Surfing the Recruiting Trail Once Again

The next part of my trip began early Wednesday morning when I picked up my little Pontiac Sunfire from the same rental car place as the last time. It was 7:30 in the morning once I got on the road and I had a three-and-a-half hour drive ahead of me to a high school in the northwest Los Angeles area. Along the way, I stopped early on to get what would have normally been a coffee, but since it was already pushing 70 degrees outside, I bought a 32-ounce diet soda. Once I got back to the bright blue Sunfire, I realized that fitting the cup into the cup-holder was going to be tight. Not thinking much of it, I continued on my way along I-5, and as I took a turn, my plastic cup took a tumble. It was a good thing my car came equipped with plastic coverings on the floor mats, otherwise, I might have been a really ugly seen.

Anyhow, I pulled into the high school and was greeted by a door that wouldn’t open unless the front desk attendant buzzed you inside. Despite the two girls laughing at my attempts to pull the door open, I finally reached the guidance counseling office and met my recruit, his father and his counselor. We had a great conversation about Oberlin College and the opportunities ahead of him, and all in all, it was a great meeting.

After leaving the first school, I hit the road again for a school in the Orange County area. Along the way, I stopped by my old high school to visit with my former coach and former trainer as well as walk around the old campus. Most importantly, I got the opportunity to stop at Del Taco (for the Ohio natives, it is a better version of Taco Bell) and grab a nice greasy lunch. It was all I remembered and more.

From Del Taco, I drove to visit a recruit at his home to speak with his parents and eventually him as well. He didn’t get back from school until about an hour after I had begun the conversation with his parents, and as I think back, it might have been better that way. Much the same as kids are sometimes nervous about asking questions in front of parents or teachers, I think parents hold a little back in front of there kids. Once again, I felt like it was a great conversation and very productive.

I hit the road again at about 7:00 p.m. and tried to call my brother who attends a college in the Los Angeles area but couldn’t get a hold of him. I decided to keep driving east and stop at a motel along the way so that I would be closer to my destination for tomorrow.

The next morning, I grabbed a Jack-In-The-Box sourdough breakfast sandwich and began driving towards the Palm Desert area. Much like the name would suggest, there isn’t much to see along the drive. I’m glad I wasn’t tempted to sightsee because the never ending California road construction required both eyes on the road at all times. Thank you to “THE GOVERNATOR.”

I got to the high school and immediately met with the guidance counselor with whom I’ve had many conversations over the telephone. She tried to call my recruit out of class, but we had no luck finding him. We eventually found out that the teacher had let them go read outside because it was such a nice day. I won’t lie, I was worried about him ditching class, but then I remembered that he was interested in Oberlin, and Oberlin kids don’t ditch school.

We finally got the chance to talk and go through the logistics of coming to Oberlin, and at the end of it all, I had a very good sense that he would be coming in the fall if he gets accepted. This was definitely one of the best visits I’ve had in my time at Oberlin. It’s a good thing I felt so positive about my last visit of this trip because I was looking at a five-hour drive back to Fresno squarely in the face.

About four hours into it, I was done reflecting on my visits and looking forward to getting home and watching basketball with some friends. I was anxious and antsy from being in the car so long when about a mile away I saw a cloud of smoke. An hour later, I saw the burning car that set me back and made me miss the first half of the game I wanted to watch. I figured it wouldn’t be one of my road trips if something unusual didn’t happen along the way.

Well, that’s it for this set of recruiting trips. I hope you enjoyed seeing a little bit of what we coaches do when we aren’t in season. I’ll be back here on the west coast soon enough to catch some of the national tournaments, but as for now, I’m looking forward to spending some time relaxing at the pool. Until next time…

Go Yeo or Go Home!!

Sacramento, Oakland & San Francisco

Sorry it took me so long to follow up on the first swing of my trip, but I was without a computer until this evening. I made it everywhere I needed to be and got home safely, and all things considered, it was a very good trip.

I went to pick up my car at the Fresno airport, and my adventure was about to begin. I picked the one car rental company that was located a mile off the airport. They sent a shuttle to get me, fully equipped with one of two automatic doors that actually opened (the other was apparently manual) and wires coming out of where the stereo should have been. I swear I could see the engine from where I was sitting. Not to mention, the driver didn’t look too thrilled about picking me up. Once I got there, I spent more time watching the random two-year old running around the office than signing paperwork. No wonder the rate was almost half the price of the familiar rental car companies.

So, I loaded up in my beautiful Suzuki Forenza and started on my way to Sacramento already about 45 minutes behind schedule. My Friday night game wasn’t really Friday night. It was more like late afternoon, so getting through a big city like Sacramento was a bit difficult. I ended up making it to the game about midway through the second quarter, and I apparently missed my recruit’s best stretch of action. It also turned out to be his only stretch as he had injured himself and his coach saw it more important to save him for the upcoming portion of the tournament. While I had a great conversation with him and his family, I have to admit that I felt a little discouraged about driving six hours round-trip to not see him play.

On a lighter note, I was able to visit two of my favorite fast food restaurants and stayed well under budget. On the way to Sacramento, I stopped at Carl’s Jr. (pictured) and on the way back to Fresno, I got to drive though the storied Jack-in-the-Box. I am not much of a fast-food eater, but it just feels right on a road trip.

The next day, I hopped into the Suzuki at about noon to get to a workout in Oakland. Unfortunately, I was worried about being late, so my only food stop was at a gas station where I got a fountain soda (it’s nice to say soda and not have everyone respond, ‘you mean pop?’) and a protein bar. The workout itself was small but very well run. There were all underclassmen with one exception, so while I couldn’t talk to any of the athletes, I got a chance to talk to the coach for a long time. We caught up and set a time to see each other over the summer, and as he left for his home, I got back on the road to a town in San Francisco for the final stop of the weekend.

This was by far the most fun part of all my driving. I got to drive along the coast for a while and go over a bridge (not the Golden Gate Bridge, but still very cool) that overlooked a whole bunch of lights. I was about to point my camera out the window to take pictures, but I figured that snapping photos while doing 50 MPH on a bridge was far from safe. Anyhow, after stopping at yet another gas station (this time for coffee, water, and another protein bar) I pulled into the gym parking lot about an hour and fifteen minutes early so I could get a good seat.

To my surprise, I walked into the main entrance and saw a line about 30 yards long waiting to get into the gym. I tried every possible door, but was turned away each time. There was a girls’ game wrapping up, and due to the fact that it was sold out, they had to wait until some of that crowd filed out before selling tickets to those of us outside. Ironically enough, I started talking to the guy next to me in line only to find out he was a Hiram graduate. I didn’t hold it against him, but if there had been a rush getting into the gym, I can’t promise I wouldn’t have had my elbows up. The other funny part was watching everyone in the “freezing cold” weather outside. There were winter coats and scarves all around me, and I was quite comfortable in my long-sleeved shirt and tie.

I finally got into the gym and saw one of the better games that I’ve seen all season at the high school level. I had a great conversation with the recruit, his family and his coach, but the best conversation was with a complete stranger. Just so you know, I’m a big fan of Skyline Chili, a company based out of Cincinnati. They only have chains in and around Ohio, but I saw a man after the game with a Skyline Chili hat. I approached him, commented on the hat and instantly made a new friend. He said he was from Ohio and would look me up next time he was in the state.

So, my trip was just about finished. Once my three and a half hour drive was over, it was about 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, and like most men after a long day, I turned on Sportscenter and put my feet up. It was a hectic couple of days, but all in all, it was productive, fun and very helpful to the program. I am very hopeful that as we begin to turn this program around, I’ll look back at these trips and say they were turning points in our development.

In the next couple of days, I'll be getting ready for my next trip, heading south to places like Palm Desert, Los Angeles and South Orange County. Until next time, GO YEO or GO HOME!

Getting ready to ride...

Welcome back to my Blog!! Today, I’m preparing for my first weekend of travel in which I will go to a couple of games and visit a club workout. Here’s how my day is shaking down up to this point.

I woke up this morning and immediately went to the internet to check high school basketball scores. I realized that the two teams I’m hoping to see have both advanced to the next round, so my trip will happen.

Speaking in general terms, here is what goes into planning a trip:

First, I have to give a proposed itinerary to our associate athletics director in which I outline where I’m going, whom I’ll be seeing and the estimated cost of my trip.
Second, I have to spend some time on mapquest.com figuring out how to get where I’m going, how long it will take me and writing down phone numbers in the event (likelihood) that I get lost while driving. Last, I need to finalize my car rental and make sure that everyone from the various groups knows I’ll be there. Oh yeah, and I need to iron my clothes.

I will be heading out to see some tournament play in the Sacramento area. I’ll hop into the economy rental car (which reminds me, I need to call Budget Car Rental…) and drive for three hours due north. Along the way, I’ll weigh my options of food stops. Honestly, I’m hoping to find a Jack-in-the-Box or a Del Taco. Those were staples in my diet when I was in high school (and actually had a metabolism), and especially when I was playing.

I’ll watch the game, talk to the young man when the game is over and begin my trip back to Fresno. If I’m still awake enough, I’ll give you the details of the trip and let you know all that went according to plan… and more importantly how things didn’t.

Saturday, I’ll head out of Fresno again and trek three hours west to the Bay. First stop will be Oakland where I’ll attend the club workout of a coaching friend. He prides himself and his program on committing to academics before basketball. As a recruiter, getting to know programs like this is important because you always know you’ll find quality student-athletes. Straight from there, I will travel about forty-five minutes north to the San Francisco area to catch another tournament game. At the conclusion of the game, I’ll meet the young man and hit the road back to Fresno.

That’s the plan, but as I said last time, it very rarely works out perfectly. As I worked it out in my head (which is very unreliable when it comes to calculations) I’ll be in a car for about 14-15 hours, watching basketball for about six hours and spending about $170 from car rental and gas to food and admission to the games. Let’s see a BCS school get so much out of so little!! Until next time…

Go Yeo!!

Introduction

In my six years of coaching, the question I’ve received the most is ‘What do you do when you’re not in season?’ The short answer is that we get ready for the upcoming season, largely through recruiting, but if you want more detail, here you will have it. I will be making several trips through California to do some recruiting, and through this blog, you can get some of the nitty-gritty of what coaches do when they aren’t pacing the sideline.

For a little background, we concluded our season on Saturday, February 17th with a great home weekend. The day started with a women’s alumnae game followed by the men’s alumni game, both proving to be a lot of fun. After that, the women’s team pulled out a win and we concluded the day with a three-point victory of our own. After a week in the office to tie up some loose ends (along with seeing a couple of local high school games), I’m in California visiting family and friends, unwinding from the long season.

With Oberlin being a D3, liberal arts college, we don’t have the same budget as Ohio State or UCLA, so you won’t read about my chartered flights and seven-course meals at the five-star restaurants. It will probably be more like a rented Kia Rio with stops at local favorites In-N-Out Burger, Del Taco and Carl’s Jr., and national staples like Arby’s and Subway. I won’t be giving podium speeches in hotel lobbies, but probably sitting in a cafeteria side table, dodging tater tots, trying to describe the prestige of Oberlin. It might not be glamorous, but it’s fun and all in the name of finding quality student-athletes that will help us reach the top of the NCAC standings.

Keep checking in with this blog as I plan to make my first trip this weekend towards the Bay Area. I’ll give you the general itinerary in a couple of days, and as always, it probably won’t work out at all like I planned, but hey, that’s the fun of it!! I’ll try to put up pictures as well, but I’m not the most gifted guy in the world when it comes to technology. I’ll do my best.

Well, I wish I could tell you that I’m off to the pool, but despite my plan of coming back to cold and snowy Ohio with a bronze glow, it’s actually pretty wet and gloomy in the Fresno area. I guess I’ll try to sneak my way into a gym somewhere and work out so I can do some buffet eating tonight. Have a great couple of days and I’ll talk to you soon.

Go Yeo!