made me think I was at home. The fan support and everything else was excellent."

Rompza was on campus during the weekend of Sept. 29, when UCF hosted Louisiana-Lafayette in football. He got the complete tour of the school and attended the football game on Saturday.

"I had heard a lot of great things about the school," Rompza said. "I heard the program was on the rise and it was something I was really interested in. I wanted to find out more about it, so my mentor and I went down there and we checked out everything. I really liked it. I liked the team, they've got a new arena and the coaches were great. It's far away from home, but it's the best opportunity for me so I took it."

Rompza said he really liked the atmosphere on campus. UCF now has an on-campus football stadium which has totally transformed the campus on weekends.

"It was really fun down there with the tailgating," Rompza said. "I feel like the more the merrier."

He really hit it off with the players and the coaching staff too. He was able to spend time with head coach Kirk Speraw, associate head coach Mike Jaskulski, who was recruiting him, as well as assistants Craig Brown and Dwight Evans.

"Those are the kind of coaches I want to play for," Rompza said. "They're down to earth. They tell you what they think and they know what's best. I really respected the way they coached. I can't say enough good things about them. I really like the potential there and I want to help the program."

UCF's top two point guards-- Mike O'Donnell and Chip Cartwright-- are seniors this season, so UCF really needs to address that area in recruiting this year. Rompza has a great opportunity to play early with the Knights.

"They said they were looking for somebody to lead the team," Rompza said. "I thought that it was the right fit for me, because I'm the leader of my team right now. Everybody goes off what I do. That's one thing I can bring to UCF. I think my leadership ability can really help and hopefully I can help take the program to the next level of where it needs to be."

Rompza's parents have yet to see UCF, but they'll likely join him when he takes his official visit which could be during the season. He had about 12 offers and chose UCF from a final group that included Penn State, Northern Illinois and Cal.

"We're a top 15 team in the country this year," Rompza said. "Marcus Jordan, Michael Jordan's son, transferred to our school so we were already getting a lot of publicity. I kind of wanted to wait out the season (to make a decision), but at the same time I thought it was risky. Do I wait out the season to see what I have or do I do it early so I only have to worry about basketball? I thought it was in my best interest to make that choice. I felt UCF was the right choice."

Rompza is interested in perhaps a business management or broadcast major in college.

"My father owns a restaurant in Chicago, my brother manages it, so that's probably something I would want to to do after basketball," Rompza said. "Or maybe something like broadcasting."

For more coverage on Rompza and Whitney Young basketball this season, check out IllinoisBasketball.com.