UC Irvine Notebook / John Weyler : Fertig Trades Present for a Chance to Build at ‘School of the Future’

Anyone who has seen all the BMWs with USC license-plate holders converging on the Coliseum on a football Saturday would have to figure the Trojan fund-raiser has a cushy job. You just show up at the office, open the envelopes and add up the donations, right?

So it’s not surprising that a lot of people were walking around the USC athletic administration offices with mouths agape last August after hearing that former Trojan quarterback, former Trojan assistant football coach and current Trojan Associate Athletic Director Craig Fertig was leaving for a similar position at the athletic fund-raising ghetto of UC Irvine.

Then you find out that Fertig lives in Irvine and you say, “Ohhhh yeah, those freeways will drive us all nuts one day.”

Fertig does admit he has done a couple hours of work each morning at Irvine by the time he used to arrive at USC, but he insists the commute was not a factor in his decision.

“I really think this is the school of the future in Southern California,” Fertig said. “USC and UCLA are landlocked, but there’s $341 million of construction going on here right now.

“I could have stayed at USC for the rest of my life. But that job was more just maintaining. This is creating.”

Fertig, who set eight Trojan records in 1964 and was an assistant under John McKay for 8 years, got into fund-raising “because I got fired” after serving 4 years as football coach at Oregon State.

“I could’ve stayed in the coaching profession, but I wanted my kids to have roots,” he said. “I didn’t want my family to be Gypsies.”

So Fertig came home to USC. And now he has come home to Irvine, where he’s trying to lay the groundwork so some future fund-raiser, who’s in kindergarten somewhere right now, will have a cushy job.

“I went to SC, one of my neighbors went to Cal, one’s a Bruin and one went to Penn,” Fertig said. “That’s the type of person we’re trying to get involved with our program now. Make Irvine their school, the community’s school. We’re trying to broaden our base.”

The school has had a great deal of success raising money in the community to buy microscopes. Donations for balls and uniforms have come a little harder.

Fertig knows first-hand that success on the field--or in Irvine’s case “court,” because basketball is the premier sport--directly translates to money in the coffers. But he isn’t especially concerned about the Anteaters’ disappointing 2-4 start this season.

“When people are feeling good about your team, they seem to write bigger checks,” Fertig said. “It’s very important to succeed with your lead sport, but everyone here seems to be very positive.”

“And I have total respect for (basketball Coach) Bill Mulligan. He’s one of the reasons I’m here.”

The Irvine athletic budget faces a projected $1.3 million deficit next year, but nobody--especially Fertig--seems on the verge of panic.

The reason for the laid-back attitude is that the impact on Irvine’s sports programs is negligible. It boils down to this: If the athletic department doesn’t come up with $70,000, crew might be designated as a club sport. That’s it.

“It’s turned into kind of a positive,” Fertig said. “It drew the crew alums and their interest group closer together.”

On Monday, Mulligan said he had decided on nine players who would play, but declined to name them.

“I’ve got it down to nine, and I’m not going to change them,” he told reporters at his weekly luncheon. “You guys will find out who they are (Tuesday) night.”

The nine turned out to be starters Rod Palmer, Kevin Floyd, Mike Labat, Mike Doktorczyk and Elgin Rogers and reserves Jeff Herdman, Brian McCloskey, Troy Whiteto and Don May.

When May first stepped onto the court, a fan behind press row screamed, “What’s May doing in there?”

Some reporters were wondering the same thing. May, a 6-foot 9-inch redshirt freshman, played only 15 minutes in the first 4 games, but he played 11 Tuesday night in the Anteaters’ 112-101 victory over Eastern Washington. He had 2 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 turnover. He now has 4 points and 7 rebounds on the season.

After the game, Mulligan said: “About the top nine . . . I may change a guy or two.”

Anteater Notes

Coach Bill Mulligan says he isn’t handling his team’s early-season woes very well, but at least he’s able to maintain his sense of humor. “Last week was a very bad week,” he said Monday. “We’re off to the worst start in 17 years. My wife’s father died. And then my wife’s purse gets stolen in an Irvine grocery store. Well, actually, it wasn’t her whole purse. The guy was good, he just reached in there and snatched the wallet. He must have quick hands. That’s the guy I ought to have playing for me.” . . . Mulligan and freshmen Don May and Elgin Rogers will have a homecoming of sorts when the team arrives in Chicago Friday before Sunday’s game against Loyola. Mulligan was raised on the city’s south side, and his mother and sister still live in the area. Mulligan played basketball and football at St. Ignatius High School in Chicago, attended Chicago Teachers College and received his master’s degree from DePaul. May attended Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in nearby Palos Hills and Rogers graduated from Horace Mann High in Gary, Ind. . . . Seven members of the men’s swimming team--Brian Pajer, Jeff Klatt, Mauro Macchi, Brian Judd, Matt Wright and Tim Hinckey--have qualified for the U.S. Open championships Dec. 18-20 in Indianapolis.