DBR Podcast Forum Participation - Your Duke Person Story

[Dev11]

Jason and I talked about it, and we liked Billy Dat's idea for including the DBR rank and file on the podcast. Here, let him explain, from the thread where Jason introduced the podcast:


I think you should seed at least one segment via the board - create a new thread on a relevant topic that week, let everyone weigh in, and let the debate inform your talk, it would be a fun way to include the DBR citizenry and ensure repeat listeners as everyone waits to see if they were quoted. Forget sporks, DBR podcast mentions will become the new currency!

So, this week, we are asking for submissions for our first such topic. Post your favorite story involving a notable Duke person. Maybe you sat next to Coach K at an Applebee's, or maybe Jay Bilas once called you 'the trillest.' I'll start.

A few years ago, I was patiently waiting in line on a rainy Durham morning at Bruegger's Bagels. I noticed that the average looking fellow in front of me was wearing brand new Kobes, and I thought to myself, who is this jerk wearing his brand new fancy basketball shoes on a gross, rainy morning? He turned around. It was Steve Wojciechowski. I felt really dumb as I chewed my mediocre breakfast sandwich in silence on the way to class.

Keep the stories appropriate for DBR, please. Include no explicit material and adhere to the forum guideline about not being a stalker.

Post your story by Friday night so we can sort through them and decide which one(s) to share on the podcast when we record this weekend.

Oh, and you know, just as a reminder, here's the link to this week's episode:

https://soundcloud.com/dbrpodcast/dbr-podcast-12-6-14

Winners get pitchforks from me. Go!

[JasonEvans]

Oh, and if you have a story that you do not want to admit to in public, you can PM/Email me with the details and we may use it on the podcast without revealing your identity or poster name.

-Jason "I have a few good ones -- but I'll save them for the podcast! Keeping it family friendly may be a challenge... right Alaa?" Evans

[MCFinARL]

My story is as much about my wonderful daughter and son-in-law as it is about a Duke person, but it does, also, involve one of my favorite Duke players.

In September my daughter and son-in-law were dining in a Nantucket restaurant when Shane Battier (in town for a presentation to the Nantucket Project--which I think was discussed in a thread on DBR) came in. Their immediate response--to get an autograph for me (I'm pretty lucky). But they had nothing for Shane to sign. Calling the waitress over, they asked for a paper copy of the menu. The waitress was puzzled because they had already eaten--but they explained that they had to have something for Shane Battier to sign. My daughter speculated that the waitress had no idea what they were talking about, but she obliged, either because it was a nice restaurant or because she thought it was safer to humor the crazy people.

Shane himself was gracious and obliging, and I now have a menu signed "Thanks for being a true Blue Devil! Best wishes, Shane Battier 31."

This goes nicely with my Duke basketball signed by Reggie Love, which my son-in-law got for me through his roommate, a former Duke manager and friend of Reggie's. Did I mention that I am very lucky?

[DukeDevil]

Fall break, 99. I was alone on campus and, being new to the US I didn't know a ton of people and had noplace to go. I ended up staying on campus for the whole break. Who else was on East campus? The players. Who specifically? Jason Williams. I ran into him on the quad and he invited me in to hang. Over the week, he proceeded to school me in the finer points of getting my butt handed to me at pool (please note: at the time I was a pretty very good pool player, it was my main pastime besides soccer in Gaza). Despite being seemingly spectacular at everything, and having every right to be cocky, he was so incredibly nice and humble. He was confident and cocky on the court, but he saw this lonely kid hanging out with nothing to do and helped me feel far more welcome to the US.

That's when I truly began to bleed blue, more so than when I came to Duke...and that's why he's forever my favorite Duke player.

As another side story, that wasn't my first time running into J-Will (literally). I was playing a pickup soccer game with some other guys when I slide tackled one dude to get the ball back. Everyone froze. FROZE. I had no idea who he was, but he got up laughing and kept playing hard. I had no idea I almost took out our star player before the season even began. That's also the story of how I almost became a Carolina student to prevent being murdered in my sleep.

[jv001]

My best Duke Person Story would have to be my first time playing in the then annual Bob Harris Golf Tournament. I was able to get to talk to one of my all time favorite Duke players while warming up on the practice range. I actually got to talk to Johnny Dawkins and I came away amazed at how humble a man he is. But even though I met one of my favorite Duke players that day, I am to this day, blessed to have met Bob Harris. He is one of the nicest guys you could ever meet. I really enjoyed those years playing in his benefit Golf Tournament. Thank you Mr. Harris and GoDuke!

[nocilla]

I remember meeting Shane Battier in a club in Durham on Halloween. He was wearing a big red fluffy scarf like the girls in Vegas wear. I stepped onto the bottom rungs of a chair to get myself closer to his level and we chatted for a minute or two about the upcoming season. He was there with Casey Sanders and one of the walk-ons. I was in a 70's style blue leisure suit with a fake afro on my head. Shane was very friendly and I will always remember his willingness to interact with the fans, wherever he was.

[kAzE]

Jason and I talked about it, and we liked Billy Dat's idea for including the DBR rank and file on the podcast. Here, let him explain, from the thread where Jason introduced the podcast:



So, this week, we are asking for submissions for our first such topic. Post your favorite story involving a notable Duke person. Maybe you sat next to Coach K at an Applebee's, or maybe Jay Bilas once called you 'the trillest.' I'll start.

A few years ago, I was patiently waiting in line on a rainy Durham morning at Bruegger's Bagels. I noticed that the average looking fellow in front of me was wearing brand new Kobes, and I thought to myself, who is this jerk wearing his brand new fancy basketball shoes on a gross, rainy morning? He turned around. It was Steve Wojciechowski. I felt really dumb as I chewed my mediocre breakfast sandwich in silence on the way to class.

Keep the stories appropriate for DBR, please. Include no explicit material and adhere to the forum guideline about not being a stalker.

Post your story by Friday night so we can sort through them and decide which one(s) to share on the podcast when we record this weekend.

Oh, and you know, just as a reminder, here's the link to this week's episode:

https://soundcloud.com/dbrpodcast/dbr-podcast-12-6-14

Winners get pitchforks from me. Go!

HA, I saw Wojo at the same Brueggers. 9th street, right next to East Campus, right?

[nmduke2001]

Christian Laettner and the Timberwolves played the Bulls in an exhibition game in Albuquerque in the preseason of Laettner’s rookie year. I was able to make my way towards the bench during warm-up. I was wearing a Duke hat and caught Christian’s eye. He grabbed the card I was holding and signed it. He then asked to sign my hat. Meanwhile, player introductions were starting. They were about to announce the Timberwolves and the head coach noticed that I was distracting Christian. He yelled out, “get that kid away from him”. Security came and took me away (they really kicked me out of the arena but I was able to talk my way back in).

Years later, I was a freshman at Duke. I was walking in the East Campus gym and turned the corner and literally ran straight into Christian Laettner as he turned the corner coming the other way. He was very apologetic. We chatted for a few minutes. I told him that this wasn’t the first time that we had met, that we had met in Albuquerque. He got this weird look on his face and said, “wait, are you that kid that my coach kicked out of the game?” Yes, yes, I was. Sort of incredible that he remembered after 5 years.

[BlueDster]

My story is similar to Dev11's, albeit a bit more illicit. During my senior year, the 2009-10 season, I lived off campus. One night after a home victory, I believe against NC State, my girlfriend was staying over at my apartment. It became apparent that I needed to run out to a gas station to procure a certain protective device, so I jumped in my car at about 1 AM and drove to a gas station on Hillsborough Road. As I was waiting in line to make my purchase, there was a stocky, blonde crew-cutted man in front of me in a black leather jacket buying cigarettes. When he turned around to leave, I sure enough recognized him as Wojo. I got much pleasure from discovering his late night cigarette purchasing habits.

[AIRFORCEDUKIE]

I went to Duke Basketball Camp when I was in High School, unfortunately I didn't realize that the talent level there for my age group was horrid. It seems most of the kids there were only there to be at Duke, not to learn from the camp. It was still fun and dominating the 5 on 5 games was a blast especially since we got to play in Cameron. I was 13 and we were playing in Cameron going sideways so two games were going on at once, and Coach K was on the sideline. I remember thinking this was my chance to impress him and get that Duke scholly. Looking back I understand how stupid of a thought that was, but at the time it was all I could think of. So there I was playing a good game in front of Coach K against inferior talent thinking I am hot stuff. It was towards the end of the game and we were up by a lot, and the ball bounces towards the out of bounds line. I could easily save the ball regularly and be on my way. However, I had a style and my game was too flashy for a normal save. Nope, I was going to spin out of bounds and save the ball behind my back to my open team mate near my basket on the opposite side of the court mind you. So I catch it out of bounds one handed and spin to align myself properly, and I let that ball fly from my hand. It feels good coming off my hand, and I remember thinking "oh yea that is going to be a perfect pass" Then I hear the small crowd gasp and a clunk. I slowly turned around which seemed to take an eternity. I look down court and see that my pass had sailed way off course, and hit someone in the back. I pegged Coach K in the back with my flashy pass that he wasn't even watching!!!! I think one of the assistants was Tim O'Toole or something like that correct me if I am wrong but he came up to me and said, "good going broke Magic." Coach K called me over grabbed me by my shoulders and said "if there was ever a case for making the easy play, this is it" My camp went downhill from there, I got in trouble for opening my window in my dorm room, my room mate got really sick, and my parents flight was delayed and I had to wait forever to get picked up from the campus. Also I never got that scholarship offer to play for Duke.

Sidenote: by the time the ball reached him it barely had any strength behind it, so its not like I hurt the guy don't be blaming me for 1995 since this was the summer the season after.

[Merlindevildog91]

I was in the old Kroger on Hillsborough Road, in the dairy section. I was moving sideways, not really paying attention, when I hit an immovable object. I turned to see what it was and found myself eye level with a set of abs. I looked straight up, and discovered the immovable object was Christian Laettner. He smiled and said, "Hi." My jaw dropped, and I may have stammered, "hi," or I may not have. All I could think was, "Oh my God! It's Christian Laettner!" I was frozen to that spot for a while.

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

My most vivid and embarrassing Duke person memory is the time I met Christian Laettner.

IIRC, I was a freshman in high school in Durham in 1991 and my friend John invited me to go to a Duke football game. We were going with a friend of his family's and John mentioned that his friend knew some of the players and sometimes they came over to their tailgate. I was incredibly excited, the Duke players were like rock stars to me. We walked around the game for a bit and then decided to head over to the tailgate area. I was pretty hungry so I grabbed some bbq ribs and was in the middle of eating them when John's family friend brings Christian Laettner over to meet John and me. My hands had bbq sauce all over them so I couldn't shake his hand. I awkwardly said something like "I'd shake your hand but..." and motioned to my sauce covered hands. Laettner just kind of looked at me as there's no good response. He shook John's hand, stood around for a little bit, and then moved on to talk to some other folks. As he was my idol, I was completely mortified in embarrassment. I played a little pickup soccer with Kenny Blakeney after that, but it didn't make up for my missed opportunity.

I have relived that moment a thousand times in my head.

My friend John, who I still see often, brings it up every chance he can.

[kAzE]

Here's mine:

So the summer after 8th grade, I was at Duke's "TIP" summer program on East campus, just playing some pick up ultimate frisbee with some other campers when two pretty recognizable guys stopped by and asked if they could join in. Apparently, my resident advisor, Sam, who was a freshman at Duke at the time, had asked Chris Duhon (who was an incoming freshman that summer, but of course, I knew perfectly well who he was) if he wanted to stop by and play with us. So Chris showed up and brought Jason Williams . . .

Now, thankfully the two of them split up on to opposite teams, and I was playing with Duhon. It quickly became apparent to us that all we had to do was throw the frisbee as hard as I could the length of the field and Chris was just going to go get it. You don't think of Chris as an insane athlete, but he was jumping what seemed like 14 feet to snatch frisbees out of the air. I'll always remember the time I chucked it backhand hail-mary style about 40-50 yards toward the end of the quad and just watching Chris leap up from the pack of people there, head and shoulders above everyone and coming down with the disc. They played just one game with us, but we got to chat with them and take pictures afterwards, and they couldn't have been nicer to the campers. Both of those dudes came off to me as just insanely good guys.

It's one thing to see these athletes on TV, another to be at the game in person, and then a completely different experience to compete with them on the same playing field, especially as a 14 year old kid. It really made me appreciate just how much more physically dominant top ranked D-1 athletes are than normal human beings, and how much people sometimes take them for granted when they flippantly post things about them on internet message boards. It was an experience that I'll always remember, it was a blast to meet those guys in person, and even more fun to watch them win a national championship for Duke the following season.

[Tom B.]

Three "encounter" stories for me:


(1) I was an IM referee at Duke. Jay Bilas was at Duke Law School at the time, while also working as a grad assistant for Coach K and the men's team. (This was the team that would go on to upset UNLV in the Tournament and win Duke's first basketball championship.)

One night, I find myself refereeing Bilas' law school IM team. They were a good team, as you might expect -- aside from Bilas, they had several other guys who'd clearly been athletes of some kind. But that night, they were playing probably the best IM team on campus.

Bilas' team was losing in the second half, and Bilas himself wasn't having a great game. He was getting more and more frustrated, and at one point he barked something at me because he thought I missed a foul, or something like that. I let it go, but I shot him a look that said, "Dude, just shut up and play."

A few plays later, Bilas thinks my partner and I missed another call, and voices his displeasure. It wasn't directed at me specifically, but at the next dead ball he's still griping, so I tell him, "OK, that's enough. This is your last warning."

Sure enough, a couple of plays later, Bilas gets mad at another no-call, and shouts something like, "Are you ever gonna blow your whistle, punk??!!" (I don't remember the exact quote, but I definitely recall the "punk" part.)

I can't let that one go.

I ring him up.

Bilas stands there with this kind of half-amused, half-dumbfounded look on his face, like, "Did this undergrad turd IM ref just call a tech on me?"

Honestly, at that point, I thought the rest of the game would be hell, with Bilas cranking it up to 11 and trying to get himself thrown out, and me ultimately obliging, which I really didn't want to do. As a ref, sometimes you have to do something like that -- but if it gets to that point, it's often a pretty good sign that you lost control of the game much earlier, and that's as much a reflection on you as it is on whoever you had to run.

To his credit, though, Bilas kept quiet the rest of the game. I think he knew his team just wasn't going to win and he was venting. But once he got it out of his system, that was that, and he came over to me and shook my hand after the game ended.




(2) Can we tell stories about non-athletes? My senior year, my roommate (an English major) was writing an honors thesis, and his advisor was none other than Reynolds Price. Over the course of the semester, Dr. Price would call our apartment from time to time, to talk with my roommate about his latest draft and revisions to the thesis.

My roommate and I had this clunky old answering machine -- remember, this is before cell phones were common and before the days of voice mail. If we weren't home (or we just didn't feel like picking up the phone), the machine would play our outgoing message to the caller ("Hi, we're not home right now...."), then it would play this cute little ditty (think ice cream truck music) while the tape cued past any existing messages to the blank part of the tape. Then the machine would let fly with an ear-splitting BEEEEEEEEEP, and the caller could leave his or her message for us.

The thing about this machine is that the more messages you had stored on the tape, the longer it took to cue to the blank part of the tape, and the longer you had to listen to the ice cream truck song. If you happened to call us and we already had a bunch of messages on the tape, you might have to listen to the song multiple times. This could get torturous.

So one evening, my roommate and I get home, and the little light on our machine is blinking. We press the Play button: "You...have...NINE...new...messages."

We listen to the first eight messages, and they're your typical assortment of How-ya-doins from friends and family. Then we get to the ninth, and final, message.

First, there are several seconds of silence. Then, the immediately identifiable resonant baritone of one Dr. Reynolds Price, like the voice of God Himself emanating from our $10.99 piece of crap from Sears:

"That........was an incredible.........waste.........of time." [Click]




(3) This one only tangentially involves me, and I only tell it because, well, it was kind of funny when it happened. In a completely sophomoric way, of course.

One of my female friends at Duke was a rather petite girl, all of about 4'10" in shoes. Maybe. (Whenever we stood next to each other, it looked kind of comical, because I go a shade over 6'4".)

So one day we met up for lunch and we're walking into the West Union building, talking to each other as we walked, neither of us really paying attention to where we're going.

We round a corner and my friend walks face-first into Christian Laettner's butt.

Mortified, my friend says, "Oh, sorry...." Laettner says, "No problem," and goes on about his day. Meanwhile, it's all I can do not to bust a gut laughing.

[pfrduke]

I have three, all related to pickup ball.

The first two illustrate just a tiny difference in mindset between Jason Williams and JJ Redick. I played a couple games of pickup with J-Will in the upstairs court on East in the spring of 2000 after the season ended. To say he did not take the game seriously would be an understatement. It wasn't in a bad way - he just wanted to have fun on the court. He took a few 30 footers. He threw behind the back passes at almost every opportunity. He was happy to defer to the people he was playing with and was a great cheerleader on the court. And, when the game got close at the end, he just decided we were going to win and there wasn't anyone on that pickup court who was going to stop him. It was great - it was like being a part of a mixtape video.

JJ Redick took virtually the opposite approach (I played with him in Wilson in the spring after the 2003 season). He played hard and took the game seriously. He didn't monopolize the ball but tried to make good, smart basketball plays throughout the game. Never before have I been yelled at during a pickup game for not cutting to precisely the right spot at precisely the right time (I spotted up for a baseline jumper rather than make a rim run when my defender left to help on a Redick drive). He didn't take a single stupid pick-up game shot. He also maybe had a little less fun than Jason (or at the very least, looked like he wasn't having as much fun). The game was less of a show and more of a serious basketball endeavor (with a bunch of mediocre players and a future NBA guy).

The third involves Patrick Johnson, before he walked onto the team. I'm just about 6'3" and very much more tall than big, but was the tallest of the group of friends that I routinely played with, so always got matched up against the opponent's big guy. Most of the time in college that works fine - not a ton of people over 6'3" or 6'4". Patrick Johnson was definitely taller than that and had me in heft, too. But we beat their team, I outscored him, and (most important to me at the time) he didn't dunk on me once. That was my shining moment of beating a Duke basketball player in a game of basketball.

[Duvall]

Three "encounter" stories for me:


(1) I was an IM referee at Duke. Jay Bilas was at Duke Law School at the time, while also working as a grad assistant for Coach K and the men's team. (This was the team that would go on to upset UNLV in the Tournament and win Duke's first basketball championship.)

One night, I find myself refereeing Bilas' law school IM team. They were a good team, as you might expect -- aside from Bilas, they had several other guys who'd clearly been athletes of some kind. But that night, they were playing probably the best IM team on campus.

Bilas' team was losing in the second half, and Bilas himself wasn't having a great game. He was getting more and more frustrated, and at one point he barked something at me because he thought I missed a foul, or something like that. I let it go, but I shot him a look that said, "Dude, just shut up and play."

A few plays later, Bilas thinks my partner and I missed another call, and voices his displeasure. It wasn't directed at me specifically, but at the next dead ball he's still griping, so I tell him, "OK, that's enough. This is your last warning."

Sure enough, a couple of plays later, Bilas gets mad at another no-call, and shouts something like, "Are you ever gonna blow your whistle, punk??!!" (I don't remember the exact quote, but I definitely recall the "punk" part.)

I can't let that one go.

I ring him up.

Bilas stands there with this kind of half-amused, half-dumbfounded look on his face, like, "Did this undergrad turd IM ref just call a tech on me?"

Honestly, at that point, I thought the rest of the game would be hell, with Bilas cranking it up to 11 and trying to get himself thrown out, and me ultimately obliging, which I really didn't want to do. As a ref, sometimes you have to do something like that -- but if it gets to that point, it's often a pretty good sign that you lost control of the game much earlier, and that's as much a reflection on you as it is on whoever you had to run.

To his credit, though, Bilas kept quiet the rest of the game. I think he knew his team just wasn't going to win and he was venting. But once he got it out of his system, that was that, and he came over to me and shook my hand after the game ended.

And so began a lifelong vendetta against basketball officials. It all started with this game.

[brevity]

My story is similar to Dev11's, albeit a bit more illicit. During my senior year, the 2009-10 season, I lived off campus. One night after a home victory, I believe against NC State, my girlfriend was staying over at my apartment. It became apparent that I needed to run out to a gas station to procure a certain protective device, so I jumped in my car at about 1 AM and drove to a gas station on Hillsborough Road. As I was waiting in line to make my purchase, there was a stocky, blonde crew-cutted man in front of me in a black leather jacket buying cigarettes. When he turned around to leave, I sure enough recognized him as Wojo. I got much pleasure from discovering his late night cigarette purchasing habits.

"But you yada yada'd over the best part."
"No, I mentioned Wojo."


Sure enough, a couple of plays later, Bilas gets mad at another no-call, and shouts something like, "Are you ever gonna blow your whistle, punk??!!" (I don't remember the exact quote, but I definitely recall the "punk" part.)

I can't let that one go.

I ring him up.

Now that's toughness.

[79-77]

I apologize for the Luddite question, but is there a way to get this podcast via iTunes?

thanks.

[77devil]

I was living in Italy when I met Danny Ferry and Brian Shaw at a 1990 Super Bowl watch party. Some will remember that both played overseas for one season to escape their NBA draft teams and returned the following year as free agents.

The party was in Milan. Danny played for Messagerno Rome and I don't remember why he was there as there was a big US expat community
in Rome too. Both Danny and Brian were very nice and friendly. Nothing like living abroad to make friends quickly.

During that time there were plenty of ACC alums in Italy including UNC's and former NBA great Bob McAdoo(pushing 40), Wake's Skip Brown, both in Milan, and Duke's own Mark Crow.

Speaking of Crowbar, there are some stories I could tell about the weekend that Mark hosted Kenny Dennard for his official visit, but I need to check on the statute of limitations.

[-jk]

I apologize for the Luddite question, but is there a way to get this podcast via iTunes?

thanks.

Not sure there's a direct connection to iTunes. There is a Soundcloud app for i-stuff. Or you can use something like http://www.anything2mp3.com/ (I've never tried it; ymmv...)

-jk

[nmduke2001]

Two more quick ones: I stayed on campus the summer of 1999. I was working out in the gym when Nate James and soon to be freshman, Casy Sanders walk in. I knew Nate relatively well since I was good friends with his girlfriend at the time. After about five minutes, I hear Nate yelling at me to come over. I walk over to the bench press that they are using. Nate orders me to lift the 135 lbs that is on the bar. I’m all of 135lbs myself at the time. Puzzled, I do a few reps. Once I finish, Nate starts screaming at Casey something to the effect of, “this little guy can lift it and you can’t?! You should be $%*# embarrassed!” I wasn’t sure if I should be flattered or offended.

That same summer, I was working out the night of the NBA draft. I played High School Basketball against Taymon Domzalski, so I knew him really well. He came down into the weight room and asked me and Trajon if we wanted to play pick up. We both said yes. When I got upstairs I realized it was me, a Duke Football player and 8 Duke players in this pickup game. I guarded Trajon. He, surprisingly, was drafted number 11 in the NBA draft that night.

[superdave]

I was in Chapel Hill in the spring of 2001, not long after the National Championship. I went to He's Not Here off Franklin Street with a guy I went to high school with and Nate James was there. My friend, in his Unc baseball tshirt, walked over to Nate and said "What's up Nate?" in the hopes of striking up a conversation. Nate said "What up fool?" and turned and walked away. I am pretty sure it was the Unc shirt...either way it was badass.

[AIRFORCEDUKIE]

Two more quick ones: I stayed on campus the summer of 1999. I was working out in the gym when Nate James and soon to be freshman, Casy Sanders walk in. I knew Nate relatively well since I was good friends with his girlfriend at the time. After about five minutes, I hear Nate yelling at me to come over. I walk over to the bench press that they are using. Nate orders me to lift the 135 lbs that is on the bar. I’m all of 135lbs myself at the time. Puzzled, I do a few reps. Once I finish, Nate starts screaming at Casey something to the effect of, “this little guy can lift it and you can’t?! You should be $%*# embarrassed!” I wasn’t sure if I should be flattered or offended.

That same summer, I was working out the night of the NBA draft. I played High School Basketball against Taymon Domzalski, so I knew him really well. He came down into the weight room and asked me and Trajon if we wanted to play pick up. We both said yes. When I got upstairs I realized it was me, a Duke Football player and 8 Duke players in this pickup game. I guarded Trajon. He, surprisingly, was drafted number 11 in the NBA draft that night.

Yea but how many points did you give up?

[nmduke2001]

Yea but how many points did you give up?

He took it VERY easy on me.

[Eakane]

Three stories. I used to frequent the Metro gym. One day I was playing 3 on 3 pick up a racket ball court with a hoop. One player leaves and in walks Quin Snyder. Somehow, it was deemed that I should guard him. I'm thinking, "ok, he's a guard and there isn't a lot of room to operate here, so I can use the walls as an extra defender and...." Quin literally jumps OVER me. The thing I remember is, I'm huffing and puffing (and I was actually in pretty good shape back then), and Quin was singing while playing. Constantly humming. He abused me severely and his team one easily. But Quin shook my hand afterwords and was extremely gracious.

Fast forward a few years for the next memory. I was living in Atlanta and dating a former Duke manager; don't think I should use her name here. But we're walking in one of the hampster tubes that connects Peachtree Center to the Marriott Marquis on our way to lunch. This rather tall fellow is behind us, but quickly catching up (taking longer strides). As he catches up to us, I say, "has anyone ever told you you look just like Danny Ferry?" at the same moment that he leans over and KISSES her on the cheek. She says "Hi Danny!" They catch up for about a minute and I just stand there like a dope in awe. ("Danny Ferry just kissed my girlfriend!") She introduced me and he shook my hand. He was in town playing for the Spurs IIRC.

Ok, I look a lot like Hurley. A lot. I was mistaken for him several times. I guess I look like Hurley after getting some sort of disease that makes you shorter. I'm playing pick up at Card sometime after Duke won their first Natty, and I'm toweling off after the game. And I guy I don't know comes over and says "I thought you'd be tired of playing by now." It takes me a moment to realize he's mistaken me for Bobby. Before I can respond, in walks the real Hurley. The guy's jaw drops realizing the mistake he's made (had he watched me play, he'd have realized it a lot sooner; that same disease that made me shorter also made me about a thousand times poorer player). He looks at him, back at me, and again. He starts to say something and I cut him off and say, "I'm a doppelganger." We both have a good laugh. Bobby never noticed us.

None of these stories are world-shattering. I've run into players a bunch of times -- I was a 3rd year at Duke Law when Quin was a 2nd and Bilas was a 1st year. The thing that always impressed me is how polite, friendly and gracious they were. Always. Being in the spotlight, it must be hard to not get impatient with all the attention from time to time. But I never saw that from them. They are true ambassadors for our school. I always think of that when I see some of the antics and boorish behavior from players like Spreewell, or Iverson, or Artest, or Wallace. Great players, but I wouldn't want them playing for my school.

[cspan37421]

Two more quick ones: I stayed on campus the summer of 1999. I was working out in the gym when Nate James and soon to be freshman, Casy Sanders walk in. I knew Nate relatively well since I was good friends with his girlfriend at the time. After about five minutes, I hear Nate yelling at me to come over. I walk over to the bench press that they are using. Nate orders me to lift the 135 lbs that is on the bar. I’m all of 135lbs myself at the time. Puzzled, I do a few reps. Once I finish, Nate starts screaming at Casey something to the effect of, “this little guy can lift it and you can’t?! You should be $%*# embarrassed!” I wasn’t sure if I should be flattered or offended.

Out of curiosity, were those free weights or a Nautilus leverage bench press? I used to take weight training as a non-credit PE at Duke just for exercise under wrestling coach (and what a character) Bill Harvey. I think that was his name. He looked like a stout version of Lloyd Bridges as Izzy Mendelbaum in Seinfeld. (not so much the bad back).

Anyway I worked my way up to 270 lbs on the Nautilus thing, but had a rude awakening when I realized it didn't translate 1 for 1 to free weights. And it became clear why spotters are needed for the latter, but not the former.

I don't have any really great stories of interactions with ballplayers. The only one that really sticks out in my mind was standing in line behind Marty Nessley once. Although he was "only" 13" taller than me, I swear I thought I was looking into his lower back. It's pretty astonishing up close. Oh, and I guess I'd make one other Marty observation. Did he and Tommy A room together their junior year? I think at least one of them was in the apt next to us on Anderson St. Marty drove some big old GM car like a Buick, and Tommy had this tiny old BMW 3-series that was smaller than a Honda Civic. Anyway, I'll just say that Marty's lack of floor time didn't seem to hurt his popularity with the ladies. In games, of course, we would roar when he would get in, because we were usually up by some absurdly insurmountable lead (usually 30 or more; it's no accident he had his career high, IIRC 25, vs. Harvard, where we won by 76!). In a way those cheers were backhanded compliments, the celebration of K's releasing players for mop-up duty. But he was no slouch off the court!

[cspan37421]

This rather tall fellow is behind us, but quickly catching up (taking longer strides). As he catches up to us, I say, "has anyone ever told you you look just like Danny Ferry?" at the same moment that he leans over and KISSES her on the cheek.

Would you say he has a little Casanova in him? ;)

[ricks68]

I hope I have the time tonight to post some of my stories, as I have dozens. Some, I believe, are really good:

Met Lance's cousins sitting outside the hotel of the 2010 FF. Got friendly enough that they found a way to get us into the postgame championship party. I got pictures of us with the players afterwards---some taken by their parents, sisters, etc. for us. Then, I had them printed and sent them to each for autographs. My favorite is my wife standing next to Zoubs' sister who is actually a little taller than him. she is wearing her "Z" shirt and my wife is about 5'3'' tall. I got almost every player., and they signed every picture.

I got very friendly with John Scheyer's parents during his 4 years. More stories. Also helped Perky get pictures of Mile's that made the front page of the Indy paper after the game.

I have a hat with over 60 signatures of players past and present. I have Groat, Lefty, Hendo--and his father, Chris Collins--and his father, Crazy Towel Guy, Jack Marin, Laettner, Clay Buckley--because I got his father's mailbox at Duke when I got there and he had graduated------had his draft card in it, but I couldn't use it as who would not have known who he was (even if I did change his height listed to mine),Bob Harris, Freddie Lind, Each signature has a story.

I played intramural softball during one summer at Duke. I played (or should I say, sat on) second base. Vacendak was the catcher and Mike Lewis was the pitcher. We won every game because it was a rare instance that Lewis' pitches ever were made contact with. The other positions were all Duke players. They invited me to go with them to the beach on the 4th of July. Another story.

Like I said, I hope I have time for more this evening with better detail.:D (I have a really good one with Seth in an airport because he was not allowed to travel with the team when he had to sit out the year before he could play)

ricks

[pfrduke]

I hope I have the time tonight to post some of my stories, as I have dozens. Some, I believe, are really good:

Met Lance's cousins sitting outside the hotel of the 2010 FF. Got friendly enough that they found a way to get us into the postgame championship party. I got pictures of us with the players afterwards---some taken by their parents, sisters, etc. for us. Then, I had them printed and sent them to each for autographs. My favorite is my wife standing next to Zoubs' sister who is actually a little taller than him. she is wearing her "Z" shirt and my wife is about 5'3'' tall. I got almost every player., and they signed every picture.



Wait, what? There's no way that's right.

Further to my point - her bio from college ball (http://www.yalebulldogs.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/zoubek_sarah00.html) lists her as 6'4"

[Tom B.]

Wait, what? There's no way that's right.

Further to my point - her bio from college ball (http://www.yalebulldogs.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/zoubek_sarah00.html) lists her as 6'4"


I assumed ricks68 meant to say, "Zoub's sister, who is actually a little taller than me."

Interestingly, Zoub's sister has a degree from Duke, too. She got a Master of Environmental Management degree from the Nicholas School of the Environment in 2013.

[Duvall]

I assumed ricks68 meant to say, "Zoub's sister, who is actually a little taller than me."

Actually, Zoubek was really just 6'3" in regular shoes. The 7'1" was a program height.

[devildeac]

Actually, Zoubek was really just 6'3" in regular shoes. The 7'1" was a program height.

I'm gonna call shenanigans on this (obviously tongue-in-cheek) statement as I never saw Z play in these shoes (or anything similar) and, even if I did, they'd have only added 3-4 inches to his height:rolleyes:.

4571

[NSDukeFan]

I'm gonna call shenanigans on this (obviously tongue-in-cheek) statement as I never saw Z play in these shoes (or anything similar) and, even if I did, they'd have only added 3-4 inches to his height:rolleyes:.

4571

Could explain the foot problems.

[brevity]

I'm gonna call shenanigans on this (obviously tongue-in-cheek) statement as I never saw Z play in these shoes (or anything similar) and, even if I did, they'd have only added 3-4 inches to his height:rolleyes:.

4571


Could explain the foot problems.

I did a bit of research on this, and that can't be a Nike shoe. Maybe it's one of those Reebok pumps...

[OldPhiKap]

4571

High
.......Heel
High
.......Heel
High
.......Heel



Oh wait, that would be William Graves.

[ricks68]

Wait, what? There's no way that's right.

Further to my point - her bio from college ball (http://www.yalebulldogs.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/zoubek_sarah00.html) lists her as 6'4"

I will try to copy and post the picture. She told us that she played for Yale until her knees, or something like that-- did her in. My most egregious error, however, is something that really offends me all the time: I dislike immensely the misuse of "me and him" instead of "he and I". So then I say "taller than him" instead of the proper "taller than he is". The constant grammatical errors on the board and misspellings do not bother me at all. I mean, like, aren't we really just having fun conversations with each other? But the "me and him" garbage I hear everyday is too much.:( (Just checked around on the net to find out that "than him" is OK, but I still don't like it and since I have been wanting to post about the "me and him" stuff for a long time, and I am not taking that one back.:mad:) Oh, I don't count Sheldon, or Reddick, or the usual mistakes as being OK with me, however.:rolleyes:

ricks

[Henderson]

Could explain the foot problems.

Those are just more stylish versions of chef clogs. You know, in case a guy wants to make pastries after Duke. The red masks the blood in case there is a d'oh moment with the equipment.

[pfrduke]

I will try to copy and post the picture. She told us that she played for Yale until her knees, or something like that-- did her in. My most egregious error, however, is something that really offends me all the time: I dislike immensely the misuse of "me and him" instead of "he and I". So then I say "taller than him" instead of the proper "taller than he is". The constant grammatical errors on the board and misspellings do not bother me at all. I mean, like, aren't we really just having fun conversations with each other? But the "me and him" garbage I hear everyday is too much.:( (Just checked around on the net to find out that "than him" is OK, but I still don't like it and since I have been wanting to post about the "me and him" stuff for a long time, and I am not taking that one back.:mad:) Oh, I don't count Sheldon, or Reddick, or the usual mistakes as being OK with me, however.:rolleyes:

ricks

I'm still very confused. If you're saying that Zoubs' sister (who is 6'4") is taller than Zoubek (who is 7'0", give or take) then I assure you that your most egregious error is not grammatical. If you're saying she's taller than someone else, then your most egregious error is grammatical, but not in the way you describe.

[FerryFor50]

I'm gonna call shenanigans on this

But our shenanigans are cheeky and fun!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFZG8KQJni8

[ricks68]

I'm still very confused. If you're saying that Zoubs' sister (who is 6'4") is taller than Zoubek (who is 7'0", give or take) then I assure you that your most egregious error is not grammatical. If you're saying she's taller than someone else, then your most egregious error is grammatical, but not in the way you describe.

Give me some time to find the picture, please. It will take a while, as I am not near as prolific a poster as many on the board.:eek:

ricks

[ricks68]

My picture files are too big. I will have to shrink them tomorrow and send then. But for now, a file size that is just right:


ricks

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

My picture files are too big. I will have to shrink them tomorrow and send then. But for now, a file size that is just right:


ricks

I am going to go out on a limb and really hope that isn't Z's sister. On the left or on the right.

Just kidding Ricks, it has been awhile, but I do recognize you.

[MulletMan]

Jason and I talked about it, and we liked Billy Dat's idea for including the DBR rank and file on the podcast. Here, let him explain, from the thread where Jason introduced the podcast:



So, this week, we are asking for submissions for our first such topic. Post your favorite story involving a notable Duke person. Maybe you sat next to Coach K at an Applebee's, or maybe Jay Bilas once called you 'the trillest.' I'll start.

A few years ago, I was patiently waiting in line on a rainy Durham morning at Bruegger's Bagels. I noticed that the average looking fellow in front of me was wearing brand new Kobes, and I thought to myself, who is this jerk wearing his brand new fancy basketball shoes on a gross, rainy morning? He turned around. It was Steve Wojciechowski. I felt really dumb as I chewed my mediocre breakfast sandwich in silence on the way to class.

Keep the stories appropriate for DBR, please. Include no explicit material and adhere to the forum guideline about not being a stalker.

Post your story by Friday night so we can sort through them and decide which one(s) to share on the podcast when we record this weekend.

Oh, and you know, just as a reminder, here's the link to this week's episode:

https://soundcloud.com/dbrpodcast/dbr-podcast-12-6-14

Winners get pitchforks from me. Go!

Post-Maryland during JJ's senior year... only game where he dunked... its a foggy night on 9th street, me and my buddy have been out drinking post game with some folks from Duke who shall remain nameless. We are walking to Cosmic to get some late night food when who should appear in front of us, but JJ and his then girl-friend. We basically almost bump into him, say excuse me, and then I look him in the eye and say, "Nice dunk." To which he responds, "Yeah... tweaked the back a bit." Exchange of fist bumps. End story.

(One of many, but one of my faves.)

[devildeac]

I did a bit of research on this, and that can't be a Nike shoe. Maybe it's one of those Reebok pumps...

I believe that footwear would probably fit into the FMP category, whether they're made by Reebok or not:o.

[Dev11]

Last day for entries! We're recording tomorrow morning. Looking ahead, we have a list of potential topics for future episodes, but we welcome submissions for topic ideas. Feel free to PM me.

[ricks68]

Something is wrong and I cannot load any new pictures to my photo album. So, there will be no picture of Sarah Zoubeck until it gets corrected. Sorry.

So, until then I will tell you another story. My wife and I were flying out from Houston Hobby Airport after the 2010 regionals to go to Atlanta at about 5:30 am. We look over at the area that sells magazines and food near our gate. We notice that Seth Curry is standing at the counter getting some food. I walk up to him and say to him that I know that he is Seth Curry. I then tell him that I am looking forward to seeing him play in the future. (This is the year he had to sit out because of his transfer.) He tells us that he can't fly with the team, and has to even pay his own way to get to away games to sit behind the team. He was in the airport on the way back to Durham via Atlanta. Then he turns and looks me straight in the eye and says: "Wait 'till you see me play. I am going to surprise everyone. You don't know how really good I am." My reply to him was that, basically,no, I was one of those who would not be surprised. He grinned, signed my wife's hat, since I didn't have mine with me. and then sat down in the corner of the waiting area and put his headphones on.

About a year or so later, we ran into him again on the floor after a game. I asked if he remembered us. He said that he did. I then told him "I told you that I wouldn't be surprised.) He flashed another big smile and signed my hat.

ricks

[ricks68]

A few months ago, my wife and I are walking down the street in Asheville across from Pritchard Park, when we see a lady in a "Z" tee shirt coming straight at us. I point right at her and say that I know what that shirt is. She said that I am the first person that ever knew what it was for (outside of the Duke area, of course). She then tells us that her daughter is the one that designed the shirt. She and her husband are volunteers that run a concession during the games, and that they find empty seats during breaks to watch. I asked her about the older lady that always stands by the end of the Duke bench to keep people that don't belong away from the floor in that corner during play and at the half. She told us that her name is Fran, and that she knows them very well. I wanted that info because if you are real nice to her, she will sometimes let you sneak by for autographs and such during the half. (She let me by once to get a picture with Greg Paulus on the bench. He was there during a Women's bball game supporting his then girlfriend, Abby Waner. I later sent that picture to Greg, and he autographed it and sent it back.) Well, when I went to the Presbyterian game this year, I walked up to Fran and got her to autograph my hat. She was so surprised to be included with all the other Duke people and had the biggest smile on her face.

ricks

[ricks68]

The hat that I am wearing in the previous picture with Ed (Viking Hat Guy) is my hat with all the signatures. You will note that it is clean, and nothing is written on it. Well, after hanging out on the floor for a long time after the game, we go to leave via the main public entrance. I see a guy that appears to me to be Barry Jacobs. I walk up to him and say that I really enjoy his writing. Next thing you know, 2 little kids coming running out from a side hall. I turn away from Barry and go over to them and ask them what's going on. Out of the corner of my eye I see a really tall guy smiling and coming over. I tell him that he has really cute kids. I can't quite place him, but I figure he's got to be a former player. Thinking quickly, I ask him to sign my hat to both get an autograph and find out who he is. Well, that's how Mark Alarie ended up being the first of my signatures.

Note: Besides the signatures I mentioned on the hat, previously, there is Johnny Dawkins, Tommy Amaker, JJ, Ricky Price, Battier, Dunleavy, Duhon, the guy from Willowridge High School that always got called for fouls just bringing the ball down the court, Billy King, Danny Ferry, Dre twice (one with each jersey number), Vince Taylor, along with dozens of others.

I got Kyrie's signature twice at the bonfire in the main quad after the UNC win. He didn't like it the first time he signed it because it was smudged, so he called me back over to do it again.

There are many more stories, including those with the parents of players, and one individual Duke "legend" that I spent many years watching Duke games in sports bars in Houston with that I purposely will not have on my hat. (That story is not for the boards, however.)

ricks

[Dev11]

Thanks for the all the stories, everybody! We'll have the new episode up on Monday, and I'll post a new user input thread then for next week's topic.

[Henderson]

Thanks for the all the stories, everybody! We'll have the new episode up on Monday, and I'll post a new user input thread then for next week's topic.

Thanks again, guys. Really enjoyed the show last week and looking forward to it again.

[blazindw]

I apologize for the Luddite question, but is there a way to get this podcast via iTunes?

thanks.


Not sure there's a direct connection to iTunes. There is a Soundcloud app for i-stuff. Or you can use something like http://www.anything2mp3.com/ (I've never tried it; ymmv...)

-jk

We are not on iTunes...yet. But, we're working on it!