Brandenburg headed to Colgate

Former Virginia big man John Brandenburg, who left the school in July for unspecified personal reasons, is transferring to Colgate, The Daily Progress learned on Wednesday.

Brandenburg could not be reached for comment, but Colgate coach Emmett Davis confirmed the move.

“We’re really excited,” Davis said. “I watched John play when he was a rising senior and was very, very interested in him as a player, as so many people were.

“He’s a kid who has a terrific upside. We need some inside help, so we expect him to be a real fine player for us.”

As a freshman for UVa last season, Brandenburg was beaten out for playing time by 7-foot teammate Assane Sene, a fellow first-year.

Brandenburg, a 6-foot-11, 241-pounder, averaged just 1.0 points and 0.8 rebounds in eight games, averaging only 3.3 minutes of action.

However, the St. Louis native was a 4-star recruit coming out of

De Smet Jesuit High and was viewed as a player with a ton of potential. At the time, Brandenburg, a very good student, selected Virginia over Stanford.

The most notable play of Brandenburg’s Cavalier career came in the waning minutes of an ugly loss at Clemson when he blocked the shot of the Tigers’ Demontez Stitt, then was hit with a technical foul for taunting Stitt.

Colgate finished 10-20 last season, including a 5-9 mark in the Patriot League. The school’s most heralded player in recent years was former star center Adonal Foyle, a first-round draft choice of the Golden State Warriors in 1997.

Davis has some experience in developing talented big men. When he was an assistant coach at Navy, he worked with former Midshipmen star David Robinson, who went on to a Hall of Fame NBA career.

“I think he can be an impact player for us,” said Davis, referring to Brandenburg. “We were in the [Patriot League] championship two years ago. We feel a player like John can help us get back there and maybe this time get over the top and push us into the field of 64.”

Per NCAA rules, Brandenburg will have to sit out this season, but should be eligible for the 2010-11 campaign.

Davis wasn’t exactly sure why things didn’t work out for Brandenburg at Virginia.

“I think he’d be the person to talk about that,” he said. “I expect him to be a terrific player for us … I really don’t know what the situation was down there.”