In Lubbock, He’s a Knight in Shining Armor

It’s ironic that while Indiana is making

a “Hoosiers”-like run through the Big Ten tournament, its former coach, Bob Knight, is heading toward a sequel to his career.

Call it “Red Raider of the Lost Ark.”

Knight was hanging out with an old chum, St. Louis Cardinal Manager Tony La Russa, at the team’s spring training site at Jupiter, Fla., earlier in the week when a rumor began orbiting the college basketball world that Texas Tech officials had talked to him about the soon-to-be-vacant Red Raider coaching position.

Two Cardinal beat writers quickly swooped down on Knight, peppering him with questions about the Texas Tech rumor. At first, Knight would only talk about baseball--presumedly the new strike zone because it’s one of his areas of expertise.

Then, upon finally breaking down during interrogation, he confessed to Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “I’d really like to get back into coaching. I haven’t made any bones about that. I just want to see what I’m best for and who’s best for me.”

College basketball’s best bet came in Friday when Texas Tech Coach James Dickey was fired after a fourth consecutive losing season--a streak that started after NCAA sanctions were imposed against the school for recruiting violations and unethical conduct.

A source close to Knight seemed to indicate that the Texas Tech job was in Knight’s best interests. “This particular situation he finds really exciting,” the source told the Post-Dispatch.

Texas Tech officials have said the job has not been offered to anyone, and can’t because of state law that mandates the position remain open 10 working days.

However, Texas Tech Athletic Director Gerald Myers--the Red Raider coach before Dickey and longtime friend (and hopefully not hunting partner) of Knight’s--and president David Schmidly had a secret meeting with Knight on Monday in Florida.

“I notice he ranks seventh on the all-time [all divisions] coaches list, he graduates a very high percentage of his players, his program was squeaky clean--never had any NCAA problems,” Schmidly said Friday. “So there are lots of credentials that make him an outstanding basketball coach.”

Just don’t go up to him and say, “Hey Knight! What’s up?”--which one Indiana student did, resulting in Knight grabbing him by the arm and getting a lecture on respecting his elders.

The incident was in violation of a “zero-tolerance” policy that Indiana had imposed on Knight a few months earlier after a school investigation verified a long list of emotional outbursts and physical attacks--including putting his hand around the throat of a player in practice, throwing a vase in the direction of a university secretary and verbally abusing Athletic Director Clarence Doninger.

On Sept 10, Knight--with his 763 career victories, three national championships and his perception of being an Indiana institution--was fired for what the university called “a pattern of unacceptable behavior” and being “defiant and hostile.”

Said Schmidly: “Those are other issues that we would have to take a look at at the appropriate time.”

Meanwhile, the excitement created by the prospect of Knight taking up coaching residence at Texas Tech is sweeping through Lubbock like a tornado.

“He’s the right man with the fire and the passion to do the things that Tech needs,” student Joseph Collins told the Associated Press. “He will bring Texas Tech students, people from all over Lubbock just to see what he can do with this team.”

To be sure, Knight would probably strum up the most interest in Lubbock since favorite son Buddy Holly and the Crickets rock and rolled the town in the 1950s.

And, visions of a raging Knight stalker on the sideline don’t seem to be a concern.

“He got into a situation [at Indiana] where people went after him. I’m not a conspiracy theorist but that was all waiting to happen. If somebody wants to get you enough, they are going to get you,” said James Gilliland, a basketball season-ticket holder for Texas Tech.

Even the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal had a favorable editorial regarding college basketball’s biggest media basher.

“We confess to having initial reservations about Mr. Knight ourselves. However, further consideration of the circumstances leads us to conclude that Mr. Knight may be what Tech needs,” the paper wrote.

Basketball has always played second fiddle to football deep in the plains of West Texas and under Dickey, the Red Raiders could not fill the 15,050-seat United Spirit Arena, which opened in November 1999. Attendance at some games this seasons was around 4,000. The men’s team was also often outdrawn by the women’s team, a perennial national power.

Knight already has one victory and a sellout in Lubbock--he was the opposing coach the night the Red Raiders opened the United Spirit Arena.

And how’s this for more coincidence: Knight’s trademark red sweaters match the dominant school color at Texas Tech and the United Spirit Arena is located on Indiana Avenue.

“It’s like the stars are in alignment,” said a gushing Gilliland. “I remember him strolling out of the locker room [for that 1999 game] and he was wearing that red and white sweater. He looked like a Red Raider fan.”

In the words of Buddy Holly, “Oh, boy.”