Photo by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com

Guard - Jake Ross
Springfield College
2016-2020

All-American selections: 2017 (Rookie of the Year), 2018 (2nd), 2019 (3rd), 2020 (1st)

All-Region selections: 2017 (2nd and Rookie of the Year), 2018 (Player of the Year), 2019 (1st), 2020 (Player of the Year)

Conference MVPs: 2018, 2020

NCAA Tournament appearances: 2018 (Final Four), 2020 (2nd round)

From the archives

• Ross erupts for 55 points and 21 boards (February 2020)
• Ross becomes Pride's all-time scoring leader (Decemeber 2019)
• Springfield never gives up (March 2018)
• Ross leads Springfield over No. 1 Amherst (Decemeber 2016)

What others say: "What made Jake such a special player was not just a great talent, which he was, but his vision as to how he could improve. I remember vividly our sit downs prior to each season to talk about what he could do better from the season before, and always with the focus on what he could do to make the team better and help his teammates better players. He made that focus his mission. Mission accomplished!" – Charlie Brock, Springfield head coach

In his own words: "My career at Springfield College was a great career and I’m proud of what my teammates and I did looking back today. I am personally proud of myself because I know it gave it my best effort."

Where are they now: Playing professionally in Bulgaria. "I played three months in Bulgaria for Yambol until covid related issues came into hand. My goal is to get back onto the court next year."

Career synopsis: It was hard to not know who Jake Ross was nearly from jump. If you missed his 29-point, 11-rebound collegiate debut back on Nov. 15, 2016, against crosstown rival Western New England, you might be excused, but you better have been paying attention 29 days later when Ross put up 21 and 10, to go with three blocked shots, as the Pride knocked off No. 1 Amherst. That year he averaged 22.7 points per game and he ended up as the D3hoops.com Rookie of the Year. He followed that up with an amazing sophomore year, in which the Pride reached the national semifinals after the team started 6-5. Ross poured in 768 points that year alone, including 31 on 8-for-11 shooting and 5-for-5 from downtown in a second-round win at Cabrini. 

Already at 1,358 points through two seasons, there was a non-zero chance that Ross could have threatened the all-time Division III scoring title held by Salisbury's Andre Foreman at 2,940 points. But the 2018-19 season was a distinct step backward for both Ross and Springfield. He posted his worst shooting numbers of his career, just 44% from the floor and 31% from 3-point range. Injured just five minutes into the second game of the season, Ross missed three games (all losses) and Springfield lost six of seven after he returned as well. The Pride finished 11-15. But Ross did not disappoint as a senior, dropping in 41 points in a Nov. 12 win vs. Keene State, 11 of them in overtime. He averaged 34.2 points per game in November, 26.5 in December, and after a slow January, poured it on with 29 points per contest in February. That included 55 in a 105-99 win vs. Coast Guard and 44 in an 88-82 loss to the Bears in the NEWMAC tournament. Although the season was not able to be concluded, Springfield was done in the second round, after a nail-biting 62-61 home loss to Hobart in which Ross wrapped up his career with 29 points. That left him with 2,634 for his career, tied for seventh all-time.