Campus Connection: Good Friday WVU Sports Notes
March 30, 2018 11:53 AM | Men's Basketball, Blog
According to a tweet put out by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski yesterday evening, former West Virginia University great Rod Thorn is going to be inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame's Class of 2018 as a contributor to the game.
The WVU All-American played eight seasons in the NBA and continued his involvement in the league as a coach and an executive. As general manager of the Chicago Bulls, Thorn was famous for drafting Michael Jordan and later served a long tenure in the league office.
This year's Naismith Hall of Fame class includes players Steve Nash, Grant Hill and Jason Kidd.
Thorn, 76, is a native of Princeton, West Virginia.
Wojnarowski tweeted the formal announcement will be made this weekend at the Final Four in San Antonio.
More WVU sports news and notes …
* Randy Mazey has done it again with Thursday's 1-0 victory over seventh-ranked Texas Tech, which possesses the No. 1 RPI in college baseball this week.
The Mountaineers (10-12) have been struggling with just a .500 record in non-conference play and were swept at Oklahoma last weekend before yesterday's victory.
Perhaps this is the big lift the team needs to make a midseason run to get back into contention for postseason consideration.
* The word out of Charleston is the new Hot Rod Hundley documentary produced by Pikewood Creative was a big hit. Those of us in Morgantown invited to a private screening at The Metropolitan Theatre will get an opportunity to see it this evening.
A website with a trailer and information about the production staff has been developed and can be accessed here: http://hotrodhundley.com
The documentary will air locally on AT&T Sportsnet - Pittsburgh on April 3 at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on West Virginia Public Television on April 16 at 8 p.m.
It is also scheduled to be televised on AT&T Sportsnet - Rocky Mountain on April 8 at 7 p.m.
* Hall of Fame coach Bobby Bowden is scheduled to be back in Morgantown on Sunday, April 8 to speak at this year's West Virginia University Fellowship of Christian Athletes "Night of Champions Dinner" taking place at the Marriott Waterfront Place hotel.
The dinner will begin at 5:30 p.m. and conclude at 8 p.m.
Bowden is credited with getting WVU's FCA chapter started in the early 1970s when he was West Virginia's football coach.
* Some leftovers from Tuesday's interviews with wide receivers coach Tyron Carrier and offensive coordinator Jake Spavital.
Carrier admitted he's had to spend more time developing West Virginia's backup wide receivers this spring in order to avoid another situation like last year where depth issues really hamstrung the offense late in the season.
The Mountaineers' top four receivers, Gary Jennings Jr., David Sills V, Ka'Raun White and Marcus Simms, put up terrific numbers in 2017, but they got worn down late in the year because of the cumulative number of snaps they were forced to take during the season.
"They are out there first and second down, and we take a couple of shots, and they're tired, and then it's third down, and we don't take them out because we need them to make a play," Carrier noted. "When you get tired little bitty things become big things.
"Right now," Carrier added, "I'm strictly focused on those guys behind the starters."
Carrier said sophomore Reggie Roberson Jr. and senior Dominique Maiden have made tremendous improvement this spring.
Meanwhile, Spavital said the running game has to play a bigger role in the offense this season.
"We've got to be more efficient running the ball," he said. "I thought that was one of our weaknesses last year and a lot of that had to do with communication and being on the same page and making sure our running backs and the O-line's footwork mirrored everything. That's something we've taken a lot of pride in to where we're going to be more efficient with it moving forward."
* West Virginia's next Bobby Boucher might be Mississippi Community College transfer Josh Norwood, who began his college career at Ohio State. The safety packs a lot of punch in his slight, 180-pound frame, I am told.
* The starting offensive line the Mountaineers could potentially put on the field this fall will be their biggest in years with 300-pounders across the board. The two guards working with the ones this spring, Josh Sills and Isaiah Hardy, possess tackle height, standing 6-feet-6 inches.
When was the last time West Virginia has had a pair of 6-6 offensive guards, if ever?
* At the conclusion of Tuesday's interviews with the coaching staff in the Team Room at Milan Puskar Stadium, defensive coordinator Tony Gibson spent a little extra time visiting with a handful of us.
Our discussion soon turned to air travel and some of the harrowing experiences he's had through the years traveling during the wintertime while recruiting.
Gibson recalled once flying up to Erie, Pennsylvania, on a small propeller-driven plane to recruit offensive lineman Kyle Mitchum, who ended up signing with Ohio State.
Gibson was traveling with assistant coach Calvin Magee and two young pilots, who the veteran coach said couldn't have been any older than 25.
The turbulent flight turned downright concerning when snowflakes the size of baseballs were falling and the small plane was being tossed around like a rag doll as it approached the airport.
Magee, from his backseat, could see out the front window but couldn't locate the runway.
"I don't care if you can see the runway," Gibson said. "Just as long as the pilots can see it."
When the plane finally touched down and came to a stop, Gibson really didn't think too much about their landing until the two young pilots began high-fiving and hugging each other.
"That's when I realized it was probably a little more serious than I thought," he laughed.
* West Virginia's list of All-America men's basketball players has grown by one following yesterday's announcement that senior guard Jevon Carter has made the 10-member John R. Wooden All-America Team.
Carter makes it 12 men's basketball players to be recognized on an All-America team and the fourth under current coach Bob Huggins.
The others are guard Juwan State (Lute Olson, 2015), forward Kevin Jones (John Wooden, 2012) and guard Da'Sean Butler (Basketball Times and John Wooden, 2010).
Forward Kevin Pittsnogle also made the Wooden All-America team in 2006 - West Virginia's first men's basketball player to earn All-America status in 34 years.
West Virginia's other first team All-America men's basketball players include: Wil Robinson (1972), Rod Thorn (1962 and 1963), Jerry West (1959 and 1960), Rod Hundley (1957), Mark Workman (1952), Leland Byrd (1947) and Scotty Hamilton (1942).
Previously, Carter was honored on the Associated Press All-America second team and he was a third-team choice by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).
* I know the announcement yesterday morning of a scholarship endowment named in memory of the late Ron "Fritz" Williams will be very pleasing to his family, teammates and those who enjoyed watching his three brilliant seasons playing at WVU in 1966, 1967 and 1968.
Williams was one of four West Virginia University African-American players to integrate the old Southern Conference while playing on the Mountaineer freshman team in 1965, along with teammates Jimmy Lewis, Ed Harvard and Norman Holmes.
The late Carl Head joined those four when they moved up to play for the varsity in 1966.
Williams was one of the most popular players in school history and did a lot to improve race relations at WVU during a tumultuous time on college campuses in the late 1960s.
Years later, while playing in the NBA, Williams was frequently called upon to help recruit African-American players to West Virginia University when Sonny Moran and Joedy Gardner coached the Mountaineers.
In fact, All-America player Wil Robinson once credited his friendship with Williams as one of the main reasons why he chose West Virginia over many other schools.
The scholarship in Williams' name is made possible by a generous gift from WVU alums Joe and Lisa Subrick.
* Kevin White, attending yesterday's Pro Day at the Caperton Indoor Practice Facility, told me he's finally getting back to good health.
He's spent three injury-filled seasons with the Chicago Bears, making just 21 catches for 193 yards after being taken in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft.
"One day at a time," he said.
There was a pretty good roster of former players observing yesterday's activities, including White, Bears linebacker Nick Kwaitkoski, Super Bowl champions Rasul Douglas, Shelton Gibson and Wendell Smallwood and Tennessee Titans offensive guard Quinton Spain.
* And finally, earlier this week, we received the very sad news that former West Virginia University women's basketball standout player Maria Tchobanova-Teven had passed away.
The 6-foot-1-inch forward from Plovdiv, Bulgaria, scored 1,426 points and grabbed 756 rebounds during her four seasons playing for former coaches Susan Walvius and Alexis Basil. Tchobonova helped WVU to a 19-12 record and a fourth-place divisional finish in the Big East during her sophomore season in 1997 when she averaged a team-best 15.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game to earn third team All-Big East honors.
Maria was among the first foreign players the Mountaineers had in women's basketball, and I remember her being one of the first players to introduce us to the "Euro step," although she was frequently called for traveling because U.S. referees at the time were just becoming accustomed to seeing it.
I also remember a game very early in her career during her freshman season when she was still standing at the center jump circle pinning up her pony tail at the beginning of a game while the rest of her teammates were running down the floor and the coaches from the sidelines yelling for her to join the rest of her teammates.
She was living in Fullerton, California, with her two daughters and husband at the time of her death.
The WVU All-American played eight seasons in the NBA and continued his involvement in the league as a coach and an executive. As general manager of the Chicago Bulls, Thorn was famous for drafting Michael Jordan and later served a long tenure in the league office.
This year's Naismith Hall of Fame class includes players Steve Nash, Grant Hill and Jason Kidd.
Thorn, 76, is a native of Princeton, West Virginia.
Wojnarowski tweeted the formal announcement will be made this weekend at the Final Four in San Antonio.
More WVU sports news and notes …
* Randy Mazey has done it again with Thursday's 1-0 victory over seventh-ranked Texas Tech, which possesses the No. 1 RPI in college baseball this week.The Mountaineers (10-12) have been struggling with just a .500 record in non-conference play and were swept at Oklahoma last weekend before yesterday's victory.
Perhaps this is the big lift the team needs to make a midseason run to get back into contention for postseason consideration.
* The word out of Charleston is the new Hot Rod Hundley documentary produced by Pikewood Creative was a big hit. Those of us in Morgantown invited to a private screening at The Metropolitan Theatre will get an opportunity to see it this evening.
A website with a trailer and information about the production staff has been developed and can be accessed here: http://hotrodhundley.com
The documentary will air locally on AT&T Sportsnet - Pittsburgh on April 3 at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on West Virginia Public Television on April 16 at 8 p.m.
It is also scheduled to be televised on AT&T Sportsnet - Rocky Mountain on April 8 at 7 p.m.
* Hall of Fame coach Bobby Bowden is scheduled to be back in Morgantown on Sunday, April 8 to speak at this year's West Virginia University Fellowship of Christian Athletes "Night of Champions Dinner" taking place at the Marriott Waterfront Place hotel.
The dinner will begin at 5:30 p.m. and conclude at 8 p.m.
Bowden is credited with getting WVU's FCA chapter started in the early 1970s when he was West Virginia's football coach.
* Some leftovers from Tuesday's interviews with wide receivers coach Tyron Carrier and offensive coordinator Jake Spavital.
Carrier admitted he's had to spend more time developing West Virginia's backup wide receivers this spring in order to avoid another situation like last year where depth issues really hamstrung the offense late in the season.
The Mountaineers' top four receivers, Gary Jennings Jr., David Sills V, Ka'Raun White and Marcus Simms, put up terrific numbers in 2017, but they got worn down late in the year because of the cumulative number of snaps they were forced to take during the season.
"They are out there first and second down, and we take a couple of shots, and they're tired, and then it's third down, and we don't take them out because we need them to make a play," Carrier noted. "When you get tired little bitty things become big things.
"Right now," Carrier added, "I'm strictly focused on those guys behind the starters."
Carrier said sophomore Reggie Roberson Jr. and senior Dominique Maiden have made tremendous improvement this spring.
Meanwhile, Spavital said the running game has to play a bigger role in the offense this season.
"We've got to be more efficient running the ball," he said. "I thought that was one of our weaknesses last year and a lot of that had to do with communication and being on the same page and making sure our running backs and the O-line's footwork mirrored everything. That's something we've taken a lot of pride in to where we're going to be more efficient with it moving forward."
* West Virginia's next Bobby Boucher might be Mississippi Community College transfer Josh Norwood, who began his college career at Ohio State. The safety packs a lot of punch in his slight, 180-pound frame, I am told.
* The starting offensive line the Mountaineers could potentially put on the field this fall will be their biggest in years with 300-pounders across the board. The two guards working with the ones this spring, Josh Sills and Isaiah Hardy, possess tackle height, standing 6-feet-6 inches.
When was the last time West Virginia has had a pair of 6-6 offensive guards, if ever?
* At the conclusion of Tuesday's interviews with the coaching staff in the Team Room at Milan Puskar Stadium, defensive coordinator Tony Gibson spent a little extra time visiting with a handful of us.Our discussion soon turned to air travel and some of the harrowing experiences he's had through the years traveling during the wintertime while recruiting.
Gibson recalled once flying up to Erie, Pennsylvania, on a small propeller-driven plane to recruit offensive lineman Kyle Mitchum, who ended up signing with Ohio State.
Gibson was traveling with assistant coach Calvin Magee and two young pilots, who the veteran coach said couldn't have been any older than 25.
The turbulent flight turned downright concerning when snowflakes the size of baseballs were falling and the small plane was being tossed around like a rag doll as it approached the airport.
Magee, from his backseat, could see out the front window but couldn't locate the runway.
"I don't care if you can see the runway," Gibson said. "Just as long as the pilots can see it."
When the plane finally touched down and came to a stop, Gibson really didn't think too much about their landing until the two young pilots began high-fiving and hugging each other.
"That's when I realized it was probably a little more serious than I thought," he laughed.
* West Virginia's list of All-America men's basketball players has grown by one following yesterday's announcement that senior guard Jevon Carter has made the 10-member John R. Wooden All-America Team.Carter makes it 12 men's basketball players to be recognized on an All-America team and the fourth under current coach Bob Huggins.
The others are guard Juwan State (Lute Olson, 2015), forward Kevin Jones (John Wooden, 2012) and guard Da'Sean Butler (Basketball Times and John Wooden, 2010).
Forward Kevin Pittsnogle also made the Wooden All-America team in 2006 - West Virginia's first men's basketball player to earn All-America status in 34 years.
West Virginia's other first team All-America men's basketball players include: Wil Robinson (1972), Rod Thorn (1962 and 1963), Jerry West (1959 and 1960), Rod Hundley (1957), Mark Workman (1952), Leland Byrd (1947) and Scotty Hamilton (1942).
Previously, Carter was honored on the Associated Press All-America second team and he was a third-team choice by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).
* I know the announcement yesterday morning of a scholarship endowment named in memory of the late Ron "Fritz" Williams will be very pleasing to his family, teammates and those who enjoyed watching his three brilliant seasons playing at WVU in 1966, 1967 and 1968.
Williams was one of four West Virginia University African-American players to integrate the old Southern Conference while playing on the Mountaineer freshman team in 1965, along with teammates Jimmy Lewis, Ed Harvard and Norman Holmes.
The late Carl Head joined those four when they moved up to play for the varsity in 1966.
Williams was one of the most popular players in school history and did a lot to improve race relations at WVU during a tumultuous time on college campuses in the late 1960s.
Years later, while playing in the NBA, Williams was frequently called upon to help recruit African-American players to West Virginia University when Sonny Moran and Joedy Gardner coached the Mountaineers.
In fact, All-America player Wil Robinson once credited his friendship with Williams as one of the main reasons why he chose West Virginia over many other schools.
The scholarship in Williams' name is made possible by a generous gift from WVU alums Joe and Lisa Subrick.
* Kevin White, attending yesterday's Pro Day at the Caperton Indoor Practice Facility, told me he's finally getting back to good health.
He's spent three injury-filled seasons with the Chicago Bears, making just 21 catches for 193 yards after being taken in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft.
"One day at a time," he said.
There was a pretty good roster of former players observing yesterday's activities, including White, Bears linebacker Nick Kwaitkoski, Super Bowl champions Rasul Douglas, Shelton Gibson and Wendell Smallwood and Tennessee Titans offensive guard Quinton Spain.
* And finally, earlier this week, we received the very sad news that former West Virginia University women's basketball standout player Maria Tchobanova-Teven had passed away.
The 6-foot-1-inch forward from Plovdiv, Bulgaria, scored 1,426 points and grabbed 756 rebounds during her four seasons playing for former coaches Susan Walvius and Alexis Basil. Tchobonova helped WVU to a 19-12 record and a fourth-place divisional finish in the Big East during her sophomore season in 1997 when she averaged a team-best 15.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game to earn third team All-Big East honors.
Maria was among the first foreign players the Mountaineers had in women's basketball, and I remember her being one of the first players to introduce us to the "Euro step," although she was frequently called for traveling because U.S. referees at the time were just becoming accustomed to seeing it.
I also remember a game very early in her career during her freshman season when she was still standing at the center jump circle pinning up her pony tail at the beginning of a game while the rest of her teammates were running down the floor and the coaches from the sidelines yelling for her to join the rest of her teammates.
She was living in Fullerton, California, with her two daughters and husband at the time of her death.
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