Look what I found with Google, amazing isnt it? Sounds like Cal was his 1st choice, eh?
KNOXVILLE Heralded Tennessee freshman Jarnell Stokes needed only 31 seconds to begin making a good impression in his college debut Saturday. Barely a half-minute after entering the game, he scored over Kentucky's Eloy Vargas on a post-up.
Less than two minutes later, Stokes hit a 15-footer.
"My time is now," Stokes said of his nine-point debut.
"I grew up a Cal fan in Memphis," Stokes said after Kentucky beat Tennessee 65-62. "Cal was the man back then."
Calipari was still the man when Stokes made a recruiting visit to UK.
"He definitely offered me a scholarship," Stokes said of Calipari. "But they didn't have a scholarship on the table because he and I were unaware I was graduating early."
An honors student, Stokes graduated last month from Southwind High School in Memphis. He gained his college eligibility earlier in the week.
"I thought I was ready to come play (for UK)," he said. "I could have come and redshirted."
Stokes said he decided to take the scholarship Tennessee offered and, with it, the chance to play immediately.
"I feel I'm still a kid," he said. "You're asking a kid to sit out a year. I wanted to play for Calipari but I cant sit, I want to play now."
Stokes impressed both sides in his 17-minute stint.
"Makes them a way better team," Calipari said.
Noting how Stokes energized UT and a sellout crowd, UK freshman big man Anthony Davis said, "He's really going to be a key factor for (the Vols)."