PLEASANT HILL – Jacob Neely and Landen Melvin, two of the Pleasant Hill Billies’ standout senior athletes this past season, have committed to play for George Fox University next year, the largest private university in the state.
Attending college together for the Division III Bruins should be a comfortable fit.
“It’s just amazing. We’ve been best friends since first grade,” Neely said of his relationship with Melvin. “To be able to go through elementary, middle, and high school with someone, and then go off to college with that same person … Going off to college with anyone you know is nice, because it’s a different feel, a different area, but especially with that being your best friend, it just means that much more.”
Neely and Melvin recently committed to the private Christian school in Newberg, which has 4,339 students according to its website. Melvin will play basketball and Neely will play football.
For Melvin, the school has long been one of his top choices, in large part because of the family connections he has there. Melvin’s father and two uncles all played at the university. His uncle Travis is the 17th-leading scorer in school history, and his other uncle Ben led the Bruins in assists in the 2003-04 season.
The Bruins were 4-21 last year as head coach Maco Hamilton tried to replace NWC Player of the Year Momo Stokes. While Melvin likely will not step immediately into the lead guard role that Stokes occupied two seasons ago, he may have an easier transition than most freshmen.
“From when I asked (coach Hamilton), he said (the team’s play style) was really run ‘n’ gun, super-free flowing, just letting players make reads and everything, and he said he wasn’t super strict on exactly what you had to do,” Melvin said. “It’s just making reads, trying to make extra passes, and hustle hard.”
That might sound familiar to followers of Billies basketball, because it is a similar philosophy to that of Billies head coach Luke Jackson.
“I learned a lot these past four years of high school basketball. I feel like being able to take that and just build upon it under a new coach and a new staff and grow with my (basketball) IQ in the game of basketball, and I feel like that’ll be really huge,” Melvin said.
Already ‘on a plan’
Melvin said he already is on a workout plan given to him by the Bruins to try to bulk up and be ready for the rigors of college basketball.
Neely is also on a workout plan given to him by his new coaches. Neely’s efforts to bring his grades up this school year paid off, and he was accepted to George Fox after an appeal. Neely was between Linfield University and George Fox, but after going on a visit to the Bruins campus with the Melvins, he was sold.
“I love the people down there. They’re all super nice,” Neely said. “It feels like a mini D-1 program, even though it’s (Division III) … I got accepted through (the appeal), and I just thought it’s a no-brainer. Landen was thinking about going there, and we could room together, and now we’re going through that process trying to get our room set up and go together, and I think that’ll be pretty awesome.”
Neely will play safety for the Bruins, where he was third-team all-state as a junior, and had six interceptions and tied for the team lead in tackles as a senior. When he will play is something of a question mark, given a hip injury that might need surgery.
Bruins head coach Spencer Crace went 4-6 overall and 4-3 in NWC Conference play in his first year. Crace is an offensive coach, but assistant head coach and defensive coordinator Lukkes Gilgan is also Neely’s position coach with the safeties. Gilgan’s first year leading the Bruins defense led to the second-best defense in terms of yards allowed per game. Before coming to George Fox, Gilgan was the defensive coordinator at Pacific for nine seasons, and had at least one defensive back finish 2nd team all-conference or better in each of his final six seasons (no All-NWC teams were released in the COVID-19 abbreviated 2020 season).
Being surrounded by those of a similar faith was also important for Neely and Melvin.
“It’s pretty cool to be around all that, be around those kinds of people. And it’ll only build your faith even more just by being around those people,” Neely said.
The two have been dreaming of playing college sports for many years, and now get to realize that dream in the fall. Doing it together will just make it that much sweeter.
“I have a family in my life that I consider to be my family. We’re not blood related, but I’m just super blessed I can have them by my side through this and have them help me to accomplish this,” Neely said.
