MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — It’s been a long time coming for Elijah Macon. The WVU signee on Friday officially enrolled at WVU, ending a process that had spanned over two recruiting classes.
“It’s very shocking,” Macon said from his new dorm room on Friday evening. “All the work I put in during the summer, the tests I’ve taken and the summer schooling for the last two or three years has all finally paid off. I’m just happy to be here.”
Macon’s ultimate eligibility for this season, specifically, still has to be handed down by the NCAA. But just partially qualifying, at least, is significant for Macon who failed to qualify last fall and spent the season at Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.
“There were a couple of times after I left Brewster Academy that I didn’t think I would make it,” Macon said. “I wasn’t getting test scores back fast enough, I had to wait a couple of weeks just to get the SAT scores back. I was a little worried, but once I got the call, I was just so ready to get on the road. I was so happy.”
The ‘will he’ or ‘won’t he’ qualify question has been centered around Macon now for quite some time. And certainly, during the whole process, the opportunity to play elsewhere at a lower level was an option. But Macon ultimately wanted to be at WVU.
“West Virginia was so loyal through the whole recruiting process,” Macon said. “When things came to light, I lost a lot of schools, but West Virginia was one of the schools that stayed around.”
The final piece of the puzzle for Macon is on his eligibility to play for this season. If he’s only a partial qualifier, he’ll be able to practice, but have to sit out of games this year and be eligible to play next season. If the NCAA rules he’s a full qualifier, he will be able to play immediately.
“Right now, it’s just good to be enrolled at school, so I can finally start school,” Macon said. “That report should be coming out soon on whether I will be able to play this year or not.”