Hoops from the get-go

By Fred Jeter

Published: December 11, 2008

Deep Run senior forward Tommy Folliard comes by basketball naturally. His parents played in college. If playpens were designed with a hoop at each end and a mobile as an overhead scoreboard, Tommy Folliard III might have been first to crawl in one.

Air booties by Jordan? Baggy shorts instead of diapers?

OK, that's a stretch, but if ever a boy was born to ball, it's Folliard, now a 6-6 senior forward for Deep Run High School.

"Tommy can do a lot," Wildcats first-year coach Rally Axselle said. "Everyone knows he's a great shooter, and he can post up shorter defenders. He can do a little of everything."

Folliard averaged 15 points and five rebounds as a junior. He's averaging 14 points this season for the 2-1 Wildcats.

Gene pool: Shooting touches, like hair color, can be hereditary, it seems. Parents Tom and Mary are basketball legends at Florida Tech in Melbourne.

Tommy III's father, Tom Folliard Jr., netted more than 1,000 points in three seasons (1985-88) at the NCAA Division II school and is a member of its Athletic Hall of Fame. His Tech records include steals in a game (an amazing 16) and 3-pointers in a game (nine).

Mary Kispert Folliard, a potent post player who ranks with the school's all-time rebounders and shot blockers, also is recalled for the year she didn't suit up. She took a medical redshirt in 1990-91 to give birth to Tommy III.

"I was taking Tommy to games the next year to watch his mother," Folliard Jr. said. "She had a great season, and Tech went 27-2."

Third generation: The Folliards pass down their basketball skills like some families do jewelry.

Tommy III's grandfather played with the likes of John Thompson and Lenny Wilkens at Providence College under Joe Mullaney. The Friars were NIT runners-up in 1961.

"Our family has been nothing but basketball," said Folliard Jr., who is the CEO for CarMax.

Team on rise: Deep Run, with Folliard and standout guard Antone Exum, appears to at least be on the rim of the area's elite after going 17-8 a year ago.

"If we play well and execute, we can play with anyone," Folliard III said.

The 200-pounder lists his role as "scoring and rebounding" and his position as "trail forward." Having basketball in his blood offers many plusses.

"I get good advice," he said. "It's not like going home and talking to parents who don't know the game."

Folliard has one of region's best 3-point shots (42 percent last year), albeit nontraditional.

"My outside shot doesn't spin," he said. "It's a knuckleball."

Interest among college recruiters is brewing, but Folliard may take a prep season at Phillips Exeter Academy in Andover, Mass. That's the alma mater of presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, as well as New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

Coming attraction: Deep Run is doubly blessed with Folliards.

It's no surprise, but Maura Folliard, Tommy III's 6-foot sister, made the Wildcats' varsity this winter as a freshman.