It's That Time Of Year

School has not quite ended even though graduation was held around the area for most high schools Saturday.  Teachers still have work days to complete their contracts.Since we are near the end you hear of the Bernie Capps retirement, Alan Hess getting a head job in football in Indiana.  I heave heard a rumor for more than a month of a bombshell of a rumor that if it is true we should hear in the next few days.  It is not about anyone in our area now.

UNC is headed to Omaha.  I thought that the Tar Heels were going to have their hands full with Stanford but the Heels win two straight.  Mike Fox's mother death last weekend I think that sometimes teams find motivation from places that you would never expect.

I have had the pleasure several times to be near Mike Fox over the years and quite frankly I can not find anything that I don't like about him.  I may have told this story in the past about my first meeting with him.

My son Brooks attended a baseball camp at Wesleyan while Mike was coach there.  Always on Friday afternoons parents were invited to come watch their children play in a quickie tournament.  A pitcher and catcher from Wesleyan did all the pitching and catching and all the players were divided  into teams of four.

When batting you got one swing and the games lasted 20 minutes each maybe.  If I remember you played every team once so you might play four or five games in a matter of two or three hours. I thought after watching the first round of games that Brook's team was as good as any.

During the second game the lad that played first base on Brook's team slapped another team mate right in front of every parent and Mike was supervising the games from behind the catcher  walked over to the  young man and grab him behind his neck and marched him over to where every parent was seated and told him to sit there until they were finished and to not move a muscle.  I had thought  he is probably going to kill him right in front of every body.

Now a man short I don't think Brook's team won any other game that afternoon. When it was all over he gather all the players up like a coach does and with parents listening and thank them for being at the camp and he used it the moment to teach them about being good team mates and oh by the way that young man was still seated where Mike had told him not to move from.

Mike after all the other players started packing up went over to the young  man and I think probably they had a private discussion  which I am sure will last with that young man the rest of his life.  I shook Mike's hand and thanked  him  for the teaching moment that he had given the players and the parents.

Since Mike Fox has moved on to North Carolina I have not seen or heard anything that would make me think that his methods of teaching are any different today than back then.   Most of you know I pull for the Wolf Pack but when they are not playing I will pulled for every other local team.  I sure would love for Mike Fox to bring that Plaque home to Chapel Hill as NCAA CHAMPS..