Feature: Drue Drinnon, sticking to Plan A

Georgia native Drue Drinnon is about to start his freshman year as a Lobo. Isabel Gonzalez/The Lobo Lair

Isabel Gonzalez
@cisabelg

Drue Drinnon is all about basketball and has yet to dream up a Plan B. His focus is on the court, his family and friends, and the occasional video game battle with his teammates.
Ever since he was a kid, Drinnon liked to use his imagination.
“I stayed outside. My little brothers, they don’t go outside at all. They do video games and all that 24/7. I didn’t do any of that when I was younger,” he said. “I would go outside and use my imagination and played by myself. Climbed trees, just do weird stuff outside.”
Drinnon admitted he plays video games with other Lobo basketball players now, and very confidently said he is the one to beat (although other members of the team have said the same thing about themselves). That’s not how he spends all his time, though. When he is not in on the court or with a controller, he says he is hanging out with his girlfriend, who he’s been with for six years.
Growing up, Drinnon played both basketball and football. He tried quarterback, safety and corner. Being in college and watching college football makes him miss the sport, but he had a good reason to quit.
“I played both sports my whole life. In eight grade I had three concussions, back-to-back-to-back,” Drinnon said. “I decided to just drop football. I picked up basketball and went from there.”
Although he had to quit a sport he loves, basketball was not a bad replacement. Last year, Drinnon attended the University School in Florida and was part of the roster that gave the Sharks their first basketball state title ever.

State Champs‼️ pic.twitter.com/DWrlzBiM4l

— Drue Drinnon (@liljosh8) March 9, 2018

Drinnon has decided he wants to be a professional basketball player. All his focus is going toward achieving that goal, but if it wasn’t possible, he said he would find a way to still be around that environment.
“I want to be doing anything related to sports. I don’t want to leave basketball,” he said. “I could be a coach, trainer, anything like that. I don’t know. That’s something I need to really think about.”
One of the first things Drinnon mentions when you first meet him is that he is from Atlanta, Ga. Although he is on the other side of the country now, he stays true to the east, at least when it comes to music. He listens to a lot of rap and some R&B, with the first artists that come to his mind being from Atlanta. Lil Baby and Gunna are two of the rappers he mentions right away.
Coming to New Mexico was definitely a big change, but the Georgia native does not regret it at all. UNM made the official announcement of the signing of the 4-star guard on Nov. 11, 2017. Today, the freshman is one of three players that head coach Paul Weir is rotating during practice for the point guard position.

Keith McGee, Anthony Mathis and Drue Drinnon have been rotating the point guard position. Here is a quick look at @liljosh8 from practice today: pic.twitter.com/BFvdqUtMzt

— The Lair New Mexico (@thelairnm) October 3, 2018

Drinnon is the youngest of the players rotating for the positing, as Anthony Mathis is a senior and Keith McGee is a redshirt sophomore. However, he describes himself as hardworking and said he’s ready to make an impact on the team.
“I love basketball, came here for a reason. I’m ready to step up to the challenge and play,” Drinnon said.