TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Gruden, Knight Cut From The Same Mold

Tribune photo by JOEY JOHNSTON

Bucs coach John Gruden, left, talks with Bob Knight during Friday's 'Dick Vitale Gala' in Sarasota.

ADVERTISEMENT

By JOEY JOHNSTON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 19, 2008

Updated: 05/19/2008 01:37 pm

SARASOTA - Bucs coach Jon Gruden still remembers intricate details about the 1975-76 Indiana Hoosiers, the last unbeaten NCAA champion in men's basketball.

"Scotty May, Bobby Wilkerson, Quinn Buckner, Kent Benson ... I even remember the backups," Gruden said, beaming. "We won almost every game by 25 or 30 points. We didn't back down from anybody."

Gruden was IU's ball boy, along with Coach Bob Knight's son, Tim.

The elder Knight delivered a mission statement to the kids before they traveled to an out-of-town intrasquad game.

"I said I didn't want to hear anything from them," Knight said. "Don't screw anything up. And get their butts on the bus as soon as the game was over."

Gruden, who was reunited with Knight during Friday night's third annual Dick Vitale Gala fundraiser for cancer research, never forgot that brief lesson.

"I mean, he's Bobby Knight, man," said Gruden, whose father, Jim, was an IU football assistant coach. "I'm observing all of this, seeing the players giving him incredible respect, the organization, the tempo of practice, the effort, the demands, the whole sense of what he wanted accomplished.

"Did he influence me? You bet he did. I learned you've got to demand 100 percent from everybody - the secretaries, the trainers, the players, everybody. If you do that, you've got a chance to get it done. This guy is one of the all-time icons, one of the greatest coaches ever in any sport."

Vitale, the ESPN analyst and board member on the V Foundation for Cancer Research, banked on Knight's presence. Vitale reached his goal of raising $1 million to fund a pediatric cancer research grant. Reluctantly, he turned people away from the Sarasota Ritz-Carlton Hotel because the ballroom could only accommodate 756 people.

With all-time victory leaders Knight (902 wins before retiring from Texas Tech) and Pat Summitt (982 wins with Tennessee's women's basketball program) as the headliners, Friday night became a nearly unprecedented attraction.

"Where have you ever seen people of this caliber together in one room, donating their time, helping our cause?" Vitale said.

Roy Williams, Bruce Pearl, Billy Donovan, John Havlicek, John Calipari, Bill Self, Rick Barnes, Tom Crean, Gene Keady, Eddie Sutton, Seth Greenberg, Stan Heath, Pat Riley and ...

Gruden, the Super Bowl-winning coach, the former ball boy.

"Jon talks about Bobby Knight all the time," said Gruden's wife, Cindy. "I think he's at the core of Jon's whole coaching philosophy. When you're 12, 13 years old and someone like that enters your life, it makes an impression forever."

Knight, putting the memories of young Gruden aside, couldn't be prouder of his former ball boy.

"As a coach, I'm probably a lot milder in temperament than Gruden," Knight deadpanned.

Knight said he has a Bucs T-shirt and cap. He roots for Tampa Bay every week, just as he pulls for old NFL friends such as Bill Parcells "who's back working for his 53rd NFL team."

Knight minimized talk of influencing Gruden's coaching career. Gruden did not.

"Even beyond the coaching, Coach Knight was always very kind to our family," said Gruden, who hasn't forgotten Knight's attention when his mother, Kathy, once had a cancerous kidney removed.

"He's an imposing-looking man. He seems intimidating. But he's compassionate. The stuff he does for people, it's real."

The pediatric cancer research grant, earmarked for the Moffitt Cancer Center and All Children's Hospital, is in the name of Sarasota's Payton Wright, who lost her battle with cancer on May 29, 2007. She had just turned 5.

That's why Knight came to Sarasota - because Vitale, his friend, needed help in giving everyone a dose of reality.

"I once heard former NFL coach Bud Grant talk about heroes and stars," Knight said. "Athletes are recognized as stars. A guy who's dropped into Afghanistan with a Navy Seal team is a hero. We tend to get those things mixed up. We hold up athletes and coaches and actors as heroes.

"Cancer touches everyone. So if you're in a position to get attention - whether you've struck out people, caught passes or kicked field goals - to help raise funds to battle this thing, I think that's a responsibility you have."

By the event's finish, after Payton Wright's mother spoke from the heart, Vitale implored the crowd to dig deeper. A day with Gruden at Bucs training camp was offered for a $5,000 bid. It fetched $10,000. Vitale pledged the use of his home for a 50-person catered dinner. He asked for $100,000.

Pat Riley, the former NBA coach and incoming Basketball Hall of Famer, raised his hand.

An emotional Riley later told Vitale to forget about the dinner. Instead, they'd go eat at a restaurant. He'd still write a $100,000 check. He just wanted to help.

It was that kind of event.

"Powerful," Gruden said. "I won't forget that night, man."

Or that long-ago Knight.

Reporter Joey Johnston can be reached at (813) 259-7353 or jjohnston@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT