Rock in the Pit: 7-foot-1 Iowa State transfer J.T. Rock transferring to play for UNM Lobos

Eric Olen continues laying the foundation for his first team as head coach of the UNM Lobos.

Tuesday, he got a Rock.

J.T. Rock, a 7-foot-1, 260-pound center from Iowa State — a former Top 100 recruit out of high school — announced on social media he will transfer to play for the Lobos this coming season.

He made his recruiting visit to Albuquerque this past weekend.

“UNM was the right fit for me because of the style of play,” Rock told the Journal in a text message. “Coach Olen and the staff expressed how they saw me fitting into their system very well, and being able to make an impact.”

Rock was originally set to graduate from Lincoln High School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in 2024. As a junior in 2023, he competed in the invitation-only National Basketball Players Association Top 100 camp and at the Under Armour Future 60 camp while being ranked by ESPN the No. 68 recruit for 2024.

He averaged 18 points, 10 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game as a junior while being named the South Dakota AA Player of the Year.

With enough credits to graduate high school after his junior year, Rock reclassified to the Class of 2023 and was ranked No. 89 by Rivals and No. 96 by 247 Sports in that class.

Kansas, West Virginia, Iowa, Creighton, Wisconsin and Purdue, among others, offered Rock out of high school.

After sitting out the 2023-24 season, Rock played nine games this past season at Iowa State, rarely getting off the bench as a redshirt freshman, though he did play behind a fifth-year senior center (Dishon Jackson) and a sixth-year senior center (Brandton Chatfield) and when the Cyclones went small, they moved 6-9 forward Joshua Jefferson, a second team All-Big 12 selection, to the “5” spot, leaving little chance for Rock to play.

“Something I’ve learned the most in my time at Iowa State is perspective,” Rock told the Journal. “I learned a lot about how to cheer on my teammates and pour into the team. I have been working hard in the weight room as well to make sure my strength is where it needs to be. I would say I have also adjusted more to the speed of the college game, I am able to see the floor better than I had previously and I would say I have developed a better feel for the flow of the game at this level.”

Rock has three seasons of eligibility remaining. His addition gives UNM a rare true 7-footer.

In the 26 season Mountain West era, there have been six players on UNM rosters listed as 7-foot or taller, though only two — Alex Kirk and Obij Aget — saw significant minutes and game action while in Albuquerque and the other six all transferred away before their playing eligibility expired:

Lobo 7-footers since 2000:

• 7-1 Obij Aget (122 games, 94 starts, 18.6 minutes, 2013-2017)
• 7-0 Chad Bell (56 games, 19 starts, 14.4 minutes, 2001-2003)
• 7-1 Moustapha Diagne (23 games, 16 starts, 9.5 minutes, 2002)
• 7-0 Sebastian Forsling (70 games, 13 starts, 8.9 minutes, 2021-2024)
• 7-0 Alex Kirk (101 games, 86 starts, 25.3 minutes, 2010-2014)
• 7-1 Nikola Scekic (11 games, zero starts, 6.8 minutes in 2016)

Current roster

Olen has had to rebuild the roster after every player from last season either graduated or entered the transfer portal following former coach Richard Pitino’s departure to Xavier.

Rock is the eighth player either signed or publicly committed to play for the Lobos next season.

The NCAA transfer portal closes at midnight Tuesday, meaning players intending to play for another school next season have to declare their intent by the end of the day.

Recruiting can continue until the start of the fall semester of players in the portal.

A handful of players will be making recruiting visits to UNM later this week.

Here are the players who have publicly committed or already signed to play for the Lobos next season (alphabetically):

• Antonio Chol, 6-9 forward, junior college transfer from Garden City Community College in Kansas (two years of eligibility)
• Jake Hall, 6-4 guard, Carlsbad (California) High School (four years of eligibility)
• Chris Howell, 6-6 guard, transfer from UC San Diego (one year of eligibility)
• Kallai Patton, 6-4 guard, transfer from USC (four years of eligibility)
• Kevin Patton, 6-8 forward, transfer from USC (two years of eligibility)
• J.T. Rock, 7-0 center, transfer from Iowa State (three years of eligibility)
• Uriah Tenette, 5-10 guard, Prescott (Arizona) High School (four years of eligibility)
• Milos Vicentic, 6-7 forward, graduate transfer from UC San Diego (one year of eligibility)