Gerald Glass just recently signed his letter of intent with Holmes Community College. He made the decision to go there a long time ago.

Glass, a 6-foot-7 forward for Warren Central, had several junior college offers on the table this offseason. He stuck with Holmes, which stuck with him through injuries and a season of adjustment. Glass signed his letter of intent last week.

“I knew Holmes was the college for me, because they showed they wanted me the whole way,” Glass said. “Even after my 10th-grade year, tearing my ACL, they showed a lot of interest.”

Glass, the son of former Ole Miss stars Gerald Glass Sr. and Jackie Glass — his mother is now Warren Central’s girls coach — was on a lot of college teams’ radars early.

He tore his ACL and only played in two games as a sophomore, but averaged 9.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game as a junior while helping Amanda Elzy win its second consecutive Class 4A championship.

The Greenwood School District, which contains Amanda Elzy, was taken over by the state last fall and its sports teams were not allowed to participate in the postseason. Glass transferred to Warren Central and averaged a team-high 12.7 points per game as the Vikings won the Division 4-6A regular-season title.

“I think I came back better than I thought I would from the injury,” Glass said. “I’ve seen people come back weak. I think it improved my overall game. It gave me the vision of the game.”

Glass had some other junior college offers from Copiah-Lincoln and Itawamba Community College, but said he ultimately felt more comfortable with Holmes. Their early recruitment, as well as their plans for him, made it a good fit.

“(Coach Jason) Flanigan showed a lot of interest and how he’s going to implement me into their basketball program and work with me in the summer,” Glass said. “He said he was going to try to play me at the three and four, improve my ballhandling skills, and have me on campus in July.”

Glass is the third player from Warren County to sign with Holmes this spring. Vicksburg guards De’Angelo Richardson and Edward Davis, who led the Gators to the Class 5A championship game, signed in mid-April.

Glass said their decision didn’t influence his at all. He was just happy to have the opportunity to continue his basketball career at a place that wanted him.

“It’s great. Just to be a basketball player, everybody doesn’t get that opportunity,” he said. “I bring something to the game that people like, and Holmes sees that. They want to improve me and get me to a D-I school. I’m glad Holmes gave me this opportunity.”