By: John Jay Sports Information
This week, johnjayathletics.com caught up with former men's basketball student-athlete Cordell Grooms ('92). Grooms was a four-year player for the Bloodhounds from 1988-92. He was a two-year captain and averaged 17 points per game in his junior and senior seasons. In his senior campaign, Grooms led the CUNY Athletic Conference in scoring with 26 points per game (a school record) and received ECAC Player of the Week recognition five times. After the season, he was named an All-ECAC Metro Honorable Mention. Grooms graduated from John Jay with a B.A. in Deviant Behavior & Social Control.
1) Where has life taken you since you graduated from John Jay College of Criminal Justice?
I graduated from John Jay College in 1992 with a B.A. in Deviant Behavior & Social Control. Less than a month after graduating, I was offered a position as a Foster Care Caseworker and my life's journey took off from there. I worked in the field of Social Services for two years before stepping into the world of Education for six years. In 2001, I decided to go back to school to further my education. Eventually, I completed my coursework in order to qualify for my Master's Degree in Sports Science from the United States Sports Academy in 2006. School was over for the time being so it was time to step back into the real world but in the world of college athletics.
2) What personal or professional accomplishment(s) are you most proud of since you graduated?
I am married to my beautiful wife, Natalie, who constantly has my back and I have three children. Their names are Tsion, Elaina, and Stanley. Professionally, and outside of sports, I have published two books of poetry called Love & Basketball Memoirs of Life (2013) and Urban Mindscape: The Journey to Reality (2015). My third book, Pushback, will be out in the summer of 2019. I also host two podcasts called Tru Sports Talk and Two Grumpy Men.
3) What are you most proud of from your time as a Bloodhound?
My time as a Bloodhound from 1988 to 1992 was filled with great pride and joy. I had the best teammates and ultimately life-long friendships with many of those Bloodhounds. We are truly a family.
I spent my first two years, 88-89 and 89-90, on the J.V. basketball team under the direction of Coach Charlie Powell. This wasn't a typical J.V. team to say the least. We played a demanding and competitive schedule which included nationally ranked junior colleges and even a couple of Division 1 J.V. programs. My love for the game of basketball was re-discovered during the 1988-89 season. I averaged over 30 points a game in my two seasons on the junior varsity team. During the summer of 1990, prior to my junior year, I was working at a Five Star Basketball camp. During one of the night time runs between the camp counselors, an agent from a team in Greece offered me a contract and gave me a couple of weeks to decide what I wanted to do. I looked back on the previous two years as a Bloodhound and I truly felt like I had unfinished business, namely my college degree. A lot of factors went into my decision to return to college but getting that degree was one of the biggest ones.
My junior year started off rough under Coach Jeff Reisner. After I sprained my ankle during the first week of practice, I missed the first 10 games of the season. I did suit up for the last 14 games and scored 286 points (20 PPG). We finished up 14-12. My senior year I played in 22 games and scored 586 points (26 PPG - still a school record) and we finished up 15-12. After graduation, I did get an invite to a NBA tryout but got injured during the last session and eventually wasn't picked up but that's when life began.
4) What advice would you give your college self/current Bloodhounds?
My advice for anybody who puts on that John Jay College uniform is to cherish the moments that you have on the team and really soak up the experience. Playing collegiate basketball is definitely an honor and a privilege. Nobody owes you anything because you know what you signed up for as a student-athlete. The grades come first and you will be expected to still do well in school and be a good teammate and role model. Also, many of your peers may not understand that time management is essential to being a complete person. School work, practice, and games will literally take up most of your time but at the end of the day it truly is worth it. Hang in there, stay focused, have a plan, and ultimately see the plan through.
5) What did you learn in your time at John Jay that has stayed with you in your post-collegiate life?
My time at John Jay College was filled with blood, sweat, and tears. It was truly one of the most memorable times of my life. I went from a teenager to a man during those four years. What has stuck with me after all of these years is to take your time on this earth seriously because not too many of us get a second chance at life but we must also smile and stay spiritually connected to something bigger than you. I have also learned that suppressing the ego while being confident in your abilities and getting the job done will actually take you far in life. We must always be willing to learn new things and although we must adapt to the times, you should never sell your soul or compromise your integrity.
6) Are you still involved with sports? If so, how?
I have been in college athletics since 2007. From 2007 to 2009 at SUNY College at Old Westbury as the Director of Recreation and Intramurals and 2009 to present as an Assistant Athletics Director at the New York City College of Technology. I guess you can say my life in education has come full circle.
2018-19 Men's Basketball Update: The men's basketball team just wrapped up the 2018-19 regular season with an overall record of 15-10 and CUNYAC record of 9-7, their best season since 2003-04. The team knocked off Lehman College, 65-63, in the opening round of the CUNYAC Postseason Tournament. John Jay now takes on second seed College of Staten Island on Thursday, February 21,in the semifinals. The 18-19 Bloodhounds have been led by all-stars senior
Essien Epps and junior
Doug Levy. On Wednesday, January 16, 2019, Epps became the all-time scoring leader in program history when he scored his 1,566th career point. Levy finished the regular season with 16 double-doubles, 381 points (15.9 PPG), 325 rebounds (13.5 RPG), 76 blocks, and 40 assists.
To view all of the previous Alumni Spotlights, please visit www.johnjayathletics.com/alumnispotlight.
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