Stand-Up Coach : Rick Majerus Tells Stories and Pops Out One-Liners, but He Also Has Utah on Sweet 16 Stage

Rick Majerus’ annual tour is in full swing, and reporters from coast to coast can’t jump aboard fast enough to get in on the fun.

The affable Majerus is doing his thing again before packed arenas, spinning yarns and dropping one-liners that would do a veteran stand-up comic proud. Oh, and he’s also coaching the heck out of second-ranked Utah.

That part of the Majerus package is sometimes lost on outsiders, but not to the people who know Majerus best. He is a walking, talking encyclopedia of college basketball know-how, and the Utes realize they wouldn’t be where they are today without him.

Second-seeded Utah plays sixth-seeded Stanford on Thursday in a West Regional semifinal game at the San Jose Arena. A victory would put Utah at the doorstep of the Final Four and give Majerus the thing he enjoys most: A bigger stage.

“I have a great job,” Majerus said. “I get to coach the game I love and teach a bunch of kids I really enjoy. I also eat a lot of pizza, so what could be better?”

Majerus was on top of his game on the court and with reporters during the regional’s first two rounds in Tucson. He told his usual assortment of stories about adventures in coaching with buddies such as the Lakers’ Del Harris and Seattle’s George Karl.

There were also anecdotes about his home life--he lives alone in a Salt Lake City hotel--his sense of, ah, sartorial style and his love of food. The food stuff always goes over big with reporters.

“Rick is one of the funniest guys in our business, no doubt about it,” said Karl. “But Rick is also a great coach. That’s what really makes him so successful.”

When asked to describe his impromptu celebration after a last-second conference tournament-game victory, the rotund Majerus came up with this gem: “Yeah, I got pretty high off the ground, huh? I’ve got incredible hops. Michael Jordan had better watch out. It’s going to be ‘Air Majerus’ in all the shoe stores from now on.”

Then there was this wisecrack, when asked why he wasn’t in his assigned seat to scout games at the McKale Center on Friday night, as were the other coaches: “I had a buffet going on the upper level and I didn’t want all you [reporters] to get in on it. I know how you people can eat.”

Putting it delicately, Majerus doesn’t fit the classic coach image of the 1990s. He’s a self-described fat, bald guy. He wears snug-fitting sweaters everywhere and said he owns only a couple of suits--”I think I still have them”--but just try to get him to wear them.

“I’d wear sweats and T-shirts everywhere if I could,” Majerus says.

A GQ cover guy he’ll never be.

No matter. Majerus, 49, has carved a nice niche for himself. He’s a regular on CBS during the tournament and is a riot in those ESPN college basketball commercials with Robert Goulet.

“Coach has two sides,” said Keith Van Horn, Utah’s All-American senior forward from Diamond Bar. “The media see him one way, always joking and having a good time. He’s not like that with us because he can’t be.

“He still says some funny things every now and then, but it’s not like it is with the media. He has a job to do with us.”

In fact, Majerus occasionally worries that the focus is on him too much. During a West Regional news conference Saturday, the usually accommodating Majerus declined to repeat a funny story about himself when requested by an NCAA moderator.

“I just wanted to talk about the kids instead,” Majerus said. “They’re what’s really important, not another stupid story about me.”

Majerus’ players say he truly cares about them.

Sophomore point guard Andre Miller, for instance, said his relationship with Majerus has helped him adjust to life in Salt Lake City after growing up in Watts.

“Utah is a lot different than Los Angeles,” said Miller, who attended Verbum Dei High. “It took me a while to get used to it, and coach talking to me helped me get comfortable quicker.”

As good as Majerus is with his players, he’s even better at preparing his teams to play. The Utes just don’t go into games with their guard down, opposing coaches said.

“Coach Majerus is a great coach, and you see it in how his team is ready for what you’re trying to do,” said UNC Charlotte Coach Melvin Watkins, whose team lost to Utah in the second round. “Coach Majerus has a great understanding of the game.”

Utah Jazz President Frank Layden said Majerus is second to none in teaching the game.

“There’s nothing Rick can’t show a player if he’s willing to learn,” Layden said. “I’ve been in college and pro basketball for a long time, and Rick is one of the best I’ve ever seen.”

The Utes are 28-3. Their No. 2 ranking in the final Associated Press regular-season poll was their highest, as was their No. 2 seeding in the tournament.

Consistency has characterized Majerus’ eight-year career at Utah, where his record is 179-54. His overall record is 278-106 in 12 seasons, including stops at Marquette and Ball State.

He has led Utah to consecutive Sweet 16 appearances and three overall. The Utes have won four Western Athletic Conference titles, and Majerus has been selected the WAC coach of the year three times.

With that resume, it is no wonder that Majerus’ name is often mentioned when high-profile jobs open. Many Utah fans were worried that Majerus might leave for UCLA when Jim Harrick was fired in November.

When former Bruin assistant Steve Lavin got the job, Majerus wasn’t upset in the least. He likes things where he is.

“The community has been great to me, and my kids have a lot of character,” Majerus said. “I have a job a lot of guys would really want. I feel lucky to have it.”