Sophomore Ben Coblyn quit the Boston University men’s basketball team yesterday, according to sources close to the team and within the athletic department.
While it is unknown why he left, Coblyn’s decision is the latest in a string of departures and releases that have seen five Terriers part ways with the team since last spring.
Tony Gaffney, Bryan Geffen and Brendan Sullivan were all granted their respective releases by coach Dennis Wolff last March and Corey Hassan engaged in a back-and-forth dispute with Wolff that ultimately led to his departure over the summer.
And while Geffen and Sullivan never commented on their reasons for leaving BU, both Gaffney and Hassan cited differences with the coaching staff, including multiple clashes with Wolff.
“We weren’t on the same page,” Gaffney told The Daily Free Press last March. “I tried and tried [to make it work], but it just wasn’t working out.”
“I believe a lot of things that have gone on this year weren’t right with me and his situation and he might feel differently,” he continued.
Although the exodus of Gaffney, Geffen and Sullivan can be traced to in-season suspensions (Gaffney and Geffen) and lack of playing time (Sullivan and Gaffney), Hassan’s exit came as somewhat of a surprise-at least to the public.
Hassan officially left the university this summer, but he told The Daily Free Press in September that problems between he and Wolff could be traced back to February, when the freshman first told the coach he was unhappy in Boston.
Once Wolff and Hassan had thought they worked matters out after the end of the season, Hassan once again asked for his release.
“When I told him after the season he got mad at me and after I told him I was going to leave he didn’t really talk to me at all,” Hassan told the DFP on Sept. 8. “I still like him. I hope he still likes me. I’m not going to hate him because he gave me a conditional release.”
“In the spring if it was just, ‘I don’t like Boston and I want to be at a smaller school,’ I would’ve given him his release,” Wolff said at the time. “I’m not going to make somebody stay. The idea that there was any pressure is laughable.”
Coblyn’s release comes as a surprise since the 6-foot-8, 252-pound forward from Amherst was expected to play a vital role for the Terriers this season. A favorite for the starting power forward position this season, Coblyn played in 23 games in 2005-06, averaging just over 16 minutes per game and posting 5.3 points per game and 3.1 rebounds.
The BU athletic department is expected to issue a press release later this morning.
Check dailyfreepress.com for updates throughout the day.