Transfer guard Trevell Adams had his collegiate start at Ohio Dominican in his hometown of Colombus, Ohio. However, due to a shift in coaching staff, the pandemic and his lack of film, he spent two seasons at Hocking College in Nelsonville, Ohio.   

After success at Hocking College, it was time for Adams to make a shift in environment – and these options weren’t limited. 

“Over my course of two years I had 16 offers and I chose here to continue my athletic and academic career,” Adams said. 

He wasn’t a new face for Ashland University Head Men’s Basketball Head Coach John Ellenwood. 

“I had seen him when he was in high school, South High School,” Coach Ellenwood said.  “We were aware of who he was but then he went to junior college and we always kind of kept tabs on him, see how he’s doing, and he was doing great for Hocking.” 

He was Hockings’ leading scorer with 1,208 career points and leading the JUCO to the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) championship in 2021-22 and regional runner-up in 2022-2023 

Although Adams is an outstanding player on the basketball court, there was once a time when he was a duel athlete playing football.  Unfortunately, he suffered from turf toe, an injury common in football players, and he couldn’t allow that to end both his football and basketball career. 

“It was just super hard to come back from,” Adams said.  “And to be honest too, I just wanted to focus more on basketball because we weren’t very good in football at the time, and I was risking myself getting further injured and it was going to translate to basketball.” 

This injury in football led him to focus on prioritizing his basketball career which he finds is one of the biggest adversities he faced in his lifetime. 

“Sometimes I still think about going back to it, or how good I could’ve been if I were to stick with it,” he said. 

Although he has proven himself to be an outstanding athlete, he prioritizes his life outside of the court.  

He currently is a Business Administration major and Fashion design and Retail as his minor.  This translates into his interest in fashion and art. 

“I like to draw, paint, and sew in my free time,” he said. 

His interest is what also gained Coach Ellenwood’s attention. 

“Trevell was a very good student at the community college, and I said he really cares about who he is past basketball once he graduates,” Coach Ellenwood said.  “Sometimes basketball just doesn’t work out and we want every situation for every guy we recruit to work out.” 

Adams’s prioritization of himself and his family is what led him to his career. 

“Real family oriented and then I have a girlfriend that I spend a lot of time with,” he said.  “Chill, laid-back, kind of nonchalant guy so I like to chill with my family.” 

His family-oriented spirit is what drove him to basketball and pursue a college career. 

 “I would say it all started from when I was younger, from playing since I was three years old,” Adams said.  “I had a bigger brother who I was always trying to get his approval, trying to play with him, and just trying to keep up.” 

“My toughness and my never-quit attitude kind of came from my mom and dad,” Adams said. 

His personality traits don’t go unnoticed, Coach Ellenwood found Adams would assimilate into Ashland University culture and academics perfectly. 

“He’s mentally tough,” Coach Ellenwood said.  “Those are things I loved about him and thought he’d be a great fit at our school.” 

Some of Ashland University’s core values are integrity, self-discipline, and leadership.  Adams displays if not all, then most of these values. 

His transferring to Ashland isn’t a decision he regrets. 

“I feel as if we still have a lot of threads and pieces we unfortunately didn’t get to figure out early on this year,” he said.  “Hopefully we still do have that stretch in March where we can gradually figure each other out and still click.” 

He states he doesn’t see himself transferring and plans on continuing his academic and athletic career at Ashland University. 

Adams has gotten so far into his career through this advice, especially to young athletes out there. 

“Consistency and discipline can definitely take you a long way,” He said.  “Try to stack good days and give it everything you have everything you have step out onto the court, the field, wherever your occupation is and just give it your all.”