Oh, What a Feeling--Dream Comes True for Long Beach Coach : Basketball: As new head coach at Cal State Long Beach, Seth Greenberg tends to his first order of business and one of his strongest assets--recruiting players.

Seth Greenberg, on his new job as men’s basketball coach at Cal State Long Beach, looked contented behind what had been Joe Harrington’s desk. Harrington’s things were in boxes on the floor; his executive putting green stood ready to be packed.

A radio, which had played country-Western music when Harrington was coach, emitted classic rock.

Yellow flowers brightened the modest office. The accompanying card read, “Dreams do come true,” and identified the senders as Greenberg’s wife, Karen, his 2-year-old daughter, Paige, and his dog, Perry.

Oh, what a feeling.

It was a feeling Greenberg first experienced 12 years ago when, on the day he graduated from Farleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, N.J., he was hired as an assistant coach at Columbia University.

“I felt the same way I felt when I got this job--a dream come true,” said the 33-year-old Greenberg, who recently was promoted from associate head coach to succeed Harrington, who left to become coach at the University of Colorado.

“I remember how little I knew about the job I was about to take on, but how excited I was, like a kid on his first Christmas,” Greenberg said. “I had this little office, but I thought it was the greatest office in the world. I remember watching my first film as a coach and thinking that there can’t be anything better in life.”

Although he made only $12,500 a year, he recalled receiving his first paycheck and saying: “They’re paying me to do this?”

Having grown up in a middle-class family on Long Island, he had still been close to home then, living in a small apartment at 125th Street and Riverside Drive in Harlem.

“Here I am, 12 years later, in a place I never fathomed I’d be,” he said. “I thought Pittsburgh was a long way from New York.”

Columbia and the University of Pittsburgh were the first stops on a journey whose length made Greenberg eventually wonder if he would be an assistant forever and whether he should get out of coaching.

He had spent two years at Columbia, three at Pitt, one at Virginia and three at the University of Miami (Fla.) before coming to Long Beach three years ago.

Fluorescent ceiling panels above his new desk were reflected in Greenberg’s long expanse of shiny forehead, which still bore the kiss of an island tan acquired two weeks ago in Honolulu, where the 49ers lost to Hawaii in the National Invitation Tournament.

The brow was virtually unfurrowed, despite the recruiting travails that were on Greenberg’s mind. He worried that a top prospect might go elsewhere because, compared with more glamorous big-name schools, “we may not sound good to the guys in the parks.”

“My success or failure,” Greenberg said, “is going to depend on recruiting. I don’t care who you are. Bobby Knight’s a great coach, but he has great players. Great players make great coaches.”

Recruiting has long been Greenberg’s passion. He was involved in persuading all but one of the players on this season’s 23-9 team to come to Long Beach. Most of them will be back next season, joined by several newcomers of promising potential.

He turned his attention to the players as he met Monday afternoon with Matt Ruiz, a 49er assistant. “Make sure they are doing the right thing in the classroom,” he told Ruiz.

Then he said: “We’re going to play 11 guys. If not, we’re going to have unhappy guys. We’ll tell them to go in and play their hearts out, and that then we’ll give them a blow (rest) and then we’ll have them go in and play their hearts out again.

“I want happy players. Happy players work hard at practice. Happy players go to class. Happy players are a positive reflection on the university because they end up as graduates.”

The 49ers, as they were under Harrington, will continue to be an up-tempo, pressing team. “We’ll play as fast or faster,” Greenberg said.

Greenberg was not completely surprised by last week’s sudden turn of events.

“I saw Joe becoming more marketable as we made our march, winning nine games in a row,” he said. “And all the publicity about the NCAA (not inviting Long Beach to its tournament) brought our program and Joe major notoriety. That opened the doors for this to happen.”

Greenberg says his efforts as Harrington’s top assistant made him his ideal successor.

“One thing Joe gave me was a lot of freedom,” he said. “He gave me the opportunity to grow as coach, and he had tremendous confidence in me.”

A year ago, when asked about Greenberg, Harrington had said: “He’ll be a very good head coach one day. He certainly has paid his dues.”

How will Greenberg be to play for, to work for?

“You know I’m no day at the beach,” he said.

Former 49er center John Hatten once said of Greenberg: “He’s got an attitude about him--if he’s in a bad mood, look out.”

Greenberg explained: “I’m very hyper and aggressive. I’m demanding and driven. I can be moody. Not everyone wants to be around someone like that. But I think I’m very fair.”

After Greenberg was named coach at a press conference March 29, forward Kevin Cutler said: “We just hope he doesn’t get as stressed out as he did as an assistant, throwing his jacket.”

During practices or games, Greenberg was often even more emotional and fiery than Harrington. But he intends to be less hyper.

“A team takes on the personality of the coach,” he said. “If I’m worried or up-tight, that could be a problem with the team not playing relaxed.”

On Greenberg’s first day on the job March 30, George Allen, the 49ers’ football coach, had come in and said: “Don’t try to be Joe Harrington. Be Seth Greenberg.”

On a board Allen had written: “TO WIN: 1. Work hard. 2. Work smart. 3. Great attitude. 4. Improve every day. 5. ???” And he signed it, “GA, 3-30-90,” as if it would stay on the board forever.

When Greenberg asked him what the fifth factor was, Allen had said: “I’ll leave that up to you, young man.”

“Get some players,” Greenberg had replied.

Greenberg has yet to sign a contract. He expects a salary similar to what Harrington was getting, about $70,000 a year.

Harrington signed a five-year contract at Colorado for more than $1 million.

“I’m not concerned with what this is going to do for me financially (in the future),” insisted Greenberg, who turned down a lucrative offer three years ago to enter shopping center development. “If (big money) happens, so be it. I’m happy now. The most important thing is the opportunity. I have no fear or apprehension. I feel I can take some credit in the success we’ve had here.”

Under Harrington and Greenberg, the 49ers were 53-36, turning around a program that had been down for most of the 1980s.

After a night in which he had trouble sleeping, Greenberg made out a list early the morning of March 30.

On it, he had written: “Be patient, listen and hear, smile, relax and smell the roses, have time for family, treat players and coaches as individuals, communicate, delegate authority, have confidence in others and have fun.”

He looked at the list Monday, lingered on the last item and smiled, aware of the reality that confronts all head coaches.

“I can’t imagine having fun and losing,” he said.