No Soft Touch Here
Brother Tony C of the Peanut Gallery shot me a message on Tuesday saying to prove my mettle as a journalist and a man, I had to ask the “touch questions” at today’s press conference to introduce Jeff Bzdelik as the Deacons’ new basketball coach. I don’t think he was referring to finesse questions, given the tenor of his challenge. The only other connotation of a ``touch question” would be indecent, and I’m not even going to go there.
If he meant ``tough questions,’’ well many were asked today, and some of them were even answered.
Not many can be found on the transcripts of the press conference now up on the Wake Forest sports website, http://www.wakeforestsports.com. I did ask about the difficulty of replacing a coach with a 61-31 record, and I asked about the status of the recruits. I also made sure that what we had reported, that Jeff Battle, Rusty LaRue and Walt Corbean would remain on staff, was correct.
Battle and LaRue will remain as assistants. Bzdelik was noncommittal as to whether Corbean will be promoted from director of basketball operations.
But the better stuff came later, when the ink-stained wretches of the print media were able to talk first with Athletics Director Ron Wellman and then with Bzdelik. I’ll be running out some of the questions and answers over the next day or two, to fill you in on what was said. I’m not going to get in the way of our coverage for the Winston-Salem Journal just yet, and I do have a show to play tonight at the Garage. But I will leave you with a tease of what Bzdelik said when it was pointed out that, rightly or wrongly, his performance will be compared against a coach, Dino Gaudio, who was 61-31 and made the NCAA Tournament the past two years.
“Life isn’t fair,’’ Bzdelik said. “You know what? Here’s the bottom line. I don’t read papers. I don’t even read internet. I don’t look at anything. I have no idea. All I care about is moving forward. I’ll be honest with you guys. I could care less. Because you know what? That doesn’t define me as a person, period. And I know Dino did a heck of a job. I do. And believe me I have the utmost respect for him. I said that when I called him.
“It’s like the story I heard about an Italian race car driver one time. This very wealthy man had this beautiful, beautiful wonderful expensive car and he was going to enter this car in a race, and he wanted to hire the best Italian race car driver. And so he did. And the guy came to the car and the first thing that he did was he got in the car and put his seatbelt on and he took the rearview mirror and he yanked it off and he threw it out the window. And the owner said `What are you doing that for?’ He says `Because I’m not interested in what’s behind me.’ And that’s how I feel.’‘
Back to the main page.
By Dan Collins on 04/14/2010 (6:47 pm)
Comments
Only one statement. I see no improvement ,on paper, regarding this move.
Carl on 04/15/2010 (2:05 pm)
Hey Dan - do you have any details about what Coach Bzdelik has said at previous press conferences when he has been introduced as the head coach at prior schools/jobs? It would be interesting to hear just what he said differently this time compared to what he said at Air Force (where, as some have said, he had no real intention of staying for long) and at Colorado (where he knew the rebuilding job at hand was monumental).
Matt on 04/15/2010 (12:57 pm)
I hate, I mean hate, those two quotes you posted. The first is moronic. The second is trite and contrived. He doesn’t read papers or “read the internet”? I hope he’s merely implying he doesn’t read sports message boards and that he’s not a total idiot who doesn’t read anything. Presumably he stays in touch with his community and the world by through some means. And the quote about the sports car? That’s so trite and contrived it made me cringe for the guy. I bet he’s said the same exact thing to the media at every job where he’s been introduced. I would love to see something from Bz that shows he has some intellectually acuity or at least shows some thoughtfulness and heft behind that veneer. I don’t want him quoting Shakespeare like Skip if that’s not him (I’m glad Dino quickly abandoned that practice) but does this guy have any meat on those bones?
John on 04/15/2010 (6:34 am)
You’ve got the touch Dan…
Thomas on 04/14/2010 (10:16 pm)
Dan, thanks for your great coverage of the change in coaches for Deacon basketball.
I like the quote from Coach Buzz, and I wonder he knows the source of it. It’s from the 1976 movie, “The Gumball Rally,” as noted on the Internet Movie Database site (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074597/quotes)
Franco: And now my friend, the first-a rule of Italian driving.
[Franco rips off his rear-view mirror and throws it out of the car]
Franco: What’s-a behind me is not important.
BobHWS on 04/14/2010 (9:10 pm)
Dan, From the peanut gallery I only have one other question. During the time with Wellmen, did you ask him how could he justify hiring someone with a loosing post season record when that was his explanation for firing Dino?
And his analogy of the race car driver tearing off the rear view mirror was silly. My only comment to that, he obviously has a large collection of rearview mirrors.
I would have a lot more respect of Wellmen if he would just tell the truth. And Oh, I would bet you money that those that say they never read the paper or the internet are the first that do.
I do no this, there are many donors like me who will take a wait and see position with regard to our monetary contributions moving forward.
Perhaps those who contribute thousands of dollars are not entitled to anything but the opportunity to purchase tickets, however the absolute least Wellmen should do is be honest and answer the questions everyone is asking. And to that I bid you a good night. I will be reading.
Tony C on 04/14/2010 (9:09 pm)
Great—Bzzz doesn’t recruit, according to the newspaper in Colorado Springs, where the Air Force Academy is located. Read it and weep:
“Jeff Bzdelik didn’t do a lot of personal recruiting,” [AFA] athletic director Hans Mueh told me last year. “He just didn’t. I don’t know what to make of that. It just is.”
“I can explain Bzdelik’s lack of recruiting success at Air Force. He never planned to stay. He never cared about the future of the program. He was too busy plotting his next move.”
http://www.gazette.com/sports/bzdelik-97084-ramsey-happy.html
DP on 04/14/2010 (8:34 pm)
Watched the replay of the press conference today.
At this point the only thing to do is see if the incoming recruits continue to be incoming to Wake or elect to go somewhere else. It concerns me that in your report you mentioned Coach BZ said:
“I don’t read papers. I don’t even read internet. I don’t look at anything. I have no idea.”
Hell Country, if this statement is true then we better circle the wagons. This guy does not have a clue!
After the recruits issue is settled, only thing left to do is wait till the b’ball season starts and see what transpires. I sure hope Wellman knows what he has done…
Tom on 04/14/2010 (7:52 pm)
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