Cubs' Jim Hendry May Have Been the First Person To Have Swine Flu When He Signed Milton Bradley; Also, Cyclone Wrestling,Tim Floyd, Empty Restaurants

I wrote something the other day about what a godawful thing it was that Milton Bradley was the subject of my 1,000th message on Twitter.

Bradley is the can't-hit, can't-field, always-injured Cubs outfielder whose batting average is a lusty .097 in his first season.

I had written something on Twitter to Jim Sullivan of the Waterloo Courier about Bradley being not only a cancer in the Cubs' clubhouse, but also on the field.

Obviously, it was a horrible decision by general manager Jim Hendry to sign Bradley to a three-year, $30 million contract in the off-season.

Actually, it have may have been an indication that Hendry was the first guy in the nation to show signs of having swine flu.

*

Speaking of swine flu, I hear Carolyn Washburn went to a doctor wondering if she had it.

Swine flu, I mean.

The doctor sent Washburn back to her office at the Register and told her there were a number of things wrong with her, but swine flu wasn't one of them.

"One more thing," the doctor said. "Quit using pictures of empty restaurants in Datebook.'

The latest empty-restaurant photo the paper published in Datebook showed the vacant dining room at Mexico Viejo [left].

*

No thanks, said Mark Manning.

Manning [pictured at the right] is the wrestling coach at Nebraska, and he says he was offered by Iowa State job by athletic director Jamie Pollard.

“I talked with [Iowa State] a couple of times, and that was it,” Manning told Karl Vogel of the Lincoln Journal Star.

“Obviously, ISU is a tradition-rich program and it’s nice to know that there’s some interest. But I’m awful happy here at Nebraska and happy in the leadership of [athletic director] Tom Osborne and Bob Burton (the Huskers' associate athletic director in charge of wrestling).”

Manning is finishing the first year of a four-year contract with Nebraska at an annual salary of $101,091.

Kevin Jackson was named Iowa State's coach today [story on the right side of this page].

*

From my West Coast Correspondent:

Scott Wolf of "Inside USC" writes, "There is a growing list of sources from Tucson who claim Tim Floyd actually contacted Arizona in an effort to get a raise from USC."

Other people aren't surprised that the former Iowa State coach might use leverage to get a better deal at Southern California. It happens all the time in the coaching business.

*

Some people think Mike Gartner might also have swine flu.

*

Even though WHO-TV and the Register have a new agreement to share news content, that didn't stop the paper from screwing up the name of Iowa's baseball coach.

The paper called him Jeff Dahm. Actually, the guy's name is Jack Dahm.

I hope WHO-TV starts providing copy editors in its continuing efforts to save the paper.

And, oh, by the way, Iowa's football coach is Kirk Ferentz, not Chuck Ferentz.

*

I can't wait until those reporters and editors from the Register start appearing on WHO-TV.

Well, maybe I can.

*

Melissa Isaacson, the laid-off Chicago Tribune sportswriter, said she has cancelled her subscription to the paper, and so has her brother.

Bulldogs Get a New 6-7, 240-Pound Basketball Player; Ex-Vermont Forward Jordan Clarke Says He's Impressed With the 'Great Facilities' At Drake

The University of Vermont's loss is Drake's gain.

Jordan Clarke [pictured at the right], a 6-7, 240-pound forward who averaged 1.4 points and 1.6 rebounds last season as a freshman for a Vermont basketball team that had a 24-9 record, says he'll transfer to Drake.

The Washington Post said Clarke visited the Drake campus last weekend before committing to the Bulldogs. It's assumed he will have to sit out next season to satisfy NCAA transfer regulations.

"I got along great with the coaches and players," Clarke said in an e-mail. "It is a real good school, they have great facilities and the Missouri Valley Conference is one of the best in the country. "They were in the top-25 two years ago, and Des Moines is a real nice city."

Clark played at Good Counsel High School in North Bethesda, Md., and was said to have 45 scholarship offers from university and college programs while there.

*

Newspapering continues to be a brutal business.

I was sorry to learn that Melissa Isaacson [pictured at the left], a University of Iowa graduate who was a veteran columnist, feature writer and reporter in the sports department of the Chicago Tribune, was among 53 employees of the paper who recently lost their jobs.

Isaacson, who once was interviewed for a job in the sports department of the Des Moines Register, but declined the offer, was yet another victim of the difficult economic times in journalism.

She did an outstanding job covering Hawkeye teams for the Daily Iowan when she attended Iowa, and went on to get bigtime reporting jobs around the nation.

After landing at the Tribune, she covered the Chicago Bulls and Bears, among other teams.

Isaacson is a very talented writer, and I have no doubt she'll wind up with an even better job somewhere else.

*

Ironically, Jim Romenesko says on his Poynter journalism website that Isaacson was in the middle of a weird situation two days after being laid off.

The Chicago Reader reported, "Isaacson won the press club's best feature story award. By the time she made her way up front to accept her plaque it had disappeared, That's because Tribune managing editor Jane Hirt had hopped up from the Tribune table next to the dais to claim it for the Tribune. Isaacson tells Michael Miner: 'My friends asked me later if I got to bask in any of the applause, but there was no basking. I had to go find my award.'

"Hirt if she wanted to respond to Miner's post. Her one-word e-mailed reply: 'Nope.'

"Hirt now says she changed her mind and gives this response: 'I do regret the awkward moment at the [awards presentation]. I didn't see Missy in the crowd, and I wanted to pick up the plaque to make sure she got it. When she arrived at the stage at the same time I did, I handed her the plaque. I wasn't planning on keeping it for the Tribune.'"

'I Am Concerned With Too Much Talk About Newspapers Eliminating a Printed Product Delivered To Readers At Their Homes, Offices and Other Locations'

Don Clasen, a former Des Moines Register and Tribune journalist, writes about Chicago sports and the sad state of affairs in the newspaper business:

"Hi, Ron:

"I don't have any problem with the elecronic and print media cooperating to provide better coverage. But I am concerned with too much talk about newspapers eliminating a printed product delivered to readers at their homes, offices and other locations. That's what Sam Zell [that's him pictured at the left, not the right], who made his millions from real estate, said is being considered by his Chicago Tribune in order to make more money.

"Imagine, a newspaper that is not delivered to the reader at home that allows the reader to get all the in depth news, find the sports scores and work the crossword puzzles. Sure, the Internet can provide an alternative, but will it provide the news sources readers want over the long haul?

"Of course, Zell, who recently labeled his purchase of the Trib, 'a mistake,' is seeking to dump the paper, which apparently to please him completely modernized its format while paring its newsroom down to 430 reporters, editors and the like. I can't criticize his giving a pink slip to 53 more newsrooms employees last week since I feel that 430 pros should be able to put out a fairly good newspaper. Also, I commend the Trib for combining its Washington Bureau with its sister publication in Los Angeles.

"Although I've been away from the R & T for a quarter-century, it appears that the Register has gone too far in pushing too many newsroom staff out the door.


"And while cooperating with TV and radio stations can be beneficial, what happened to competition?

"Meanwhile, Chicago's Hawks--the Blackhawks [logo at the right]--beat Calgary in Canada Monday night. The win wrapped up the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the best sporting show in Chicago these days. A weekend ago I was thrilled to see the Hawks, Cubs, Sox and Bulls all win key contests. But that all changed last Saturday. My wife, who was a big booster of the Bucs in Des Moines, is a red-hot Blackhawks fan. I'm getting concerned because while backing the Chicago Hawks I'm afraid she's going to break the bank buying tickets for the expensive playoff contests at the UC.

"Keep up the good work, Ron."

Don Clasen

[RON MALY'S COMMENTS: The Chicago Blackhawks won their first playoff series in 13 years, eliminating Calgary, 4-1, in the sixth game of their first-round Western Conference playoff Monday night. I'm not the biggest expert on the National Hockey League, but the Blackhawks certainly seem to be a better show than the Chicago Cubs, who can't win for losing these days. The Cubs were shallacked by the Arizona Diamondbacks, 7-2, last night in Phoenix. As for newspapers, circulation continues a rapidly downward trend nationally, and all signs point toward online journalism replacing print ]journalism in the future. It's a sad development that veterans of the newspaper business such as Don Clasen find difficult to comprehend].

*

I want you to know right now that I was absolutely thrilled with that package of good-news stories in the Register the other day. If any industry in America needs some good news, it's the newspaper business. Behind General Motors and Chrysler, that is.

*

Just to illustrate how bad things are for the Chicago Cubs these days, Milton Bradley -- who is in the first few weeks of a three-year contract that pays him $30 million -- has one hit in 24 times at bat.

*

Speaking of horrible averages, Cubs catcher Geovany Soto is hitting .119 after last night's 7-2 loss at Arizona. In addition, the Diamondbacks stole five bases off a guy who was the National League's rookie of the year in 2008. Look for No. 2 catcher Koie Hill to get more playing time.

*

It's still early in the week, but I don't have swine flu. Not yet anyway.

*

But if I were you, I'd forget about that vacation to Mexico. I know I'm forgetting mine.

*

On second thought, maybe a few Cubs should take vacations to Mexico.

It's a Dumb Thing for Pitcher Samardzija To Stick a Fork In Des Moines; I Think He Might Need To Spend Most Of the Summer Here--With the Barnstormers

Relief pitcher Jeff Samardzija spent a few days in Des Moines, playing for No-Name Ballteam at No-Name Ballfield, after being farmed out by the Chicago Cubs. When he was recalled this week, Samardzija said this about Des Moines to the Chicago Tribune: "As far as I'm concerned, you can just [take] the exit off the map. It's a great town. I don't want to put it down. But if you have to put Des Moines and Chicago on a scale, I think it tips heavily to one side."

Dumb stuff to say, Jeff.

The way you're pitching, you'll be back in Des Moines before you know it.

Hell, you might spend the rest of the summer here.

And if I had anything to say about it, you'd be suiting up for the Iowa Barnstormers, not No-Name Ballteam.

Your future, pal, is not as a baseball player. It's a good thing you played football at Notre Dame.

*

Come to think of it, another guy who probably would fit in well with the Barnstormers is Shonn Greene.

He's still looking for a team to play for, too.

The former Hawkeye running back didn't get a call on the opening day of the NFL draft, so he's uncertain where his paychecks-to-play-football will be coming from.

I'll bet the Arena League is starting to look pretty good to him..

Iowa State Grad Mike Swan Trying To Sell Keith Murphy Of WHO On a 'Very Compelling' TV Documentary Of Ex-Cyclone Basketball Player Chuck Harmison

Mike Swan, an Ames native who now teaches mass communications at Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kan., e-mailed me the other day and went into more detail about a video documentary he and his students have produced:

"Ron,

"I have enjoyed reading your recent 'posts' on Dale Williams and other happenings.

"I ran into Dale over a decade ago at an Iowa State Hall of Fame event. He was in one of those motorized wheelchairs then, but was having a good time talking to people.

"It was good to be able to tell him we enjoyed his public address work at Hilton back in the day. I am a little young to have been exposed to much of his play-by-play work, but I did hear a tape one time, and it was pretty darn good.

"I have been in touch with Keith Murphy regarding that documentary I spoke to you about. He was cordial as always, but I haven't heard anything recently. They were tied up with hoops back then, and now I see they are journeying into sports talk radio.

"If you also remind him of it again, I would appreciate it.

"Let me clue you into what the half-hour documentary is about. A former student and I got in touch with Chuck Harmison, now interim commissioner of pro basketball in Australia. He is, of course, the former Ames High basketball standout who helped the team to a state title and undefeated season in 1976. Chuck then had a good career under Lynn Nance at Iowa State. We interviewed (filmed) Chuck (he was back for the Barry Stevens benefit), his parents, his high school coach, Arnie Zediker, and a high school teammate.

"We also met Chuck's wife and son and used their photo in our work.

"I did write an article about Chuck that the Ames Tribune ran in conjunction with the Stevens Benefit. I just think Chuck's story is a very compelling one, as he played in Belgium (for a short time) and then in Australia (into his late 30s) and built a life there. He then went into pro basketball administration Down Under.

"In the documentary, we used tape or footage from Iowa State, WHO Radio, WOI Radio, KASI Radio in Ames, a Sioux City TV station and a Tucson, Ariz. TV station (his Australian team was playing an exhibition against Lute Olson's Arizona team). We also had footage from Hilton Coliseum, State Gym at Iowa State and Ames High School.

"We also used newspaper clippings from The Register.

"It is quite an extensive effort.

"Any help on this would be appreciated.

"Keep writing,"

Mike Swan

[RON MALY'S COMMENTS: Swan, who has a couple of degrees from Iowa State, first wrote to me last August following the death of longtime Cyclone basketball coach Glen Anderson. Swan contacted me more recently about the documentary he refers to, and I put him in touch with Keith Murphy, who does such a fine job as the sports director at WHO-TV in Des Moines. I'll forward this column to Murphy. Chuck Harmison [pictured at the right] played at Iowa State from the 1976-77 season through the 1979-80 season. He started all 27 games as a senior and averaged 12.5 points and 6.4 rebounds for a team that had an 11-16 record. That was the final Cyclone squad coached by Lynn Nance, who was replaced by Johnny Orr prior to the 1980-81 season.]

*

Milton Bradley is getting far more attention in the Chicago Cubs' clubhouse than a guy with one hit in 23 at-bats deserves.

Bradley is an outfielder who is in his first season as a Cub after having run-ins with managers, umpires, other players and sportswriters throughout his career.

He was recently suspended for two games after a confrontation with an umpire, and has appealed the verdict. He hasn't been able to play anyway because of a groin injury.

When he's been able to play, Bradley has been the Cubs' cleanup hitter. But manager Lou Piniella says he'll be the sixth-place hitter when he returns.

Chicago reporters have been upset because, until yesterday, Bradley wouldn't agree to be interviewed by them virtually since the season began.

Frankly, that would suit me just fine.

I was covering the Iowa Oaks or whatever the Des Moines Triple-A team was called in the previous century when the ballpark was still called Sec Taylor Stadium.

One of the players was George Hendrick [pictured at the left]. I asked Hendrick a question after a game one night, and he proceeded to grab a towel and run into the shower, shouting, "No, no, no, no!"

I was very happy Hendrick did that.

He and I got along just fine afterward.

He was one less guy I had to deal with in the locker room.

I didn't speak to him and he didn't speak to me.

Hendrick later went to the major leagues, and began being called "Silent George" for his lack of communication with reporters. He played for a half-dozen teams, and more recently has been the Tampa Bay Rays' first base coach.

*

The weekly sportswriters' lunch gets various visitors, and a guy who dropped by recently updated us on Daniel P. Finney.

Daniel P. Finney, whom I've written about before, had a couple of nice stories on the front page of the Des Moines Register today, and has shown in stints at newspapers here, Omaha and St. Louis that he can be a hard worker. Controversial, but productive. And, the way I look at it, there's nothing wrong with a guy being controversial, especially when he's productive.

The visitor told us that Daniel P. Finney spent a short time as the editor at the Indianola paper, which is owned by the same Gannett Co. that owns the Register.

We were told that when he was at Indianola, Daniel P. Finney was tipped off that Hillary Clinton would be coming through town. That evidently was when Clinton was still a presidential hopeful.

Daniel P. Finney was told he would have 10 minutes to interview Clinton.

Just one problem. Daniel P. Finney didn't show up for the interview.

Evidently, Daniel P. Finney's bosses didn't like it that he was a no-show, and pulled the plug on him as the Indianola editor.

But he must be doing something right. For all I know, he's aware of where the bodies are buried at 8th & Locust. He's back working at the Register. Two page 1 stories on the same morning ain't all bad these days.

Bartman Isn't Around, So Cubs' Fans Boo Dusty Baker Instead; Any Reporters Who Wonder Why Should Feel Lucky They're Not Being Booed, Too

Dusty Baker is spending a few days in Chicago this week, and I was watching on TV the other night when the Cubs' fans booed him every time he went to the mound to make a pitching change.

Baker [pictured at the left] is a former Cubs manager. He now is in his second season with the Cincinnati Reds.

One or two Cubs and one or two Chicago reporters seem to be wondering why Baker is so disliked at Wrigley Field.

Simple.

It's because he was the manager when, in 2003, the Cubs let their chance to get into the World Series slip through their fingers.

Or Steve Bartman's fingers.

Bartman no longer goes to games at Wrigley Field, so the fans use Baker as their scapegoat.

They're taking out their frustrations on the former skipper, who always has been regarded as a guy short on the X's and O's.

Let's go into rewind.

On Oct. 14, 2003, the Cubs were within five outs of clinching a spot in the World Series.

They led the Florida Marlins, 3-0, in the eighth inning. Mark Prior had a three-hitter going.

Then Bartman tried to catch a foul ball in the seats down the leftfield line [photo at the right].

The Cubs thought it should have been ruled interference. It wasn't.

Florida went on beat the Cubs, 8-3, that night, then advanced to the World Series [which the Marlins eventually won] by rallying to defeat Kerry Wood and the Cubs, 9-6, the next night.

I know anything can happen in baseball. If it's not the goofiest sport there is, it's among the top two. I know teams that aren't supposed to win sometimes win. I know there will always be people in the stands like Bartman.

I also know there are managers like Dusty Baker.

I blame Baker for not personally going to the mound to talk with Prior during the unbelievably-long period of time it took to get some sanity back into the game after the Bartman incident.

Prior, then still a kid, had to stand on the mound all by himself for an eternity while the Bartman mess was cleared up.

Then Baker didn't have a clue the next night when Florida bombarded Wood.

As far as I'm concerned, Baker will forever be known as the manager who blew his [and the Cubs'] big chance.

And I've got an issue with those Chicago reporters who question the fans' booing of Baker.

They should be happy the fans aren't booing them.

*

I'm sure glad Jeff Samardzija has made his exit from No-Name Ballfield in Des Moines and is back with the Cubs.

He'll get things straightened out in a hurry in the Chicago bullpen.

Just kidding, of course.

*

Headline on page 2 of today's West Des Moines Register:

Sixth-graders enjoy reading
to 'cute and tiny' kindergartners

I guess the accurate way of spelling kindergarteners didn't fit into the headline, so the paper simply left out one "e."

Register Editorial Page Boss Carol Hunter Is 'Horrified' Over 'Postering Vs. Posturing' Headline; She's Also Not Thrilled With the 'Grammar Goof'

I wrote recently about the e-mail George Wine of Coralville sent to Carol Hunter, the editor of the Des Moines Register's editorial pages.

Wine [pictured at the right] pointed out to Hunter in a message concerning "Postering vs. posturing and incorrect modifier" that, "A headline in your editoral page of April 16 grabbed my attention. It said, 'Despite all the postering, gay marriage is a no brainer.' So I'm wondering, are they making posters about gay marriage now?"

In the same e-mail to Hunter, Wine wrote, "But the first sentence of the article by Graham Gillette was even more interesting. It said, "As a 40-something father of three, the Iowa Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry seemed monumental.' I did not know the Iowa Supreme Court was a 40-something father of three. Where did I miss that story?'"

To Hunter's credit, it didn't take her long to reply to Wine, who spent 25 years as the sports information director at the University of Iowa, and has written a couple of best-selling books.

Here's the message Wine received from Hunter:

"Mr. Wine:

"Sigh. Right on both counts.

"Please rest assured that I was horrified to see that headline in print. I and others saw the bad headline on a page proof, and I thought I had managed to go into the page-design system and make the fix. Apparently the bad copy had already been sent to the printing plant, which I didn’t realize.

"You’re the only one (at least who has written in!) who spotted the grammar goof in the lead. We know better and should have caught it.

"Thank you for your careful reading."

Carol Hunter

*

After receiving that explanation, Wine wrote this to Hunter:

"Carol -- Thanks for taking time to reply. I'm sort of an antecedent cop. My first wife had a fetish about it. Funny one I saw recently was, 'As president of the United States, I think Barack Obama is doing a good job.' . . . George Wine (a 70-year reader of the Register)."

*

Wine still keeps a close watch on the Hawkeye sports scene. I told him to let me know what he thinks of Iowa's 2009 football team, and he told me, "I watched the Hawkeyes go through their final spring drill. They'll likely get a fairly high preseason rating, and deservedly so. But as Hayden Fry liked to say, tell me which players will get injured and how many games they'll miss and I'll tell you what our record ought to be. If they are lucky with injuries, as they were last year, they might be a serious Big Ten contender."

*

Iowa has a difficult road schedule, and already three of the team's 12 games have nighttime kickoffs for television purposes, including the 7 o'clock Oct. 10 homecoming game against Michigan at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City:

Sept. 5 -- Northern Iowa TBA
Sept. 12 -- at Iowa State TBA
Sept. 19 -- Arizona TBA
Sept. 26 -- at Penn State 7 p.m.
Oct. 3 -- Arkansas State TBA
Oct. 10 -- Michigan 7 p.m.
Oct. 17 -- at Wisconsin TBA
Oct. 24 -- at Michigan State 6 p.m.
Oct. 31 -- Indiana TBA
Nov. 7 -- Northwestern TBA
Nov. 14 -- at Ohio State TBA
Nov. 21 -- Minnesota TBA

*

Of the night games, Wine said, "Yeah, three of them -- maybe four if Arizona is selected for under the lights. I thought I'd seen the last of night games when I left Memphis [where he was sports information director before coming to Iowa]. I hate 'em, and I only have to drive home to Coralville after the game."

An Explanation Of Why Cael Sanderson Appealed to Penn State; Also, ISU Shows It Still Can't Control Veishia, So I [Again] Say Cancel It Permanently

My Pennsylvania Correspondent jumps into the "Why-Would-Cael Sanderson-Go-To-Penn State?" discussion with this e-mail to me:

"Ron:

"There are a couple of things about Sanderson's move to Penn State. First, Sanderson sees immense potential. Penn State has not won an NCAA wrestling championship since the 1950s.

"The wrestling facilities were recently signficantly upgraded. In this year's NCAA tournament, a dozen all Americans were PA. natives. Only one wrestled for PSU. The frustration among PA. wrestling fans (most located in the immediate area around State College) boiled over. That being said, reaching for such a significant hire as Sanderson was stunning, absolutely stunning.

"Second, it might represent a game-changer when Joe Paterno retires and dies, or dies and retires, whichever the order of events. Penn State has a reputation of being cheap when it comes to paying coaches. Joe makes well south of $1 million and the basketball coach is one of the lower paid in the Big Ten. For a program with the tremendous resources that filling a 107,000-seat football stadium eight times each fall brings, the low-end approach has been a head-scratcher.

"I know there is a difference between giving a big pay increase to lure a wrestling coach who was making $135,000 (as Sanderson reportedly was at ISU) and 'stepping up' to compete for a big name in football, but...

"For years it has been assumed that PSU would not pay out big bucks to a big name when the Paterno era ends. The hiring of Sanderson might be an indication the Penn State is now willing to throw some of its fat wallet around for a football coach, post-Paterno."

Your Pennsylvania Correspondent

[RON MALY'S COMMENTS: My days of being shocked by coaching moves are over. Auburn's hiring of Iowa State football coach Gene Chizik changed everything. By the way, after I posted my column about Sanderson on Facebook, Barry Crist of West Des Moines responded with these comments: "Cael only got a small raise over his Iowa State salary, so the problem is his relationship with [Iowa State athletic director] Jamie Pollard. The Little Bookkeeper is now 0-3 in coaching hires. Dan McCarney was better than Chizik, Wayne Morgan was better than [Iowa State basketball coach Greg] McDermott, and Pollard fired Bobby Douglas to hire an Iowa State legend who couldn't wait to leave. Ames, you've got a problem."]

*

I see it was the usual Veishia this spring at Ames.

Lots of alcohol, lots of people making idiots of themselves, lots of arrests, lots of hand-wringing by administrators at Iowa State who -- for some reason -- want to keep displaying an embarrassing exercise in public drunkenness for the entire world to see.

Now there's some talk about holding Veishia for only Iowa State students.

Ridiculous.

Iowa State students want to drink beer, just like students at Iowa, Drake, Northern Iowa and probably even Simpson want to drink beer.

And, by the way, you never hear Iowa State administrators suggesting they hold a football game at Jack Trice Stadium for Iowa State students only, do you?

They want big-money people from outside the campus to pay for the tickets, bring beer and wine to the pre- and post-game tailgate parties and help the university's budget.

I see only solution to this Veishia mess.

I've said it before and I'll say it again.

Cancel the damn thing forever.

Iowa State is too nice a place to continually have Veishia cluttering it up in April.

The university has shown it can't control a crowd and it can't control the idiots who show up at Veishia.

Before the turn of the century, they had to call football coach Johnny Majors and basketball coach Johnny Orr at 2 a.m. and convince them they should drive to Veishia to control the disturbances.

I see they don't do that anymore. No coach in his right mind would drive around town at 2 a.m. in an attempt to quiet a bunch of drunks.

*

Jane Norman is one of the reasons the Des Moines Register no longer has a Washington Bureau.

She was dumped in one of the newspaper's recent purges after people finally found out she was merely taking up office space.

Now I'm told Norman is the new associate editor of CQ HealthBeat, whatever that is.

Max Rauer Knew His Way Around a Microphone, And He Studied With Some Of the Best In Jim Duncan's TV/Radio Classes At Drake

After being on the road for nearly six days, I was saddened to see Max Rauer's name in the obituaries when I got back home.

Rauer [pictured at the right] was pretty much past his radio play-by-play days when I got to know him.

He hung around the Drake athletic scene for a long time, and he it was always fun talking with him.

One of the first columns I wrote for the early version of this website was published Oct. 10, 2001 after Drake sports information director Mike Mahon told me Rauer had Jim Duncan's radio and TV classes at the university with Arne Harris.

Harris went on to become the producer and director of Chicago Cubs' games on WGN-TV in Chicago.

It was shortly after Harris' death that I talked with Rauer. Now Rauer, 81, also has gone to the big broadcast studio in the sky, and his funeral is at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Dunn's Funeral Home.

Here's the column I wrote about Rauer following Arne Harris' death in 2001:

Arne Harris never hit a home run for the Chicago Cubs. Never pitched a game or fielded a ground ball, either.

But Harris was a talented and very valuable behind-the-scenes member of the cast during every Cubs game that was televised by Chicago station WGN.

Harris, 67, who died last weekend while dining at a downtown Chicago restaurant with his wife and Cubs TV announcer Chip Caray, was the longtime director and producer of Cubs’ games on WGN.

Max Rauer of Des Moines remembers Harris well.

“I attended Jim Duncan’s radio and TV classes at Drake with Arne in the 1950s,’’ Rauer said. “Jim was the head of the broadcast journalism department, and also in those classes was Al McCoy, who is still broadcasting games for the Phoenix Suns.’’

Paul Morrison, historian in Drake’s athletic department, recalls Harris as being “one of Jim Duncan’s prize pupils. He was always considered one of Jim’s brightest students.’’

Others quickly learned how bright he was.

“While he was going to school at Drake, I think Harris had a part-time job at WHO-TV in Des Moines,’’ Rauer said. “Then, the following summer, he left to go back to Chicago, his hometown. He got a part-time job with WGN, and they were doing some stuff with the Cubs.

“So they offered him a regular job that fall. Arne called Duncan and told him, ‘You know, I have this chance to be with WGN and do some stuff with the Cubs. What do you think?’

“Duncan said, ‘Stay there. If that thing doesn’t work out, you can always come back to Drake. But at least you’ve got your foot in the door at a good operation. So I would advise you to stay.'"

Stay he did.

For 38 years.

Hardly a Cubs game went by on WGN-TV without Harris’ name being mentioned. Chip Caray regularly talked about him, and Harry Caray (Chip’s late grandfather) always had fun talking about Harris’ choices of TV shots during games when he was the Cubs’ play-by-play announcer.

Rauer said Harris was “always very knowledgeable about baseball. He’d get in trivia games with people and he knew everything about the game. When he was doing Cubs games, he came up with some TV shots that had never been done before.’’

Back when the Chicago Cubs still played exhibition games in Des Moines, Harris often accompanied the team here. It wasn’t necessary that he come here because the games weren’t televised, but he just wanted to be around baseball and he liked coming back to Des Moines.

After his days at Drake, Rauer went on to do play-by-play of games involving Iowa, Iowa State and Drake for various Des Moines radio stations. Although pretty much retired now, he remains close to the Drake scene.

“I’m on the Drake Relays executive committee and do other things pertaining to athletics there,’’ he said.

Hey, When a Guy Is 7 Hours From Home, It's Easy To Understand Why He Has So Many Questions, But So Few Answers

I've been on the road this week, and by tonight I'll be about 7 hours from my home base.

Consequently, I haven't been able to keep up with everything that's been going on -- something that's not necessarily a bad thing these days.

I know Jamie Pollard, the athletic director at Iowa State, probably wishes a few things weren't going on.

Like golden boy Cael Sanderson quitting as the Cyclones' wrestling coach and taking the job at Penn State.

*

What I know about collegiate wrestling would fit comfortably into a thimble.

Oh, sure, I faked it well enough to write newspaper stories about the NCAA tournament a time or two.

I watched Dan Gable wrestle for Iowa State and coach Iowa.

I felt comfortable enough around former Cyclone coach Harold Nichols to call him "Nick" on the phone.

*

Yesterday, I read on Twitter that Sanderson was bailing out of Ames, and I'm still trying to figure out why.

I guess Pollard is wondering a few things, too.

He's been issuing statements, not talking to reporters, since Sanderson said he's going to Happy Valley.

There's got to be more to this story than what I've seen so far.

A quote I saw had Sanderson saying, "It wasn't about money."

If it wasn't, what the hell was it about?

A guy who was a huge winner as a wrestler at Iowa State, then got the coaching job, doesn''t just decide in April after his third season at Iowa State to go to Penn State unless he's got some things -- or some people -- bothering him.

*

It's going to take some superb reporting to get to the bottom of this mess.

I mean, I'd bring in Tom Witosky right now. They don't call that guy The Shovel because he went to mortician's school.

I think Witosky even understands wrestlers. I'm pretty sure he used to be one.

Maybe he can even get Pollard to talk.

*

When I checked my computer this morning, I saw that Jay Christensen had forwarded some You Tube footage to me of Shawn Johnson, the gymnast-turned-dancer.

After looking at it [the videotape, I mean] I'd say our little 17-year-old princess is having trouble finding clothes that fit her these days -- especially above the waist.

Either that or she's working on her tan in areas of her body that she thinks need more exposure to the sun.

*

Another thing I've got a question about is why Iowa ranked only No. 9 on Playboy's list of the nation's top 10 party schools. I can't figure out why Iowa isn't higher. The list:

1) Miami [Fla.]
2) Texas
3) San Diego State
4) Florida
5) Arizona
6) Wisconsin
7) Georgia
8) Louisiana State
9) Iowa
10) West Virginia

*

Speaking of the Hawkeyes, it used to be that Iowa would wind up its spring football practices by having crowds of 25,000, 30,000 or maybe even more in Kinnick Stadium for intrasquad games.

I don't think they'd even charge people anything to get in.

All they had to do was bring a can of corn or beans that would be turned over to the needy and -- by that -- I don't mean the sportswriters.

The regulars would usually nip the subs by about 65-0, then the fans would spend all summer telling each other how good the team was going to be in the fall.

I guess they don't do that anymore, but I can live with it.

Spring game or not, I think the Hawkeyes will be pretty good in September.

*

Finally, George Wine of Coralville, sent me a copy of the letter-to-the-editor he wrote to the Des Moines Register:

To The Register Editor:

A headline in your editoral page of April 16 grabbed my attention. It said, "Despite all the postering, gay marriage is a no brainer." So I'm wondering, are they making posters about gay marriage now?

But the first sentence of the article by Graham Gillette was even more interesting. It said, "As a 40-something father of three, the Iowa Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry seemed monumental." I did not know the Iowa Supreme Court was a 40-something father of three. Where did I miss that story?

George WIne
245 Holiday Road
Coralville IA 52241

*

We'll see if George gets any reaction from his letter, or if everyone in the op-ed department is on his or her unpaid furlough.

I''m Wondering Whose Baseball Program Is Dead Or On Life Support--UNI Has a 15-18 Record, Iowa is 11-21 and Has Lost Its Last 8 Games

When Iowa and Northern Iowa play a couple of baseball games against one another April 22 and April 28, it's going to difficult deciding which team is -- or should be -- discontinuing its program.

The Panthers, who are in the last of 103 baseball seasons at the school, have a 15-18 record.

Iowa is 11-21 and has lost its last eight games.

"We need something good to happen," Hawkeye coach Jack Dahm [pictured at the right] said at a press conference promoting the Corridor Classic game with UNI that'll be played April 28 at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids. "Kids are very fragile, and we're pressing a little bit."

The April 22 UNI-Iowa game will be in Iowa City.

Dahm said he held a team meeting this week, and mentioned the plight of the UNI program to his players.

"Think about what the Northern Iowa players are going through right now," Dahm told his players. "They had the rug pulled out from underneath them. That's pressure. We need to realize we're pretty fortunate to be able to be playing baseball. We just need some good things to happen to us. Our guys deserve to have success. It's not too late."

*

As far as I'm concerned, the best thing about the Iowa-UNI game at Cedar Rapids is that profits will be given to the American Diabetes Association.

*

Somebody asked me if I'd heard about a "franchise" person who would be leaving the Des Moines Register this week. I didn't know the Register had any franchise people left.

*

I was thinking of buying a shopping mall today, but now I've changed my mind. Too risky.

*

When it's all over, Shawn Johnson will have won everything. She's not stopping with the Olympic gold medal, the Sullivan Award and Dancing With the Stars. I think she'll be the first woman president, too. I fully expect her to do a back-flip to the microphone in her first day on the job.

*

One other thing. I sure hope the NFL can survive without John Madden [pictured at the left].

Long Before Frank Snyder, Pete Taylor and John Walters Were Behind the Iowa State Radio Microphones, There Was the Low-Key Dale Williams

Long before Frank Snyder, long before Pete Taylor and long before John Walters, there was Dale Williams.

I'm talking about the Dale Williams [pictured at the right] who was Iowa State's football and basketball play-by-play announcer from 1943-1968.

The Dale Williams who died yesterday at 93.

Nice guy, low-key Dale Williams did Cyclone sports on the radio at a different time in history.

There was no Jack Trice Stadium and there was no Hilton Coliseum.

Instead, there was Clyde Williams Field and the Armory.

And, when Iowa State decided it should try to go bigtime, Dale Williams lost his job behind the microphone.

Johnny Majors was coming in as Iowa State's new football coach in 1968 and everybody knew Glen Anderson wouldn't be the Cyclones' basketball coach who would open Hilton Coliseum. It turned out to be Maury John, who was hired away from Drake.

I recall when folks in Iowa State's administration made it plain, when there were big changes coming in football and bssketball, they wanted a change in the radio booth, too.

Dale Williams didn't fit what they wanted behind the microphone.

Snyder succeeded Williams, and later came Taylor and now Walters.

*

Fast-forward the basketball part of the Iowa State story.

Let's move to a man named Terry Reed, who was on Tim Floyd's Cyclone coaching staff in the 1990s.

Reed had a son named Neil, who played at Indiana and had a significant role in Bob Knight's exit as the Hoosiers' coach.

My friend Jay Christensen, who publishes a popular basketball website titled "The March To Madness," wrote this about Neil [pictured at the left] today:

"Neil Reed started 72 games and averaged just under 10 points a game for Indiana from 1994-97, but he decided to transfer to Southern Mississippi before the start of his senior season. Not much was made of Reid's decision simply because players regularly transferred out of Indiana, where dictatorial Bob Knight was holding court.

"But in 2000, cable network CNN/Sports Illustrated aired a tape of an encounter between Reed and Knight. The grainy practice video showed Knight grabbing Reed by the neck, although the coach has maintained he merely put his hand on Reed's chest.

"It was the beginning of the end for Knight at Indiana, who was fired later that year by university president Myles Brand.

"But while Knight was able to rehabilitate his reputation [later coaching at Texas Tech and then joining ESPN], Reed has bounced around after earning his undergraduate degree in Sports Administration from Southern Mississippi. He interned at ESPN Magazine, got a Masters degree from Chapman and a teaching credential.

"Last week, he was named boys basketball coach at Pioneer Valley High in Central California, a team that won only one game in the PAC-7 league last season. But Reid is ready for the challenge and wants to be known for something other than the encounter with Knight.

"'Definitely, time has put a little distance [from the incident]. That's been good," he told Kenny Cress of the Santa Maria Times.

"'Anytime you can play at that level, it's a tremendous experience, doing that kind of learning. At Indiana, you had anywhere between 13-17 [team] managers, and a lot of those managers have coaching careers. Lawrence Frank, the coach of the [New Jersey] Nets, was a manager at Indiana. Joe Pasternack, several of those guys had great careers.

"'Indiana had a very academic, so to speak, approach to basketball.'"

Hall of Fame Broadcaster Harry Kalas Dies At 73; Randy Duncan, Then a Hawkeye Quarterback, Helped Him Get An 'A' In a TV Project As a Student At Iowa

I was watching WGN-TV in Chicago during the Cubs' rain delay early this afternoon when an interview between Len Kasper and Pat Hughes was about halfway finished.

Kasper is the Cubs' play-by-play announcer on WGN-TV, and Hughes has the same responsibilities on WGN-radio.

I was shocked when I heard Hughes say that Hall of Fame announcer Harry Kalas had died in Washington, D.C.

Kalas, a University of Iowa graduate [and a roommate in Iowa City of former standout Hawkeye quarterback Randy Duncan], was the longtime broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies and a man with with the distinctive voice who handled the voiceover role for NFL Films.

Reports said Kalas was taken to a hospital after passing out in the broadcast booth before today's Phillies-Washington Nationals game.

The instant I heard Hughes say that Kalas had died, my mind flashed back to the interview I did with the Hall of Famer in 2002.

I had watched a telecast of a Phillies-Cubs game from Wrigley Field, and I saw a TV camera zoom in Kalas in the broadcast booth.

One thing that surprised me a bit was that Kalas was shown smoking a cigarette -- something you don't see much anymore in in broadcast booths, press boxes or even stadiums.

I'd heard that Kalas was an Iowa graduate, and I certainly knew he was a big name in the broadcast business.

So, the next day, I took a chance. I called a hotel in Chicago where I thought the Phillies and Kalas might be staying for the series against the Cubs.

Sure enough, Kalas was listed as a guest there. And, fortunately for me, he answered the phone when I told the hotel operator to connect me with the room.

Here's the column I wrote July 26, 2002, headlined:

Iowa Graduate Harry Kalas Taking His Booming Radio and TV Voice to Cooperstown, Will Enter Hall of Fame

**************************************************************************************

It’s a good thing Harry Kalas listened to his blind professor at Cornell College nearly a half-century ago.

If he had ignored Dr. Walter Stroemer’s advice, Kalas might not be going into baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., on Sunday.

Maybe you watched Tuesday’s Philadelphia Phillies-Chicago Cubs game on TV from Wrigley Field. If so, you likely saw and heard Kalas sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame’’ during the seventh-inning stretch.

Kalas, 66, handled the job better than most of those who sometimes butcher the song at the Cubs’ park.

*

"In my travels, I like to frequent piano bars around the U.S.,’’ Kalas, a native of Naperville, Ill., said with a laugh after I complimented him on how well he handled "Take Me Out to the Ballgame.’’

But singing isn’t Kalas’ line of work. Announcing is how he earns his money.

He’s been the Phillies’ radio announcer for 31 years, worked for the Houston Astros before that and also is known for his announcing on the Inside the NFL show on HBO during the football season.

Kalas has a distinctive voice. It’s a booming, bass voice.

That’s what got Stroemer’s attention when Kalas was a freshman at Cornell, a small college in Mt. Vernon.

"Broadcasting was certainly in the back of my mind when I went to Cornell, and I was encouraged by Dr. Stroemer, my speech professor, after he listened to me make speeches and do things on the small campus radio station,’’ Kalas explained.

He said, ‘You have the kind of voice that would let you make a good living in radio and television,’’’ Kalas said.

"I wanted to call baseball games, so that was all the encouragement I needed, and I transferred to the University of Iowa the following year and majored in radio and TV. I was at Iowa from 1956 through 1959.

"I was sports director at WSUI (the campus radio station) in my senior year, and did Hawkeye football, basketball, baseball, swimming, track, wrestling, We had a microphone at every event they had. It was great experience."

*

Kalas said Randy Duncan, then Iowa’s quarterback and now a Des Moines attorney helped him understand more about football when he was at WSUI.

"Randy was my roommate at Iowa,’’ Kalas explained. "I pledged Phi Delta Theta, and Randy was the upperclassman. I was kind of his pledge. I got to know him really well.

"In fact, he helped me in a project I had to do in one of my television courses. I had some Hawkeye game film, and Randy was kind enough to come over to the studio and dissect the plays for me. I’d say, ‘OK, Randy, it’s third down-and-eight. What would you do here?’

"He’d say what they might be do on that play. I got an ‘A’ on the project, thanks to Randy Duncan.’’

Kalas said the NCAA wrestling meet was held during the time he was at WSUI, and he did the hold-by-hold announcing at that.

"It was a challenge doing wrestling,’’ Kalas said. "I think we made fools of ourselves a lot, but it was tremendous experience.’’

While attending Iowa, Kalas said he also did weekend work in the Quad Cities, announcing Bettendorf, Moline and Rock Island high school basketball games.

*

On the day Kalas got his degree from Iowa, he went to his fraternity house to say goodbye.

"While I was there, I happened to check my mail slot,’’ he said. "What was there but a welcome from Uncle Sam. But that worked out perfectly. I was drafted and the Army sent me to Hawaii. I was fortunate enough to still be in Honolulu when the Sacramento franchise in the Pacific Coast League was moved there.

"So I started doing Triple-A baseball for the Hawaii Islanders.’’

Kalas’ first major league job was with the Astros in 1965, and that was a big year in Houston.

"The Astrodome opened,’’ he explained. "I worked with Gene Elston then. I moved to Philadelphia in 1971, the first year of Veterans Stadium. So I opened two new ballparks. There will be another new park in Philadelphia in 2004, so maybe I’ll get the chance to open a third ballpark.’’

Kalas said he gives no thought to retirement.

"I’m still enjoying what I do,’’ he said. "I think I’ll be the first one to know if I’m slipping, making mistakes, not seeing the field, not calling things the way they should be called. Then I’ll hang ‘em up. But right now I have no plans to retire.’’

Kalas said his son, Todd, is also a baseball announcer.

"He does pregame TV work for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays,’’ Kalas said.

Kalas regards it as a great honor to go into the announcers’ wing of the Hall of Fame. Others joining the Hall on Sunday will be Ozzie Smith, whose big years were with the St. Louis Cardinals, and Joe Falls, a columnist for the Detroit News.

Kalas said his preparations for the Hall of Fame induction will go right down to the deadline.

"I’ve written, rewritten and revised my acceptance speech,’’ he said. "I’m agonizing over it. There are so many people to thank, but not enough time to do it. I’m sure I’ll still be working on the speech Sunday.’’

But don’t expect Kalas to be at a loss for words when the time comes, even though it will be an emotional experience.

"I’ve never missed a baseball game because of laryngitis or any other illness in all the years I’ve been doing games,’’ he said. "As we speak, I’m knocking on wood that it never happens.’’

One thing that bothers Kalas is that Richie Ashburn, a former Phillies player who later went on to be Kalas’ broadcast partner for 27 years, won’t be able to be with him at Cooperstown.

Ashburn, a Hall of Famer himself, died five years ago of a heart attack.

Happy Easter, 2009

When Drake Basketball Standout Willie Wise Of 1969 Final Four Fame Isn't Driving a Cement Truck In Seattle, He Travels Worldwide For Christian Causes

I'm guessing that no former professional basketball player in America has a more diverse combination of interests than Willie Wise.

Wise's day job is driving a huge cement truck in and around Seattle, Wash., and he devotes much of the rest of his time to religion.

The fact that he operates what he calls a "concrete mixer" doesn't surprise me one bit.

Wise always had an affection for large vehicles.

I was on the scene in Peoria, Ill., in the late-1960s when -- after a Drake practice in preparation for a game against Bradley -- he got behind the wheel of the Bulldogs' chartered bus and asked if he could drive it to the hotel where the team was staying.

The professional driver turned him down, and I think Drake coach Maury John and most others on the bus were relieved.

Me included.

I mean, I had no reason to believe Wise wouldn't be able to drive the bus. I just didn't want him to get a ticket for not having the right kind of drivers' license.

*

Because this is a huge weekend in the Christian faith -- today being Good Friday and Sunday being Easter -- I thought it would be fitting that I tell you some of Wise's story.

I got to know him a little when he was a standout forward for Maury John's 1967-68 and 1968-69 teams. The 68-69 group had a 28-5 record and finished third in the Final Four at Louisville.

The 6-foot 5-inch Wise [shown in the photo with me that was taken when Drake's Final Four team had its 40th reunion in Des Moines in February] has traveled, or will travel, to such places as Africa, Ecuador and The Phillippines for Christian causes this year.

"I devote a lot of my time to the ministry," he told me on the weekend his No. 42 jersey was one of three retired by Drake.

*

Indeed, for a while, it appeared Wise wouldn't be able to be in town Feb. 20 and 21 when Drake retired his number and those of teammates Willie McCarter and Dolph Pulliam.

Pulliam, now the radio commentator on Drake's basketball broadcasts, and I were getting out of our cars at the same time in the press parking lot one day across the street from the Knapp Center when I asked Dolph what the status was of the reunion.

Pulliam had a disappointed look on his face.

At the time, Drake officials hadn't yet told any of the players that three numbers would be retired.

"Willie McCarter says he probably won't be here, and Willie Wise says he'll be busy doing mission work for his church," Pulliam explained.

If Wise and McCarter had been no-shows, that meant Pulliam would be the only member of the 1968-69 starting lineup who would be present at the ceremony.

Al Williams, another starter, died a couple of years ago. Guard Don Draper said he couldn't attend because his mother was ill in Arizona.

*

When present Drake athletic director Sandy Hatfield Clubb learned there was a possibility neither Wise nor McCarter would be in Des Moines on the biggest weekend of the season, she went into action.

Drake had given no hint that any of the jerseys would be retired, but did an about-face when it was learned McCartr and Wise might not be present for the 40th reunion.

The decision was made to have a gala celebration Friday night before the Bulldogs' BracketBusters game against Austin Peay on Feb. 21, and the jerseys were retired at halftime.

"I don't know about you," I said to Wise the night of a Feb. 20 party in downtown Des Moines, "but I didn't think this weekend would ever come. I didn't know if I'd live long enough to see it happen."

As for Wise's strong religious faith, he said Maury John was responsible for strengthening it.

*

By the way, Wise never refers to John as "Maury."

It's always "Maurice."

"I had a Christian background when I came to Drake," he explained. "Maurice John was always a very conservative person. He practiced Christian principles and passed those onto us [Drake's players] without encroaching on our liberties.

"That eventually affected us, and it affected me personally. Maurice John's Christian influence helped me. When you're in college at that age, you're searching for what you want to be and what you want to do and what your relationship is going to be God.

"Maurice John helped me with the things he said. In 1978, I became a born-again believer like Coach John, and about 10 years ago I began to travel to speak to young people about the Bible, proper Christian living and proper human living."

Wise said Dolph Pulliam and Maury John were the reasons he left California and became a Bulldog in the 1960s.

"Maurice John recruited me like all recruiters did," he said. "But there was something different about him. Sincerity is the word I have to use. I believed what he was saying.

"Then, when I got here, it was Dolph Pulliam who affected me. We had a Saturday afternoon rec ballgame, and Dolph was putting the defense on me. I didn't like that. I had to show these guys I had some offense -- or at least I thought I did.

"The next day, it snowed in Des Moines and I hadn't seen snow before. Dolph and I had a snowball fight. We had a lot of fun, and that convinced me I wanted to be with him."

*

I asked Wise where else he could have continued his education after attending the same junior college in California that O. J. Simpson attended.

"O. J. wanted me to go to Soutern California [where Simpson became a football standout] real bad," he said. I also could have gone to Washington, Seattle University, Cal-Berkeley, UNLV and a small school in Erie, Pa. If I'd gone to any school on the west coast, it would have been Washington."

Wise shot 52 percent, averaged 11.4 points and grabbed a then-school rcord 343 rebounds in 1968-69. He later went on to play for the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association, and was named to the 30-member all-time ABA team in 1997.

Wise recalls the Drake-UCLA game in the Final Four as though it were played yesterday.

The Bulldogs, who were big underdogs to John Wooden's Bruins, ended up losing, 85-82, on the first night of the tournament.

"UCLA was ahead by 10 or 12 points, and we lined up for a free throw," Wise said. "Curtis Rowe of UCLA got into the lane next to me and said, 'It's all over now, baby!'

"I just couldn't take that. I looked at him and said, 'We're going to show you how we play in the Missouri Valley Conference.' And I had the habit of never talking to my opponents.

"But we rallied and came within 7 seconds of winning the game."

*

I mentioned earlier that Wise has an affection for large trucks -- especially those that haul concrete -- and I asked him to be more specific about that.

"I had my own trucking company, but I lost it when the economy went bad in the early 1980s," he explained. "Now I continue to drive for another company. I drive a concrete mixer, and I love it."

Wise said he's 61 years of age now and plans to retire from the concrete business in a year or so, then "devote a lot of time to the ministry."

Clyde In Coralville Says It's Time To 'Get Rid Of the Life Skills Coach At Iowa and Hire a Good Bartender Who Would Be Called the Breathalizer Coach'

The problems with alcohol in Iowa City are among the things on the minds of my readers today:

"Hey, Ron -- How about Sean Keeler telling Kirk Ferentz how to discipline his players? That's like George W. Bush telling Barack Obama how to catch Osama bin Laden.

"Here's a suggestion for Kirk -- Get rid of the 'life skills coach' you hired a year ago and put a bartender on your staff. A good bartender knows when someone has enough to drink and cuts 'em off. Kirk could call the bartender his 'breathalizer coach.'"

Clyde in Coralville

[RON MALY'S COMMENTS: You make some good points, Clyde. Adding to all the problems, of course, is that the bruised and battered newspaper business is proving again that it can't get the story straight. The Des Moines Register printed a long correction in its sports section this morning, saying, "A story in Tuesday's newspaper incorrectly gave the impression that Iowa athletic director Gary Barta said James Ferentz, son of football coach Kirk Ferentz, would become the poster child for his program's new get-tough policy on players involved with police. What Barta said last October: 'We're doing everything we can to make sure the message is clear that we're not going to accept poor decisions. We want to have a successful football season on and off the field, so we've told the entire team that if they make bad decisions, the discipline will be stronger than it has been in the past.'" It's obvious Barta and others at Iowa were upset with what Register reporters wrote in Tuesday's paper. The sports editor or the copy editors should have gone back to the microfilm to make sure they were correct in saying now that Barta said something about making a poster child of James Ferentz, who has had two alcohol-related charges in the past six months. Obviously, the facts weren't checked and the newspraper screwed up the story this week].


*

Writes Barry Crist of West Des Moines about alcohol in Iowa City:

"The problem lies with Iowa City government. The police don't go after bars selling to minors because they are making too much money fining the students. Follow the Money!

"Iowa City has been so anti-business that Coralville and North Liberty have blossomed, while the dregs in Iowa City are just bars. When is the last time you were in downtown Iowa City? I was at Vito's prior to a meeting last Friday. The Ped Mall is like New Orleans--bars, bars and more bars.

"West Des Moines police have bar checks regularly where they send someone underage in to buy with either a real or a phony license. A friend's place was closed for a month last year because the bartender didn't ask, ;Are you 21?.' The informant can't lie. Does Iowa City do this? Hell, no!

"Would Iowa City government want to close their only remaining downtown businesses?

"I can't believe that bars don't have a computerized license checker. That would make it very easy. But, again--follow the money."

Barry Crist
West Des Moines

[RON MALY'S COMMENT: Long-gone are the days when the only thing people cared about in April was how the new football players were looking in spring practice].

+

Mark Robinson of Iowa City touches on the Masters golf tournament and provides some comments from former Hawkeye basketball player Acie Earl:

"Hello, Ron:

"The Cedar Rapids Gazette has assigned Mike Hlas to the Masters in Augusta, GA. I wonder if they will allow him three meals per day and a camera. Really, it's good news from the printed page world.

"Also, from HawkeyeSportsNews.com, an interview with Acie Earl. Acie answers a question about Todd Lickliter.

"'HSN: What are your opinions of Coach Lickliter and his brand of basketball?

"'AE: The problem with being in Iowa or affiliated with any program is everyone has an opinion. Mine really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Yes, I played for Iowa, 2nd leading scorer, NBA, overseas, coach, train, etc., but if that was important to anyone at Iowa then I’d be called, emailed, or brought in or asked. I’ve sent my stuff to coach and I’ve even sent in some of DVD’s and bios of some kids I train in the Iowa-Illinois area, and no one has gotten back to me on them. So as I see it, who cares what Acie Earl thinks? I live in the same neighborhood as the basketball secretary, and if they really wanted me to help out then I’d be asked. It’s funny, I'm always asked to come to camps and help out all over the USA and I have, but I haven't been asked to help out with Iowa camps since Coach Davis left, so it’s whatever. ‘Once a Hawkeye always a Hawk’ I was told when I was a frosh, and that rule is never talk in public about a Hawk where others who aren’t Hawks are involved, so I wish them all luck.'

"Lick is missing out here. And there are far more Hawkeye greats that might be interested in helping the cause somehow, if only they were asked.

"Keep writing,"

Mark Robinson

[RON MALY'S COMMENTS: I agree with you, Mark, that there are a number of former Hawkeyes out there who would be glad to do anything they could to help the program, which certainly needs all the assistance it can get. The last I heard, Acie Earl [pictured at the left] was an assistant coach at Solon High School, so he appears to be someone who is intereste in making young players better. As for Mike Hlas of the Gazette being at the Masters, I hope he wasn't planning on having a Diet Coke with anyone from the Register there. Just as was the case with the men's Final Four basketball tournament in Detroit and the women's Final Four in St. Louis, the Register didn't send a staff writer to the Masters -- or hasn't yet. It could be that the sports editor is taking his second week of Gannett Co.-ordered, unpaid furlough, and didn't realize this is the week of the Masters. Either that or he's been too busy writing corrections on the screwups of other stories. Thanks for writing, Mark. I hope the Easter bunny is good to you].

*

IowaHawkeyes writes on Twitter: "Iowa athletics told to cut costs. Wonder if this means cutting basketball?"

[RON MALY'S COMMENT: Like I've been saying, I'm confident things will get better when they get that new practice court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena].

*

Bartender cartoon courtesy of fotosearch.com

In the Event I run Into So Taguchi One Of These Days At a Sushi Bar, I Don't Plan To Tell Him That a Lot Of Ballplayers' Careers Have Ended In D.M.

My son is borrowing the Toyota today.

The Honda won't start.

Probably a dead battery.

Maybe I left the headlights on overnight.

No car, no luck.

So I couldn't hear Megan sing in the chapel service at school, and I couldn't get to the sportswriters' lunch.

[I hope they took it easy on the paper].

The last thing I thought I'd be doing today is writing something about somebody named So Taguchi.

*

First of all, let me point out that I haven't talked to Taguchi lately.

That could change, of course.

Maybe I'll run into him at one of the Japanese restaurants around town one of these days.

It would be fine with me -- and hopefully with him -- if we wound up at the same sushi bar sometime soon.

If that happens, I'd like to talk some baseball with him.

*

Language wouldn't be a problem.

I'm told by Wikipedia that Taguchi was taught English by his wife, Emiko, a former TV reporter who speaks it fluently.

I'd try to keep the conversation positive. After all, I wouldn't want to make him aware that the careers of a number of professional ballplayers have ended in Des Moines.

I'm guessing So Taguchi didn't think his career would come crashing down here when he signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs in January.

At a place called No-Name Ballfield yet.

Taguchi is a 39-year-old -- he turns 40 on July 2 -- outfielder who is on the roster the Chicago Cubs' Triple-A farm team known as No-Name Ballteam.

His best years in the major leagues were spent with the St. Louis Cardinals, with whom he signed in 2002 at the age of 33.

I rememeber watching on TV as Taguchi played occasionally for St. Louis. He never hit much, he fielded pretty well and the fans seemed to like him. Of course, every Cardinal -- whether he's named So or Stan -- is liked by the fans in St. Louis.

*

Probably the funniest thing about Taguchi is his choice of uniform numbers in St. Louis.

Wikipedia says he requested No. 6 originally, but was immediately told he couldn't have it because that was Stan "The Man" Musial's number, and it was retired.

He also was told he couldn't wear the upside-down version of No. 6 -- which would be No. 9 -- because it was retired after Enos Slaughter wore it. And he couldn't wear No. 1 because it was retired after Ozzie Smith played for St. Louis.

He couldn't wear No. 66 because Rick Ankiel was on the team. Then he went to No. 99.

Taguchi played for the world champion Phladelphia Phillies last season, but hit only .220. Philadelphia bought out his option following the season, and that's when the Cubs [and No-Name Ballteam] entered the picture.

See you at the sushi bar, So.

*

That's it for now. I've got a car battery to charge.

North Carolina's 89-72 Rampage In Final Four At Detroit Proves the ACC/Big Ten Challenge Isn't a Good Idea--Whether It's In December Or April

Long before last night, the ACC/Big Ten Challenge has been a bad idea.

The early-season competition that matches basketball teams from the Atlantic Coast and Big Ten Conferences has regularly been dominated by the ACC.

In November, December and, now, April.

North Carolina thrashed Michigan State, 98-63, at Ford Field in Detroit on Dec. 3 in the so-called Challenge.

To show that victory was no fluke, the Tar Heels rolled past the Spartans, 89-72, last night to win the NCAA championship.

To say Michigan State was overmatched in both games is putting it mildly.

North Carolina had the best of everything, coaching included.

*

I'm glad General Motors wasn't depending on Michigan State for a bailout.

If it was, GM better go to Plan B.

And Plan B better include electric cars.

*

All season, I thought the Big East and the Big 12 were collegiate basketball's best leagues.

Not anymore.

No one can argue with the ACC today.

I wonder what Harrison Barnes, the hot prospect from Ames High School, thought about the game?

Now, I wonder if he's good enough to wear Carolina blue. That man Williams does know how to recruit.

*

As much as the announcers on CBS-TV wanted to say that maybe the Spartans could make a game of it in the last half so they could hold their audience, nobody believed them.

I know I didn't.

Not even those clowns who are called judges on the other network's "Dancing With the Stars" could've rigged the ratings enough to make Michigan State a contender.

Saprtans coach Tom Izzo acted like he didn't know what hit him afterward.

So did the thousands of Michigan State fans in the crowd of 72,922.

After that bloodbath, it was back to work for those Spartan folks -- if they're still lucky enough to have jobs.

*

The game was supposed to start at 9:21 p.m., Eastern Time, at Ford Field [pictured at the left].

It actually began at 9:23 p.m.

Can you believe that, starting the championship game of a collegiate tournament at nearly 9:30 in a metropolitan city like Detroit?

Frankly, I wouldn't want to be anywhere but my own home at 9:23 p.m. in Detroit -- if I had to be in Detroit at all.

And I'd certainly want the bars on my windows and doors closed and locked.

*

It reminded me of being in downtown St. Louis for a Drake game 40 years ago.

After I'd written my stories, I asked the security guard at the arena exit how far my hotel was.

"About two blocks," the guy said. "But you're not going to walk, are you? I'll call you a cab."

*

Is Roy Williams [pictured at the right] a tremendous coach or what?

The guy was a big winner at Kansas and he's a big winner at North Carolina.

He's obviously out-Dean Smithed Dean Smith.

Smart Move By Brackins To Enter NBA Draft; Plus, Some People I Plan To Send Text Messages To: Courtney Paris, USC Boosters, Maybe Carlos Zambrano

It doesn't surprise me one bit that Craig Brackins has decided to leave Iowa State and make himself eligible for the NBA draft.

I've been writing for weeks that the time was right for the 6-10 sophomore to get away from what has become a dying Big 12 Conference program in Ames.

I mean, he needs another season of playing for Greg McDermott like he needs torn cartilage.

There's a lot of money to be made, and Brackins [pictured at the left] will make it in the NBA. There's every indication he'll be a first-round pick in the upcoming player draft.

*

When I finish writing this column, I plan to send several text messages.

One will be to Courney Paris [pictured at the right], the standout player on Oklahoma's women's basketball team.

Paris promised to pay the cost of her $64,000 scholarship back to the university if her team didn't win the NCAA championship.

The Sooners were beaten last night by Louisville, 61-59, in the Final Four semifinal round.

Afterward, Paris told reporters she'd make good on her guarantee, and I applaud her for that.

My guess is that somebody -- an athletic shoe company or an insurance company that's not yet bankrupt -- will pull off a publicity stunt and agree to pay the money for Paris.

Or else Oklahoma will refuse to accept Courtney's money.

*

I also plan to send a text message to the boosters at Southern California for kicking in with more money to keep coach Tim Floyd on board.

Floyd -- a former Iowa State coach -- had interviewed for the Arizona job, but my West Coast Correspondent tells me boosters came up with the finances to keep him at USC.

Smart guys, those boosters.

*

I also probably should send a text message to Sean Miller, and tell him he did the wrong thing in taking the Arizona job.

Miller, the Xavier of Cincinnati coach who was Arizona's fifth choice, decided this afternoon to take the job in Tucson even though he had a team that could be a Final Four contender next season.

Frankly, I don't see how anyone will be able to fill the shoes at Arizona of Lute Olson, the world's best basketball coach [just ask him].

*

I'm definitely sending a text message to the Boston Globe, so I can tell the sportswriters there to not believe anything they hear from the New York Times.

The Times is threatening to close down the Globe, which it owns, unless the Boston paper agrees to $20 million in concessions from labor unions.

The Times isn't in great shape itself, and has more to worry about than how much money the Globe is spending.

There will always be a Boston Globe, even if circulation keeps sinking right along with that of every other daily newspaper.

*

I'll be sending a text message to Rick and Marcia Wanamaker, the deluxe real estate sales team.

Rick and Marcia showed me the $3.9 million house they've got listed at 3800 Fuller Road in West Des Moines.

I intend to tell Rick and Marcia that I was planning to bring my football and my kicking tee when I was there the other day.

The home on 9.89 acres has a full-sized football field with goal posts, and I planned to practice my placekicking that afternoon.

But I couldn't find my football. I'll bet one of my grandsons has it. And my kicking tee is probably in the garage, buried under some old newspapers.

Anyway, thanks for having me over there, Rick and Marcia. I enjoyed talking real estate and Drake basketball with you.

*

I probably don't need to send a text message about it, but another sign of how bad things are going in the newspaper business is that the Des Moines Register doesn't have a reporter at either the men's Final Four in Detroit or the women's Final Four in St. Louis.

Those are driveable trips, and the paper has some sportswriters on the staff who've been packing on the car mileage in recent basketball seasons.

I mean, Dan Johnson no doubt would've driven to both Detroit and St. Louis, and somehow found a way to cover the Iowa Barnstormers and write a horseracing story or two this weekend if he'd gotten the go-ahead from the bosses.

*

That's it for a while. Now I can't wait to find out what the next dumb comment to come out of Carlos Zambrano's mouth will be. I hope he demands to be traded to the Yankees, and the Cubs swing the deal. I've had it with him. I guess I'll text message him, too.

Next Stop For Samardzija Is No-Name Ballfield; Now Maybe the Ex-Notre Dame Pass Reciever Can Suit Up With the Barnstormers When He's Not Pitching

Jeff Samardzija got a double-dose of bad news Sunday.

He not only won't start the season tomorrow with the Chicago Cubs, he was sent to Des Moines to play Triple-A games at No-Name Ballfield.

Now, as the song asks, ain't that a kick in the head?


When the news first broke on Twitter [that's where all the big news breaks these days], I talked to a guy whose hearing isn't so good.

He said he might have heard Samardzija say, "I'm pissed about being sent to Des Moines, primarily because of what they call the ballpark. I agree with Ron Maly. Sec Taylor was one of the great sports editors in the nation. He used to cover Notre Dame a lot--before I got there. It still bothers me that the Des Moines field isn't called Sec Taylor Stadium. I'll go there to pitch for a few weeks, but I can't wait to get back to Wrigley Field. I mean, I ain't Kerry Wood or something. I don't want to spend my whole career in Des Moines."

*

Samardzija, who is being paid $1.3 million this season, is supposed to have what baseball people call a "power arm."

At least that's what the New York Yankees' announcers were saying this weekend when Samardzija was making a last-ditch effort to stay with the Cubs in a ridiculous two-game exhibition series with the Bronx Bombers in their new $1.5 billion stadium.

Power arm, my left ear.

If he's got a power arm, fans at No-Name Ballfield don't have the hands of the ballclub's owners in their pockets the minute they park their cars.

Samardzija got hit so hard in spring training that it seemed like batting practice to everyone else.

For a while, his earned-run average was 9,90.

*

However, even though I know Samardzija's ego is fractured knowing he's been sent to Des Moines, I have an idea that might help him out.

He was an outstanding pass receiver for Notre Dame's football team [photo at the left] before deciding to play pro baseball.

Some [me included] wondered why he didn't enter the NFL draft instead of signing with the Cubs.

Now he can talk to John Gregory of the Iowa Barnstormers and ask if he can suit up for the Stormers during games when he isn't on the mound at No-Name Ballfield.

That way, he can show off his football talents again, and maybe sign with an NFL team as a free agent.

He's being sent to Des Moines to be a starting pitcher, so that means he'll be working only every fourth or fifth day.

*

The Cubs made another pitching move Sunday on the day before they open the season at Houston.

They released pitcher Chad Gaudin, a flake who came to the team with Rich Harden last season.

Gaudin was hit just as hard as Samardzija -- if not harder -- in spring training, and didn't deserve to be with the Cubs.

He's a head case.

He had what was called a "mysterious" back injury last season. Actually, I heard he hurt himself by falling off a loading dock.

Let's put it this way: Baseball players don't hang around on loading docks unless they're up to no good.

The Cubs tried to trade him recently, but nobody wanted him because he was making $2 million.

I'm glad he's gone.

*

The sending of Samardzija to No-Name Ballteam and the release of Gaudin means the Cubs' final two bullpen spots go to Angel Guzman and David Patton.

Man, I'm sure those names send fear throughout the rest of baseball.

As I Have Chocolate Chip Cookies, Rick and Marcia Show Me the $3.9 Million Home That Has a Football Field, Huge Swimming Pool and a Garage for 11 Cars

The timing was perfect.

I got an e-mail from Rick Wanamaker the other day, with this message:

"Attached is a special invitation to see Des Moines' most expensive listing."

Listing as in real estate listing.

I've known Wanamaker for more than 40 years. I wrote newspaper stories about his games when he played for Maury John's outstanding Drake basketball teams, and I kept up with his superb abilities in the track and field arena.

He was the 1970 NCAA champion and an all-American in the decathlon.

The 6-foot 8-inch. 210-pound native of Marengo, IA, looks like he hasn't put on an ounce of weight since his days at Drake, and now he and his wife, Marcia, form a championship sales team with Iowa Realty.

*

Rick and Marcia invited me to an open house they held yesterday at the home at 3800 Fuller Road in West Des Moines that they say is the most expensive ever listed in the Des Moines area.

The home is in foreclosure. The price of the house that was built and owned by Dave Walters is $3.9 million.

"The price is negotiable," Wanamaker told me while I was walking through the place on a very pleasant afternoon.

Rick says offers have been made on the house, but none so far that were acceptable.

I haven't made an offer yet, but I'm thinking about it.

I'm particularly impressed with the football field and the goal posts, the 9.89-acre lot, the 1,000-square foot in-ground swimming pool and the garage space for 11 cars.

You might wonder what I plan to do with the football field. Well, I figure I'll ask Iowa and Iowa State if they want to play their 2010 game there.

By that time, I'll have a 90,000-seat grandstand and a press box built.

The net taxes of $42,052 on the place gave me a mini-jolt but, hey, the way I look at it if a guy can afford a $3.9 million house, he can afford $42,052 in taxes.

*

I got so caught up with walking through the house that I told Wanamaker we should have someone take our picture to show some of the interior and to prove I was there.

We found a lady who knew how to keep things in focus and who was willing to take the photo shown at the top of this column of Marcia, Rick and me. That's me in the middle.

The Wanamakers had chocolate chip cookies available for me and others touring the home. To sweeten the tour, obviously. Rick and Marcia think of everything.

This home, which has 8,755 square feet of living area, is so big it could be spread out over two zip codes.

A few years ago, when I was in China, I took a walk along the Great Wall. A Chinaman I talked with later asked how far I went.

"Oh, way up there," I said, pointing about a half-mile away.

"Gee, you probably needed a visa for that!" he said.

That's kind of how I felt while touring this $3.9 million ranch home.

*

There are four bedrooms, four full baths and two half-baths.

The reason I wrote earlier in this column that the timing was perfect for the Wanamakers to hold an open house yesterday was because this is the weekend of the NCAA Final Four basketball championships in Detroit.

It was 40 years ago that Rick was a significant part of the 1968-69 Drake team that finished third in the Final Four at Louisville.

On the first night of the tournament, Wanamaker blocked a shot taken by the legendary Lew Alcindor [later to become Kareem Abdul-Jabbar], and Drake darn near knocked off heavily-favored UCLA.

John Wooden's Bruins finally prevailed, 85-82, and Drake went on to finish third by clobbering Dean Smith's North Carolina team, 104-84, in the consolation game.

Bill Bryson Says Of His Sportswriter Father: 'You Take Your Dad for Granted. It Wasn't Until After His Death That I Realized How Good He Really Was'

As a young newspaper writer, I had the fortune of working alongside Bill Bryson.

Not the Bill Bryson who was in town this week to receive awards and speak to thousands of people at Drake University.

I'm referring to the Bill Bryson who was the father of the prolific author from England.

The elder Bryson was a longtime sportswriter and columnist at the Des Moines Register and the now-defunct Des Moines Tribune.

He was regarded as a wordsmith, and he was a gift to the sportswriting profession of its day.

I had the pleasure of working with Bryson in press boxes across America, and traveled with him to various bigtime events.

One was the 1966 All-Star baseball game in St. Louis. And there were many football and basketball games involving teams from Iowa, Iowa State and Drake that both of us covered.

To me, he was a very kind, gracious man.

I was amazed with how writers from large metropolitan newspapers respected Bryson, and I always wondered why he never went to work for one of those papers.

But he was content pouring out his magically-written words for Iowans until the day he died.

Once, on a trip he and I were making by car to some sort of sporting event, he gave me this sage advice:

"Whenever you're on the road for three days or more for the company, make sure you send your clothes to the cleaner in whatever city you're in -- and send the company the bill."

*

The younger Bill Bryson -- the one who now is 57 and is a prolific author who lives in England -- was asked about his dad's writing in a discussion at Drake.

"You always have regrets after one of your parents dies," Bill said. "One of my great regrets in life is that I didn't talk more to my father about writing, and the way he went about it. We never talked about it as a career."

Bryson then told his audience: "If you still have a living parent, take advantage of it because they won't always be there to talk to you."

Bryson added, "You take your dad for granted when you're growing up. It wasn't until after his death that I realized just how good he really was.

"My brother put together a collection of his best writings and it was published 20 years ago by the Iowa State Press. My father was an extraordinary writer; an incredibly gifted writer.

"I was aware of that when I was growing up, but I just didn't read his writings. Then I went back later and read those things, and he was remarkable. I think he was better than anyone else of his generation."

Young Bill said his dad "didn't just write a pedestrian story that the 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates won the World Series on Bill Mazeroski's home run. Immediately after a game, he wrote a kind of feacher story that would appear in the paper the next morning.

"Everyone in Des Moines and in Iowa read the Register in those days. We in Iowa were lucky to have the kind of writing my dad did."

*

This, I think, was the first time I had seen Bill Bryson in person since his dad brought him into the Register's newsroom maybe 45 years ago.

"Ron, it's great seeing you," Bryson said when I greeted him. "It's been a long time."

Father Bill covered the Des Moines professional baseball team -- whatever it was called in those days -- and took young Billy to a game on a Saturday night many years ago.

When they walked into the newsroom after the game, young Billy was wearing a pint-sized baseball uniform.

I reminded him of that, and he smiled.

*

Although he's been a world traveler and has lived in England for many years, Bryson said to me, "I was sorry to hear about Phil."

My brother, Phil Maly, who had been a sportswriter for the Des Moines Register and the Des Moines Tribune and later was sports editor of the Quad City Times in Davenport, died at 53 in 1993.

Bryson then proceeded to name others who had worked for the Des Moines newspapers, and died young.

*

I've written several times in the past about how I admire Mike Kilen's writing for the Des Moines Register.

However, Kilen must have been having a bad day yesterday.

I don't know if he was having vision problems or was blindfolded when he covered Bryson's appearance last night at the Knapp Center.

Kilen referred to Bryson as being "short and pudgy."

I stood next to Bryson, visiting with him, yesterday afternoon at the Drake Library. He is neither short nor pudgy.

*

The photos accompanying this column were taken by me and show Bryson appearing before TV cameras and signing books in the Reading Room at the Drake Library. And, yes, that was me you saw on channel 13/WHO-TV last evening and last night, shooting video for myself.

I Went To Hawaii With Tim Floyd and His Cyclones In 1994, So I Know the Guy Pretty Well. Still, Call Me Curious On Why He'd Even Consider Arizona Job

I've got one word in mind as I ponder Tim Floyd's latest mini-spin around collegiate basketball's coaching carousel.

Curious.

Curious that Floyd, who was one of the best coaches Iowa State has ever had in its 101-year basketball history, even considered moving from Southern California to Arizona.

Both universities are in the Pac-10 Conference, both have been -- and continue to be -- big winners.

A Floyd-to-Arizona move would've been like Michigan State's Tom Izzo taking the Ohio State job.

Curious that Floyd would have considered leaving a place where he's had an 85-50 record in four seasons and has taken USC to the NCAA tournament three times.

It turns out he's not going. To Arizona or Memphis, another place he says he considered. He's staying at USC for at least a fifth season in 2009-2010.

I think he's making a smart decision to stay. If it was a falling-out with USC athletic director Mike Garrett that caused Floyd to look east to the Tucson desert [as my friend Jay Christensen of The March To Madness website suggests], it must have been only a temporary falling-out.

*

Floyd is an extraordinary recruiter. He demonstrated that at Iowa State, where he coached from the 1994-95 season through the 1997-98 season, and he's shown it at USC.

The man knows where the players are.

He's got a new arena at USC, so I'm sure he'd never use the old "lack of facilities" line when describing why he might want to move from Los Angeles to Tucson -- where he'd have been drawing up X's and O's to use on Lute & Bobbi Olson Court.

The word is that Floyd was offered the Arizona job after interviewing there yesterday.

I figure the folks at USC thought they had him locked up forever -- or at least until he was ready to start drawing Social Security checks.

After all, Floyd said he'd never take another coaching job after he was offered the one at Louisiana State last year.

But things change. Hell, maybe -- for a while -- he thought he wanted to be the guy who replaced Mr. Wonderful at Tucson on a fulltime basis.

We all know that USC has always been a football school and Arizona has been a basketball school.

Speaking of football, USC coach Pete Carroll didn't seem to be ready to slash his wrists because of Floyd's interview in Tucson.

He's got other things on his mind. Like spring practice.

"In a staff meeting right now... Looking at film of recruits... Then practice this afternoon!! If you love football, you love this day!!!" Carroll wrote 26 minutes ago to me and others who read his messages on Twitter.

Later today, though, Carroll did address the the Floyd/USC/Arizona basketball situation on Twitter.

"[I'm] really jacked Coach Floyd is staying!! He's the best hoops coach in the history of SC and it's awesome he's remaining a Trojan!!!!" Carroll wrote.

*

Mr. Wonderful, of course, is Lute Olson, who retired from Arizona after suffering a stroke.

Mr. Wonderful didn't even coach Arizona this past season. The interim coach was Russ Pennell, who had been a radio announcer.

For a radio guy, Pennell did all right. He had a 21-14 record, and his team got to the NCAA tournament.

For all I know, Larry Cotlar could maybe go 21-14 at Drake.

I know a lot about Olson because I covered him when he was at Iowa. I'm obviously his favorite sportswriter because he devoted an entire page to me in the book he wrote a couple of years ago.

I know a little bit about Floyd, too.

I covered his first three games at Iowa State, and his entire final season.

The first three games were against Illinois State, Virginia Commonweath and Purdue in something called the Big Island Invitational in Hawaii.

Floyd won the first two, but lost to Purdue in the championship game.

*

It rained a lot in Hilo, but covering Floyd and his team there was a ray of sunshine and a refreshment for me.

I'd had to spend the entire 1994 football season covering Iowa State, which then was coached by Jim Walden, another Mr. Wonderful.

Sure.

Walden was so wonderful his Cyclones had an 0-10-1 record in '94. Walden was fired before the season ended. It was such an upbeat autumn that the players sang the school song after their 31-31 tie at Oklahoma State.

Singing the school song in the locker room was supposed to be reserved for the time after victories. But Mr. Wonderful's boys knew they weren't going to beat anybody in '94.

Floyd's final season at Iowa State before heading to the Chicago Bulls produced a 12-18 record in 1997-98.

*

I covered the entire season, and Floyd -- caring guy he is -- apologized to me afterward for not getting his team to the NCAA tournament so both he and I could enjoy it.

Floyd's records with the Cyclones were 23-11, 24-9, 22-9 and 12-18, with three trips to the Big Dance. Not bad at all.

We all know the NBA Experience wasn't good for Floyd. When his time was about to run out with the Bulls, I wrote that I hoped he'd get back into collegiate coaching -- which he did.

Now, I wish him well in season No. 5 at USC.

But I'll continue being curious for a while.

*

Speaking of Twitter, here's what Drake University is calling a "Twitter Exclusive:"

"Maya Angelou to deliver the next Drake Bucksbaum Lecture. Thursday, Oct. 8. 7 p.m."

*

Mike Hlas of the Cedar Rapids Gazette is not only a good sports columnist. He knows what he's doing as a copy editor, too. Not that this pertains to Hlas, but these days it's good to remain versatile in the newspaper business.

I'm Glad Jake Kelly Likes Terre Haute, Ind.--Everybody Else Is Trying To Get Out Of the Place [Maybe Even the Mayor], But Jake Is Eager To Get There

I posted a message on Twitter about Jake Kelly, the former Iowa basketball player who has the appearance of a 15-year-old ninth-grader -- but has a killer Division I collegiate 3-point shot.

"I hope Jake Kelly likes it in Terre Haute, Ind.," I wrote. "I've been in Terre Haute a few times, and I don't want to go back. The place kind of reminds me of Stillwater, Okla."

After that, Keith Murphy of channel 13 in Des Moines wrote about how much he appreciated it that Kelly returned a call to him, and that Jake's commitment to his family had to be the reason he quit Iowa's basketball team and is now transferring to Indiana State in Terre Haute.

"It's gotta be family with Jake," I messaged Murphy. "Most people are trying to get out of Terre Haute. Jake wants to move there!"

For all I know, the mayor and city council even want to leave Terre Haute.

*

Kyle Ealy of Cedar Rapids, whose mother is my cousin, kicked in with this comment about Terre Haute on Facebook: "It's the Joliet of Indiana!"

Something tells me Ealy isn't going to Terre Haute for a vacation anytime soon.

I've been to Terre Haute for Drake basketball and football games against Indiana State.

I even stayed at the Larry Bird Motel.

Now, Terre Haute was Bird's kind of town. It fit his personality.

Quiet and boring.

But there's no denying Bird made a wise choice moving there.

After transferring from Indiana to Indiana State, he took the Sycamores to the 1979 NCAA championship game against Magic Johnson's Michigan State team.

*

I interviewed Larry Bird after he scored a ton of points against Drake one night at Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Des Moines.

Bill Hodge, Bird's coach, said I'd have time for three questions.

"All right, Larry, that's enough," Hodge told Bird after my second question.

Hodge fit in well at Terre Haute, too. For a while anyway.

*

Somehow, Manhattan, Kan., also found its way into the Twitter conversation about College Towns We All Want To Avoid.

Marc Morehouse [pictured at the left] of the Cedar Rapids Gazette recalled that he and I were in a group of people who once ate a meal in Manhattan either before or after an Iowa State-Kansas State football game.

"Now, there's a place I can do without--and plan to do without. Thanks for reminding me, Marc," I told him.

He responded: "I don't plan to go back, unless I'm kidnapped."

Manhattan, Kan., is a town only Bill Snyder would like.

*

Still on the subject of Twitter, Jay Christensen wrote that he "had a terrific time seeing some old friends from the L.A. Times last night at the Weiland Brewery in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo."

Christensen, who grew up in Fort Dodge and graduated from Iowa, was a longtime member of the Los Angeles Times sports department until he and a lot of others were laid off.

He's now editing two wildly-popular Internet blogs about collegiate football and basketball -- The Wizard Of Odds and The March To Madness.

I asked Jay where Little Tokyo is, explaining that it sounded like a place I'd like to visit the next time I'm in L.A.

I wondered if Little Tokyo sponsors a bowl game or a NASCAR race car.

*

That's Christensen pictured at the right. The older he gets, the more he's starting to resemble Afred Hitchcock. I wonder if he caused a stir when when he walked into Little Tokyo.

*

I also wonder if Lute Olson has made any big decisions this week. Or last week.

*

At this time of year, there are always lots of rumors about No-Name Ballteam from Des Moines.

The hottest rumor today is that No-Name Ballteam will play its night games at the city dump this season. The day games will continue to be played at No-Name Ballfield, which is also called the city dump by some people.

*

I keep hearing, again thanks to my friends on Twitter, that Kaylon Williams, the Evansville player from Cedar Rapids who made a midcourt shot as time expired to give his basketball team a 65-62 victory over Drake this season at the Knapp Center, might become a Bulldog in the future.

Nicole Jobst is among those wondering about it.

Williams has quit the Evansville team, saying he wants to play closer to home. Indeed, he has already dropped out of school.

*

I'm pretty excited about whether the Iowa Chops get into the playoffs or not.

*

Isn't it weird how no one -- fans, sportswriters, nobody -- paid attention to Northern Iowa's baseball team until university officials decided to drop the program? You couldn't find a Panthers score in the paper without a magnifying glass. Kind of like with the baseball team at Iowa.

*

Meanwhile, I hope people in Stillwater, Okla., are enjoying themselves today. I was going to fly down there for something, but now I've forgotten the reason.