Parent's Perspective: Zach Loveday's Dad Discusses BU commitment

Baylor MBB has it rolling on the recruiting trail the last 18 months.  Since April of 2018, the Bears have landed high impact transfers (Davion Mitchell, Macio Teague, Devonte Bandoo, Adam Flagler and Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua) and a host of 4 star high schoolers (Jordan Turner, Jared Butler, LJ Cryer, Dain Dainja).  The latest 4 star high school recruit to pledge to the Bears is Zach Loveday.  Loveday is a 7-0 219 lb stretch 4/5 who brings a lot of potential and a fairly polished skill set at age 17.  

It is always great to get a parent’s perspective of their son’s recruitment.  Here is my interview with Billy Loveday, the father of Zach.  

Let’s get the important questions out of the way, I’ve seen Zach listed at 7-0 200 lbs.  Is that accurate?  Do you know his wingspan?

Billy:  He has put on some weight at Huntington Prep.  I believe he was recently weighed at 219 lbs.  He likes to be listed below 7-0 but I think he’s 7-0 in shoes.  His wingspan is 7-1 ½ or 7-2, somewhere in that range.  

We’ve spent a lot of time on our premium board on his basketball ability but I would love to know what the recruiting process was like.  Why did Zach ultimately choose Baylor?  

Billy:  Zach would make a great poker player.  He played things close to the vest.  He paid attention when you didn’t think he was paying attention.  He approached things in a very analytical way.  I want to start by saying, the schools that recruited and offered Zach a scholarship all did things above board.  We hear about dirty recruiting in college basketball, but we didn’t experience any of that.  

Louisville and Baylor were Zach’s final two choices.  Both teams had styles of play that were attractive to Zach.  Louisville plays a little faster but Baylor plays fast enough and they go through their bigs a lot.  It was a really tough decision due in part to how much respect we had for Louisville (and Ohio State).  Ultimately, Zach felt very comfortable with the stability of the Baylor staff and how they develop their bigs.  He also really liked Waco and had two amazing visits.  The second visit was really to confirm that the first visit wasn’t just “too good to be true”.  The distance from home was a factor, but Zach felt like all the other things that Baylor had to offer overcame the distance from home.  We wanted it to be his decision and wanted him to make sure it would be to a place where he would be comfortable for years to come.  

Was the Christian focus of Baylor and emphasis of that with the basketball staff an attractive feature to Zach and your family?  

Billy:  For sure, we share the Christian faith and we wanted him to be at a place where he would grow in all aspects of his life and this is a huge positive for the Baylor program.  

Last time we talked you told me Zach is a talented musician.  I saw that he might want to be a part of the Baylor band.  Is that accurate?  

Billy:  He loves music.  Baylor has attractive programs for his major.  We will have to see on the band and how that will work with basketball.  

Will he arrive at Baylor in late May of 2020?

Billy:   Yes, that is the plan.  He knows he will need to get there and get to work with Charlie Melton (Baylor’s strength and conditioning coach) and the rest of the Baylor staff.  

How did Scott Drew react when Zach chose Baylor?  

Billy:  As you know, he is always high energy and positive but I would describe it as a meteor.  He was very fired up.  

What questions do you have for me?  You asked some good ones last time we talked.

Billy:  One of my questions is when will the new arena be ready?  I don’t know how much of a factor it played in Zach’s decision but it did not hurt.  Scott Drew is building something special.  He thinks he has an opportunity to make Final 4s and win national championships.  We believe that is the case as well.  

Ashley:  It should be on track to be ready for the 2021-22 season so by Zach’s second year at Baylor.  Thank you Billy for taking the time to talk.  I think I speak for Baylor fans when I say that we are very excited to watch Zach develop and prosper at Baylor.