>When someday seems like never

In 2004, I sat in an arena and watched Greg Oden dominate his opposition.

Even then he was tagged as the next big thing and I anxiously awaited the day that this 30-year old looking teenager took his game to the next level. I'm still waiting.

After that 2004-2005 season, he played one more year at Lawrence North High School, got hurt -- played a year at Ohio State, got hurt -- was the top pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, got hurt and missed EVERY game in his initial rookie season.

All of that history leads to the question: why did we expect more when his 2nd rookie season began?

Because just 14 minutes later (and four missed field goals), he was on the bench- hurt.

I no longer look forward to the day when Indiana boy Greg Oden fulfills his prophecy of being basketball's next big thing. Instead, I await the day that he scores a single basket.

Too bad right now the name of that day seems like it only rhymes with the word never.

>Now I can sleep easier at night

It was 2005 the only other time I have seen something the likes of what I saw when watching back-to-back-to-back IPFW volleyball exhibition matches last Sunday. It was a completely revamped scene that sometimes saw all six active players on the court as new faces to everyone.

A big senior class last year had to breed a new, big freshman class this year, we all knew that. But that concept scared me a bit. It scared me just as much as it did in 2005 when unfamiliar names like Brock Ullrich and Josh Stewart joined the familiar’s of Matt Zybyszewski and Serdar Sikca.

I guess I can rest easy now. Because what I saw made me crack a reminiscent smile. Much like that January day in 2005, I have found myself thinking “these new kids- they are going to do alright.”

More than alright, they were pretty impressive on a 2-1 day where they hung with a pretty experienced Ball State, even in a loss.

To me, last year’s team and the personality driven spark that they put out cannot be replaced. But this team has already, in one day, gone a long way in reminding me that I also once had to adjust to those departed ex-players.

The roster has the names of twelve players who, coming into this year, have never worn the blue and white in a match. Eight of them did it for the first time Sunday in Gates and for the most part, they did it delightfully.

While familiar faces of ex-IPFW players Dan McNerney and Jason Yhost watched from the stands and another former player, Jon Bassillo, sat nearby on the sidelines as part of the Quincy coaching staff- it was the sight of Phil Peterson, Jonathan Meyer, Eric Hardek and a host of others that peaked my interest the most.

Peterson, thus far, is the most impressive I have seen a freshman be since Josh Stewart in the 2005 regular season. He led IPFW in kills against Carthage and Ball State as well as overall for the day with a powerfully fast spike. Filling in the void of CJ Macias, Ullrich and Yhost on the outside will be a difficult task, but Peterson showed that he will be a big part of that. And while his passing and defense sometimes looked weak, he also led IPFW on the block. I can see his versatility being the main ingredient in how successful this team can be from the early going.

I’m equally impressed by the power, control and emotion of sophomore Darryl Shank, who played little as a freshman. Arnie Ball is going to have his hands full in deciding the balance between these two, as well as freshmen Hardek and Ivan Matos on the outsides as all four showed a major upside over the weekend with day-totals of 28, 24, 18 and 10 kills (more than 60 percent of the team’s total).

And if it was only the outside hitters, I would still be impressed. But it was much more.

Chris Brigson showed much of that freshman inexperience early on the offensive side but also helped stuff down the opponent with big middle blocks alongside Oliver Kook and Nathaniel Berg. Freshman Dan Mader is going to give Corey Stewart and Kevin Goncalves a run for their money at the setter spot where both Mader and Stewart showed Sunday that they are very capable of handling one of the most important positions of any IPFW team. And, I cannot wait to see the battle at libero between the veterans Mike Morici and Matt Pliske, each of whom has led IPFW to a Final Four appearance. Not to mention, they have a little libero in the wings in Garrett Bitter who will be anxiously waiting, watching and learning.

This team has restored hope in my mind (not that all of it was lost). If they continue to develop over these next two months of practice, I can only imagine that they will be a special thing to watch in many ways come that January 9 home opener.

>Tin Caps? Well, it could be worse.

So Fort Wayne has yet another new mascot. Gone are the long-standing Wizards (or the Dragons as their logo has suggested now for years) and in it’s place are the Tin Caps.

Wait? The Tin Caps? Really?

And the logo. It’s a semi-angry apple with a pot on it’s head. Wait, we are the Pot Heads? Oh hell.

Whoever thought this one up must be a genius, because there would never be a chance that anyone would take the name and turn it around in such a negative manner (please, note the sarcasm.)

However, drug references aside, I can’t really condemn our new Minor League Baseball team’s moniker. After all, does anybody remember how much the citizens of Fort Wayne despised the name Wizards when it came about in 1993?

“Amazing baseball,” and all aside, most people here actually wanted us to be called the Fort Wayne Twins, due to our then-affiliation with the Major League Minnesota variety.

So now accounting for taste there.

The Tin Caps does capture two things that I think are very important when naming teams in the present days of terrible sporting names:

1) It is different. It’s not the Bobcats or Warriors or Panthers or something that any other professional team or school has.

2) It is localized. The logo points out things that the name doesn’t. Referring to the tin pot that the fabled Johnny Appleseed supposedly wore on his head, the team had an interesting play on one of Fort Wayne’s more legendary persons of lore.

If you like the name Mad Ants, of the one-year old NBA Developmental League, then you cannot in any good faith dislike Tin Caps.

When Jeff Potter and the crew over with the Mad Ants came up with the name, they used the same formula. They took famed General Anthony Wayne, twisted the Anthony part up and there you have it: angry ants.

And it fits in well with not only the Mad Ants, but Fort Wayne’s only other really focused on professional team the Komets. Because Komets with a ‘K’? That’s pretty much just a Fort Wayne thing.

And Tin Caps is oriented specifically to this city. Or for all you old school Wizards haters, we could call ourselves the Fort Wayne Padres!

Or you could shut up.

We could be boring and cliche with usual names or ones that start with a ‘F’ for pathetic rhyming purposes (Flash? Fever? Defunct Freedom?). Or we could break out as we have done.
So me, I will accept the Tin Caps.

Why wouldn’t I? Why wouldn’t anyone.

After all, we still have this brand new and Tom Henry-rific financially irresponsible stadium to complain about.

>OJ did it, move on

An ex-OJ Simpson associate is now spilling his guts, saying that a high, drunk OJ admitted murdering his wife and Ronald Goldman in 1994

Let's stop pretending that this is really news worthy here. OJ did it, we all know that.

I was in sixth grade when the murder happened. I watched story unfold, saw a sweet bronco chase, remember the trial (Judge Ito, Kato Kaelin and all). I watched the verdict in my sixth grade science class (obviously Ms. Hunter really didn't have anything better to do...like teach.) And through all of that, I only knew one thing: OJ did it.

So stop. I don't want it on Sportscenter, CNN.com needs to find something better to do and aren't there better guests for "Outside the Lines" than scumbags (if you were EVER in the "OJ camp," you are a scumbag.)

Forget the "fictional" book, the banter- it's old and I'm over it. OJ Simpson could stand in front of congress and say "I killed 'em, it was fun, kiss my ass" and there is nothing anyone could do. So if we all know he did and there is nothing that can be done about it, what is the big deal? I don't care if he admits it.

Stop wasting my time, this isn't 1994. OJ Simpson is dead to half the world, why can't we just leave it that way?

>West Coast Evils

I feel like I need a therapist for this one...

Doctor, I hate the West Coast and I really don't know why.

I guess it started in 2006 with this fellow named Steve Klosterman. He had these easy-t0-mock friends named Dennis Gonzales, Damien Scott, Paul George, Jamie Diefenbach, Nick Scheftic and this feathery haired jerk named Tony Ker.

Last year, I thought I was content until some guy who can't spell Jason right (yeah, you Jayson Jablonsky) and his buddy Brian Thornton came along.

And now, I have this strange desire to punch an Aussie named Paul.

Why do I have such rage when it comes to the volleyball programs of the West Coast?

Tonight, Pepperdine (who got royally ousted by the Mastodons last year) advanced to the National Title Game. And with the wave they are riding (no pun intended), it may be hard for the Nittany Lions of Penn State to get by them. And that really, really irritates me. If Paul Carroll and JD Schleppenbach out-do Matt Anderson and Luke Murray, I may go insane.

This time, my boys aren't even involved. So why the rage? Why do I wish that Penn State ends Saturday night in some fashion that resembles 30-0, 30-0, 30-1? (Yeah, I'll give Pepperdine a point for a ridiculous mascot)

The hatred I feel for UCLA, UC-Irvine, Pepperdine and yes you UC-Santa Barbara (turn around and watch the game!) is unrivaled!

Maybe I need help. I don't even get this upset for Duke basketball sometimes. But I am sick of this "west coast dominance" shit. It's time to put these boys and their old, tired coaches in their place.

Go Penn State.

>Is this the best time for a volleyball change?

In the past five years, IPFW has experienced many changes including an influx of young coaches. Since the fall of 2002, when the program became fully Division I certified, only four coaches have left the school.

That low number leaves me expectant that will change in coming years. The biggest and most important change that could come in that area is the retirement of Arnie Ball, whenever that may occur.

When it comes to coaches at IPFW, mens volleyball coaches nationwide and pretty much coaching in general, Arnie Ball is in a certain class of his own.

When you have been at a school for almost 30 years and are one of the winningest coaches in your sport, there is never a “right time” to walk away. But the fact is that eventually, Arnie will choose to do so. And when he does, I pray that it is the right way because Arnie Ball is the epitome of IPFW athletics and should always be remembered that way.

There has always been talk of who would replace Arnie when he retires from the sport he has helped define. Will it be son Lloy when he retires from professional and Olympic play? How about assistant Ryan Perrotte, who seems like he has been groomed well for the replacement?

But most importantly, when is the best time? As I said before, there is no right time. So when would it be best to hand over the reigns?

And as much as I respect and like Coach Ball (and as much as he’ll adimently disagree with my next assessment), I believe that this is the best time to leave IPFW in the capable hands of either replacment. Though, I am all for Ryan Perrotte.

Coach and I have had some disagreements over the years, so I expect him to yell at me for this, I really do. But it is nothing personal. Hell, if I had what I considered a family in IPFW athletics after covering them for six years, Arnie would easily be the dad.

Coach and I have had some disagreements over the years, so I expect him to yell at me for this, I really do. But it is nothing personal. Hell, if I had what I considered a family in IPFW athletics after covering them for six years, Arnie would easily be the dad.

But think about this:

Coach Ball is fresh off of back-to-back Final Four appearances, the school’s first National Runner-Up finish, a 2007 AVCA Coach of the Year honor and saying goodbye to seven seniors (the most for IPFW in quite sometime).

As it stands now, there will be just two seniors in 2009. The team is quite young with only two starters returning. And those who are still around have quite the relationship with Perrotte. The next couple of years will be a rebuilding time for the mens volleyball program. I think it could be best to let someone else rebuild. No, Arnie would not be going out on top, and I know he wants to win a National title pretty damn bad. But this may be the closest to going out on top that he may ever get.

I’m not saying I want Arnie to leave. On the contrary, I would love for him to stay forever. And coach, if I still have you reading my articles all these years later, let me say that I have truly enjoyed every second of covering you, talking to and interviewing you. I really do hope that you continue to coach at IPFW forever. Because as long as you coach, I will definantly be in the stands watching you do it.

Since I won’t be here when he does hang up the clipboard, I do truly hope that IPFW gives Arnie the caring and emotional parting that he deserves. Because when it does happen, Mastodon athletics will never be the same again.

(this column originally appeared in the IPFW Communicator on April 30, 2008)

>This is your Legacy

IPFW volleyball’s season and hopeful run for a third straight Final Four came crashing down with a 3-2 loss on Friday night. After two straight trips to the nation’s top stage with many of the same players, this IPFW team finished 12-15, losers of their last four.

And for seven very special seniors, that is how your college careers ended. That is not your legacy. That is not how you will be remembered.

This group will go down as one of the best teams, of any kind, in the history of this institution. Josh Stewart, Brock Ullrich, Dan McNerney and Steve Rogers have shown that there are kids who buy into programs will be true team players for all four years. Graydon Ainsworth has filled the most important role in the program by moving in at setter in 2008. And C.J. Macias and Jason Yhost have transferred in, hit hard and restored faith in a program that had its share of struggles in years before.

These seven seniors have left an amazing mark on this school, their sport, each other and every fan who has watched them over the past two, three or four years.

Going to matches at Gates, and in some ways life, will not be the same now that they must move on. And that is a legacy.

On the court, who is going to hit from the outsides? Who is going to be a permanent ball stopper in the middle? Hell, who am I going to have to cringe at regarding ball control?

On the sidelines, who is going to always be smiling? Who is going to be the clapping-nazi? And what will it be like without errant yells of “Yyhhooooosst!” before a serve?

Overall, what will life be like without seven guys who have done amazing things for IPFW and always done so with a smile, a laugh and without taking it all too seriously?

Yes, they faltered when the pressure was actually on them. I don’t think that any of them will argue with that. But why in the world would that be their legacy?

Anybody who has seen them play, anybody who knows them personally will carry their own distinct, and I’m betting, positive memories of these guys. And that is what we should remember them for.

From the first time I watched any of them play, on January 28, 2005 in a loss to Lewis, you always had a feeling that the original core group of five (then including Mike Morici) was going to be something special. Later that year I cheered against Macias as IPFW bounced him and Findlay from the postseason. The next year, I did the same to Ainsworth as the Mastodons dumped Rutgers during a big final weekend at Gates. And last year, I remember very vividly wondering “who the hell is Jason Yhost” when he appeared from nowhere as service specialist and was in the starting lineup a few aces later.

I will remember these seven seniors for those things.

I will remember the first time I interviewed any of them. Brock Ullrich sure was cool and collected the first time I stuck a recorder in his face when he was a freshman. Goofy? Yeah. Serious? Never. He was Brock. The same Brock that ripped Pepperdine in the 2007 National Semis, the same Brock that adorns a towel on his head on the sidelines when we are down and spikes his hair in crazy ways when the momentum is going our way.

I’ll know that C.J. was always willing to swing by for a quick interview anytime I needed just one more quote for a story and I’ll always know that he made having the mens volleyball beat during their first Final Four run the easiest thing in the world.

And I’ll always know that two of these guys, while never playing as much as their peers, spent four great years at IPFW filling two of the most crucial roles, as I see it, on this mens volleyball team. In the form of Mike Daiga (Class of 2006), Steve Rogers was a true team player who was always smiling and always happy to be part of this program.

And Dan McNerney? What really would a match be like if he was not there? Loud, vocal, leading and the life of the party in the Gates Center, it will be awfully quiet (and not in a good way) without him.

We all have our memories of the seven of you. You all have your memories of each other and your time at IPFW. Good, bad, funny and even sad, that is your legacy. And it is worth remembering.