DIXFIELD – What you give the student-athlete who seems to have it all, including a full scholarship to one of the nation’s top universities? How about a pen?

Dirigo High School dropped everything for Tom Knight on Wednesday afternoon. It allocated an entire wing to the native son from neighboring Peru, canvassing tables with photos of Knight’s scholastic and AAU basketball career, his many press clippings, and enough catered food to feed the 100 invited guests.

Coaches Gavin Kane and Rebecca Fletcher even cued up Notre Dame’s immortal fight song, “Wake Up The Echoes,” as mood music when Knight and his parents, Karl and Kathy, walked in.

When it was time to do the business of signing his name to a national letter of intent, however, Knight came up empty. It was Kane who ultimately provided the assist on the most resounding slam dunk of Knight’s career, reaching into his pocket and sliding a stylus into his prized pupil’s left hand.

And with that, the soft-spoken kid who stands a head taller than everybody else in this one-stoplight community is headed for the bright lights of the Big East Conference.

“It’s sunk in,” said Knight, who verbally committed to Notre Dame last week. “I know it’s over, but now it’s pretty much just beginning. I’ve got to focus on getting bigger and stronger. I’ve got to start proving that I should be there.”

The 6-foot-9, 260-pound Knight joins 6-9 Mike Broghammer of Minnetonka, Minn., 6-8 Jack Cooley of Glenview, Ill., and 6-5 Joey Brooks of Houston in Notre Dame’s camp.

NCAA regulations prohibit schools from commenting on potential recruits until the first national signing day. Notre Dame coach Mike Brey was able to break his silence during a teleconference Wednesday morning.

“He really stood out for us when we saw him in Orlando at the AAU nationals,” said Brey, who visited Knight’s home and school in October. “The game comes easily to him. He’s a skilled big man. He has good hands and feet, which is true of the big guys who’ve been successful for us.”

Long-range forecast

Notre Dame has been a consistent 20-win tournament team in Brey’s tenure, despite attracting fewer Top 100 and 200 recruits than its storied football program.

Brey believes his school’s academic status and the current culture of NCAA hoops – where blue-chip talent uses elite programs as a glorified minor league system before leaving early for the pros – allows the Fighting Irish to look long-term with their national search.

“If a kid’s a good fit for us and is rated No. 18 in the country, we’re going to go after him. We don’t shy away from him. But those one-and-done guys generally aren’t interested in us,” Brey said. “When guys play for us generally they’re a little older. That’s a big advantage in our league. When an 18-year-old McDonald’s All-American is playing against a 21-year-old junior who has played in 70 college games, the result is not close usually.”

The implication is that Knight will have an opportunity to learn the Irish’s system at a relaxed pace while benefiting from a Division I strength and conditioning program.

He’s already made dramatic strides under Kane, one of only 10 coaches in Maine high school history to post more than 400 wins, and AAU coach Carl Parker.

Knight joked Wednesday that Parker motivated him to work harder “by calling me a bad basketball player.” Later, he admitted that his offseason mentor more frequently encouraged him by saying that Knight didn’t realize how good he could be.

“I remember the first tryout. Tom isn’t the best-looking kid physically. He looks a whole lot better now than he did,” Parker said. “We used to do a drill when (Sean) McNally, the kid from Gardiner who’s playing at Maine, couldn’t dunk the ball consistently. Tom the first time he went to turn did a two-handed dunk. We go 10 trips, and I think he got eight with two hands as a sophomore in high school. You could see some explosiveness there.”

Little big man

Knight’s repertoire far exceeds jams and lay-ups.

He is a tenacious rebounder and shot-blocker with a guard’s 3-point range. His passing skills also are keenly developed for a player of his physical stature.

“His drive, that’s the big thing,” Parker said. “I remember sitting in a hotel room at a camp and he asked me, ‘You think I’ve got a chance?’ I said, ‘Yeah, you’re the only big man here that can score and will be able to score against some of the best big men in the country.’ It takes the opportunity to play against better players outside the state. That’s one of the reasons why I think AAU is important.”

Three of Notre Dame’s recruits are projected as small or power forwards. Knight outweighs Broghammer and Cooley by about 40 pounds apiece, but it’s no accident that the scouting report on his raw skills is essentially the same.

“You can move our guys around a little bit. I don’t know what number you would put on some of our guys,” Brey said. “We can have a lineup on the floor with four ‘3’ (small forward) guys at the same time. That (versatility) is something that I think really helps us.”

That means competition for playing time, and Knight welcomes it.

“I don’t want it just given to me. I want to work for it,” said Knight, who chose Notre Dame over the less glitzy Rutgers and Maine. “I want to be in position to go to the NCAA Tournament every year, and I know that Notre Dame will be the best place for me to do it.”

Five-year plan?

Knight has acknowledged the possibility of a redshirt season, practicing with the team in 2009-10 while sitting out games and maintaining his four years of eligibility.

Brey hinted at that option with each of his recruits, again indicating that it is only an advantage when they become juniors and seniors.

“When we evaluate kids, we want to get guys who can grow older in our program. In our conference, we play against a lot of teams with one-year guys. We get our guys to understand that it’s going to be a good four-year, or in some cases even five-year run,” Brey said.

“The guys who come to play for us, especially big guys, we ask, ‘Are they easy to play with? Do they have a feel for the game?’ ” the coach added. “Thomas is an excellent passer. He’s a kid who can face up and make the outside shot. He’s a great fit for us and the way we play.

“We’re thrilled to have him.”