Tarkanian Bulldogs Way Back Into Game

Seven months after he was lured out of retirement, Jerry Tarkanian is ready.

The bald coach with a fondness for chewing on white towels during games said he hopes to put less stress on himself and not get so wound up.

But can the coach with college basketball’s best winning percentage find the same success at Fresno State that he did at UNLV?

Tarkanian led the Runnin’ Rebels to the national championship in 1990 and led his own personal crusade against the NCAA for most of his years at Long Beach State and UNLV. He’s back on the bench at his alma mater after three years away from college basketball.

“I’ve always said the games were never fun for me,” Tarkanian said. “I’m going to try to go into the games with a more positive attitude. I don’t want to let the pressure eat me up.”

Tarkanian said he has no lofty goals for Fresno State this year and doesn’t even promise a winning season, let alone an NCAA tournament appearance.

“My only goal is that nobody’s going to play harder than us,” he said. “I’ve never talked to any of my teams about winning a game, winning a tournament or winning a championship. You just don’t have any control over those things.”

Tarkanian’s presence alone doesn’t mean a rise to the national rankings for Fresno State, yet hiring Tarkanian certainly ups the ante.

The team has been flooded with national media requests ever since Tarkanian was named coach in April. ESPN and ESPN2 have agreed to televise six Fresno State games, even though the Bulldogs have had only two winning seasons in the past 10 years.

And almost all the season tickets have been sold for Fresno State’s 17 home games. That virtually guarantees a series of sellouts at 10,159-seat Selland Arena for the first time since the Boyd Grant era, when the Bulldogs were nationally ranked and won the 1983 NIT.

Fresno State’s fans, known as the Red Wave, will be mightily disappointed if the Bulldogs don’t improve on last season’s 13-15 record.

First up for Fresno State is Weber State in the Preseason NIT, a tournament the Bulldogs were invited to only after Tarkanian was hired.

“It really puts the pressure on us to win,” forward Darnell McCulloch said. “It hasn’t hit us yet that he’s one of the best ever. We’re blessed.”

If history is any indication, the Bulldogs should finish with a winning record. Tarkanian has never had a losing season in his college coaching career.

And if his past is any guide, controversy will find its way to Tarkanian, who waged a 20-year battle with the NCAA. That already seems to be holding true.

Assistant coach Danny Tarkanian, the coach’s son, and three players were searched at gunpoint Oct. 6 by police responding to a report of a man with a gun creating a disturbance outside a Fresno restaurant. No arrests were made and the school issued no punishments.

An in-house investigation was conducted following rumors that Tarkanian and his staff violated NCAA rules by watching players practice during the summer. Interim athletic director Ben Quillian said the team broke no rules.

And only seven players were able to suit up for an exhibition game Wednesday.

Terrance Roberson and James Gray had to make up academic requirements, while Kendric Brooks and Rahsaan Smith had eligibility problems officials hoped to clear up by the weekend.

Freshmen Larry Abney and Gerrit Terdenge also have not been cleared by the NCAA and have not even been able to practice with the team.

Only guards DeAndre Austin and Brandon Bakke have more than one year of major college experience. Other key returning players are point guard Dominick Young, who averaged 15.6 points last season, and McCulloch, who averaged 13.9.

Success likely will depend on how the Bulldogs’ flashy recruiting class responds. Among the newcomers are Roberson and junior college transfers Gray and Brooks. Roberson, from Saginaw, Mich., is one of the most heralded recruits ever for Fresno State.

“We’re going to have a fantastic team,” Roberson said. “I think our team is so deep. With all those guys on the bench, it’s like we have another option.”

Last year’s Fresno State team survived mostly on 3-pointers, which kept the Bulldogs in many games despite poor defense. Tarkanian has instilled a more aggressive defense and his patented fast-break style that made UNLV one of the most popular teams in the country.

“He told us we’ll be the same as Vegas - run and gun,” McCulloch said. “We’ve got everything in place. Now it’s all up to us.”