Jermaine Savage could be the most underrated player during the Dave Loos era of Austin Peay basketball.
Despite scoring 1,345 career points and grabbing more than 525 rebounds, the 6-foot-4 Savage was content to play in the shadow of his much heralded teammate and good friend, Bubba Wells. They combined to give APSU the best forward combination in the OVC during the mid-1990s.
Tremendously resilient and competitive, the Franklin, Ky., native missed just one practice during his entire four-season career. Just as importantly, Savage never took off a practice. The lithe 175-pounder, appropriately nicknamed “Coop” after the Los Angeles Lakers Michael Cooper, became a Governors strength.
In fact, Savage had to overcome a disappointing start to his Governors career. Savage struggled as a freshman, averaging only 2.4 points and 2.4 rebounds per game, shooting only 30.3 percent from the floor.
As a sophomore, he came back as a different player. After attempting to play guard as a freshman, he slipped down to the forward spot and found his home. In fact, he started all 27 games and earned honorable mention All-OVC after averaging 13.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, both ranking second on the team. He scored double figures 20 times, including a 29-point outing against Southern Illinois.
He came back as a junior to average 12.4 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, again both figures ranking second on the team.
However, he saved the best for his senior season, a year that saw the Governors capture the OVC tourney title and advance to the 1996 NCAA tournament.
He averaged a career-best 17.5 points per game, second to Wells. That included more than 40 three pointers, including one from midcourt at the buzzer that beat Eastern Kentucky in his career-high, 34-point performance. He was a 76 percent free-throw shooter.
But that was only half of the Savage persona. He well may be the best defensive player in Dave Loos' 17 seasons as Governors head coach. During the 1995-96 season, Savage literally became the “Silent Assassin.” On 16 different occasions that season, Savage held the man he was guarding to well below his respective scoring average or forced that player to take an inordinate amount of shots to reach that average.
Never was it more evident than in the 1996 OVC tournament. During the Govs’ run to the OVC tourney title, Savage locked down his opposite: former prep teammate and second-team All-OVC choice DeMarkus Doss was held to five points in the first round; first-team All-OVC choice and top 25 NCAA scorer Monty Wilson was held to 15 points in the second round and Marcus Brown, one of the nation's top three scorers, was held to 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting in the title game. In fact, in the last two meetings between Savage and Brown, the OVC Player of the Year, the Governors defender held him to 13-of-38 shooting.
Savage concluded his career with 20 points and six rebounds against Georgia Tech in the NCAA tournament.
