The rise of IPFW: Part 3

Joe Pechota kind of gets lost in the transition of things with the program. Gangster Joe, with his gold bracelet, nice suits and slicked back hair, was a total change from Noll. At this point, I was totally engrained in the story of it all, getting whatever info I could whenever I could. I was at every game and the change that came in Pechota’s first game, a win against Youngstown State was not just crystal clear, it screamed at you. ‘Coach P’ as they called him, brought out the best in his players and their personalities. During that Youngstown State game, they all seemed looser, more jovial, and happier.

It is amazing what a different atmosphere will do for a team. The Malone brother (Jason and Byron) were hustling, Simon was light on his feet and in his head and Pete Campbell broke out and showed that he was clearly the heir apparent to Simon’s reign.

Did they win a lot? No. They won just three more games, all against fellow Independents, all while Pechota was embroiled with a tough head coaching national search.

Joe Pechota did a great job. When we, at The Communicator, found out the final four candidates, I did my homework. All of us doing sports at the paper did. The pros and cons were debated often.

Joe Pechota, the current interim head coach who had a golden report with his players. He proved he could win some; can he win more with a full team back? After all, he was losing just Simon and adding red shirt guards Brad Pompey and DeWitt Scott, who was a D1 transfer.

Tracy Dildy, the unproven Ole Miss assistant coach who was a world class recruiter. Once recruiting the likes of future NBA prospects Bonzi Wells and Quentin Richardson to their respective schools. Who could Dildy bring in to IPFW? Could he make his whole thing blow up in a positive way? Can he win games at all?

 

At the time, Fife seemed like
an odd choice over (from left to right)
Dildy, Pechota and Dement.

Mike Dement, the former Southern Methodist (SMU) coach who had gone through the find-a-conference transition before at UNC-Greensboro. After all, this was the thing on the top of Athletic Director Mark Pope’s list: get IPFW to a conference. Mid-Continent Conference, Horizon League – he, as an AD, needed to be one of these places to sustain the school’s D1 status. And he can win; he was 138-120 in seven-plus seasons at SMU.

Dane Fife, the Indiana University video coordinator with no head, or really any, coaching experience on any level. Dane would bring a youthful exuberance and an ability to relate to the young players, he was young himself, shortly out of a brief pro career with Gary in the CBA. Not to mention he led IU on the court to a National Title game a few years earlier. So he had been there, and was going to put butts in the seats in the pro-IU area. But not only could he win, but could he even coach?

I had my opinion then and I won’t be shy about it. I talked to three of these four guys briefly about the search. Coach P was as he always was, candid and hopeful but didn’t go to deep. Dement was very PR-motivated and gave copy and paste answers. Dildy was full of conversation. We had multiple hour-long or so phone conversations, he was personable and polite. Dane Fife did not answer the phone, he did not return calls.

When it was time to make the decision, my opinion was clear: hit reset and take the chance on Tracy Dildy. When he withdrew his name about a week before the decision was made, there was only one answer: ride it out with Joe Pechota. Imagine my surprise when the name that came back was Dane Fife.