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Assoc. Head Coach Bill Barton - Duquesne Recruiting: An Inexact Science
By CCT Staff | January 8, 2009
Fresh off a victory over Charlotte, Duquesne University Associate Head Coach Bill Barton takes a break from his normal participation in College Chalktalk’s Coaches’ Diary Series to share this column…
As I sit here in front of my computer screen, I realize that I have spent an inordinate amount of time in front of screens lately. I just finished a scouting report that involved watching about five or six games on my computer (some games, or even just plays, more than once). After this, I have often headed home and watched games on television. We are about to wrap up the college bowl season and there always seems to be a game on. If you ever wondered who watches a bowl game between a team that has 6 wins and a team that has 7 wins, wonder no more. I watch them all – from “the grand-daddy of them all”, to the R + L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. Of course I have to do my homework and watch a college basketball game every night.
Then there are emails. I stare at this screen as I answer countless emails every day, and now I am looking at this screen as I write this column. (I refuse to call this entry a diary because that is something Marcia Brady would have. By the way, I was always a Lori Partridge guy for those of you old enough to know the difference.)
But back to the emails for a moment. Many of them are related to recruiting. As an assistant college basketball coach, a good amount of my time is spent on recruiting. We make phone calls, watch film, go to games, etc.
Well, as I was watching Illinois upset Purdue the other night, I started thinking about what an inexact science recruiting is. Chester Frazier plays for Illinois and was fantastic against Purdue. He played for me when I was at Notre Dame Prep School. His entire recruitment by the University of Illinois lasted about an hour. The story goes like this…
Five years ago, I received a phone call from Bruce Weber, who is the Head Coach at the University of Illinois (when Bruce was at Southern Illinois he had recruited one of my players so I knew him a little). He was in New Hampshire at one of the prep schools and was flying out of Boston the next day. He wanted to watch a kid that was playing for me workout, but his flight was at noon, so he wanted to know if we could work out in the morning. Now normally, I would not move a workout the evening prior, however Coach Webber is a good guy and he is the Head Coach at Illinois. Also, I felt a little bad for him because he did not like the player he went up to New Hampshire to see, and it was not going to get better for him at Notre Dame Prep – the player that he had heard about here was not good enough to play in the Big Ten. So, I moved our workout to seven the next morning. Bruce arrived at 6:30am just as my assistant coach, Mike McMahon, was turning on the lights.
Here is the only part of the story that is open for debate. To this day, Mike claims that, before the workout, he mentioned to Coach Weber that he should check out Chester Frazier (although no one else heard this alleged comment and in seven years Mike was never right about anything, but as they say even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while!).
Just a little aside on Chester Frazier… He had been a good player for us at Notre Dame Prep. He could help win a game offensively and defensively. The thing I remember most was his toughness. He got injured in January and the doctor said he will be out for eight weeks. Four weeks later we were about to play a big game, and Chester walked into my office and told me he wanted to play. I ask him what the doctor said, and he replied, “Who cares?” I then said, “Not me, the bus leaves at 3:00” (Oh relax, of course I checked with the doctor – I just can’t recall if it was before or after the game). Anyway Chester helped us win the game, and I have always thought that he is one of the toughest players in the country. Now, back to Coach Weber and 7:00am practice…
The kids started playing, and I am telling you, Chester went off! He was sensational. He must have hit ten straight threes, was driving to the basket and finishing above the rim. He did it all. At about 8:00am, Bruce came over and asked if Chester plays like that all the time. I told him “Why, yes. Every 7:00am practice with a Big Ten coach in the gym, yes, he does play like that.” At about 8:15am, Bruce told me he was going to offer Chester a scholarship. Bruce visited again the next week and Chester, once again, did not disappoint. The rest, as they say, is history.
Currently, Chester is a senior at Illinois, and he has been a good player for them for four years. Yes, a coach flew out to New England to see a kid that didn’t work out, so on his way to the airport, he stopped in to a hastily arranged workout to watch yet another kid he had heard about, and ends up offering a scholarship to a third kid – Chester Frazier, a player he had never heard of before that day. Recruiting is a crazy business. I have seen coaches spend two years recruiting a kid, pour their heart and soul into it, and then not get him. Then there are stories like Chester’s – I love stories like this one, don’t you? If you, my loyal readers (I hope I have some), want to hear more stories, please let me know.
I wish you all a very happy and prosperous new year – except when you are playing the Dukes.
Topics: General |
January 8th, 2009 at 8:10 am
Good stuff - this guy has a good sense of humor. Interesting post.
January 8th, 2009 at 9:26 am
Bill:
Good stuff. As a 1968 graduate of Notre Dame Prep I really enjoyed your story, as I can still envision the gym at the school on South Street. Back then, ND was not the hoops power that it is now, as we were strictly local. However, we were in the Top 25 nationally for Debate.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:09 am
Coach,
Excellent story. As an Illinois fan, we are very pleased to have a man with a strong character like Chester Frazier on the team. We are also pleased to have a man with a strong character coaching our team. Weber and Frazier are a great match.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:43 am
And all of us here in Illini Nation are thrilled that we have Chet. He is the heart and soul of the team and one of the guttiest players I have ever seen.We don’t care how he ended up being an Illini; we’re just glad that he is one.
January 8th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Loved it!
January 8th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
Great story, Coach. I’d love to hear more about recruiting! I’d also love to hear your philosophy about how you decide which players are simply “out of your league” and which really good players you want to spend your time recruiting.
January 8th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Chester is a class act, one of my favorite Illini of all time. Chet has always had guts. One of my favorite Chester moments was when he hammered Eric Gordon with a rough house chest bump during introductions! ! ! Will always love him for that, amoung many other gutsy things.
Thanks for the memories Chester! ! !
January 8th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
Great story! As an Illini fan, I’ve watched Chester go from a gritty, hard-nosed freshman that gave only limited minutes in a defensive role, to our starting point guard and one of the NCAA leaders in assists. Chet’s value to this team may not be measured on the stat sheet, but when you watch an Illini game, you instantly know who pulls the strings. It hasn’t always been easy for Chet, from his struggles offensively to the death of his father to multiple injuries (that he always plays through), but Chet has won over all of his skeptics and has cemented his status as a fan favorite. His senior day will be tough to watch for most of us, and im sure there will be quite a few tears in the house when he plays his last home game. Chet’s determination in the face of adversity has served him well, and the Illini faithful are confident he will have a successful future, even if playing isn’t a part of it.
January 8th, 2009 at 3:30 pm
This is a good story. Coming from the ACC, Bruce Weber and Tom Izzo are class acts. I wish they would quit their programs and come run Virginia and NC State back to respectability. Those can’t be too far of a step down from Illinois and Michigan State right? I could be wrong.
January 8th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
Keep them coming coach, excellent job!
Good win v the 49ers too, keep them coming as well!!!
January 9th, 2009 at 3:29 am
Great story. Chester is the type of person and player that could lead any team to victory. I challenge you to be there on senior day so you can understand how much our fan base cherishes Chester Frazier and what he’s done for our university.
January 9th, 2009 at 11:54 am
Wonderful story Coach. Chet is a terrific young man. I love his grit. It is exciting to see him finish his career with so much success.
Thanks for the peek inside the recruiting world.
On an other note- I agree, it had to be Lori. She was the older girl who was worth striving for. Marcia was just the pesky little sister type who always seemed to get her way.
January 10th, 2009 at 7:00 am
Bill:
Excellent story. You should write a book.
January 10th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
I am a graduate of Duquesne’s graduate school and recently, my son graduated from Duquesne with a BA in businses. There is a lot of “red and blue” in our family….My question/comment is simply this: can there be more done to create a better atmosphere for the home games??!! In particular, a much bigger pep band and an attempt to attract more students to the games. What do you think about the situation? I enjoy your column. Gene Lancas
January 10th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
I’ve been a fan of Duquesne basketball since junior high school when I watched the Dukes on the NBC game of the week against the best teams in the country, and I’m a 1980 graduate. Thanks to Coach Barton, Coach Everhart, the staff and the players for restoring pride on the Bluff. I look forward to even better things in the future.
January 12th, 2009 at 11:31 am
Let’s pack the Palumbo Center this Wednesday at 7pm. Dukes play GW and we have a great chance to start 3-0!
I’m hoping to see at least 3,000 fans this Wednesday.
GO DUKES!
January 13th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Great story Bill. Please publish a few more recruiting stories, especially concerning our current players. Also,
keep up the good work at Duquesne! Let’s pack the Palumbo for both games this week.
January 13th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
There is a similar story about the recruiting of Norm Nixon. I believe John Cinicola was the Duquesne coach who went to GA to see a player and encountered the future #1 NBA draftee. Norman Nixon had a great career at Duquesne.