It Was Huge - That’s A Fact, Jack

I knew the Final Four was big when the Bud Light cross-dressers, the four burly, hairy stars of those pool and volleyball TV commercials (“Who you callin’ guys?”), were in Seattle.

I knew it was rather huge when my neighbor on press row worked for Hogs Illustrated, a magazine extolling Arkansas basketball. He was due to put out 64 pages of Hogs’ copy by Thursday. Good luck. Three seats down began a string of Sports Illustrated writers.

And I knew it was enormous when CBS’ Leslie Visser looked me square in the eye and said, “Do you know UCLA?”

I looked back into her deep brown peepers and said, “Know ‘em? I played there.” At least that’s what I’m telling my buddies.

Actually, I told Visser, “Yeah.” I’ve always been quick on my feet.

Anyway, she wanted to know which UCLA assistant coach was Lorenzo Romar, whose father suffered an aneurysm on Saturday night and underwent two surgeries.

By Sunday, I had come to recognize some of the players’ parents and the teams’ ball boys, so pointing out Romar was no trouble.

Jack Nicholson wandered into the press room on Sunday. His hideous yellow sweater didn’t create a disturbance, but he sure did. He was chatting away when one reporter approached for an interview. Within a minute, dozens of scribes surrounded Nicholson and he had to be ushered away.

Three things struck me about the Final Four.

One, the fabulous athletes. Each team probably had two or three NBA-caliber players. For affirmation, all one needed to see was the dunk by UCLA’s Ed O’Bannon near the end of the championship game. Is it still a dunk when one throws the ball threw the hoop from 18 inches above the rim?

Two, the sheer magnitude of the event. The pack of roughly 600 print media gathered in a large, bubble-like structure next to the Kingdome that was roughly the diameter of the Dome and the width of a basketball court. From the intensity of the crowd to the presence of stars from sports, business and entertainment, the atmosphere for Monday’s final was mesmerizing. One first-timer to the Final Four - it wasn’t me, but it might as well have been - said dryly, “This is all a little underwhelming.”

And three, the fact that the players can thrive under incredible pressure and they’re still just kids. O’Bannon, the best college player in the land, received a congratulatory handshake from Lynn Swann after Monday’s game. After striding away, O’Bannon turned to younger brother Charles and screeched, “Do you know who that was? That was Lynn Swann!”

Even the coaches are kids at heart. In defeat, Arkansas’ Nolan Richardson was the epitome of class. Richardson received a coaching award for courage Monday morning and a 10-minute video of his life brought tears to his eyes and a lump to his throat that prevented him from speaking at length. Richardson and his wife have been known to go to garage sales, purchase clothes and donate them to needy families.

And UCLA’s Jim Harrick. He never let the media and talk-radio sniping get the better of him. He could have tried to turn the Final Four into a personal crusade for respect, but he left with much more than a few positive strokes from the media. His team won a championship the right way. The very definition of self-satisfaction.

Harrick had the smarts to enjoy the ride through the biggest, most pressure-packed spectacle in basketball, an experience of a lifetime. With or without Jack Nicholson.

On schedule

North Idaho College is boosting its men’s basketball schedule for next season. The Cards are planning a home tournament for the first time in coach Rolly Williams’ 34 years. Probable participants are Big Bend, Mount Royal (Calgary, Alberta) and an undetermined fourth club.

It also appears that NIC and several area four-year schools - will entertain a Hungarian club team in an exhibition game. Williams is waiting for papers to arrive from the National Junior College Athletic Association office. The game is tentatively scheduled for Friday, Nov. 10.

Eustachy happy

Former Idaho basketball coach Larry Eustachy shocked many recently when he turned down the UNLV job and inquiries from Oregon State. Nomadic Larry finally appears to have found a home at Utah State. A seven-bedroom home with a tennis court, to be precise.

“The bottom line is it was time to stay put,” he said. “I moved out to Idaho, a year later to Salt Lake City, two years at (Ball State in) Muncie, Indiana, back to Moscow and two years in Logan (Utah). What is that, five moves in seven or eight years?”

It’s been reported in Utah that Eustachy’s salary is slightly more than $100,000. It’s slightly more, all right. A source close to the situation said Eustachy has a new seven-year pact worth about $240,000 per year, with a sizable annuity in the middle and at least three rollover years.