Beloved Hall of Fame Coach Shares Life Lessons with USC Journalism Students

Palisadian Jeff Fellenzer has spent many evenings in the company of legendary basketball coach John Wooden. But perhaps none have meant as much to him as last Wednesday night, when Wooden visited Fellenzer’s journalism class at the University of Southern California and shared three hours’ worth of the wisdom and knowledge that have made him one of the most beloved and respected figures in sports. “I was deeply touched by Coach Wooden’s generosity and his willingness to share so much of his time with my students,” Fellenzer said. “He stayed until he had signed everything that everyone had brought with them. John is like Bruce Springsteen in concert’he always delivers more than you could ever expect. He is an amazing person and I feel very blessed to be able to call him a friend.” Now 93 years young, Wooden is still as sharp as ever. He captivated over 200 students in USC’s Annenberg Auditorium with his thoughtful, witty and often profound answers to questions ranging from his coaching career to his life philosophy. Fellenzer started the class, titled “Sports, Business and Media in Today’s Society,” six years ago with former Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Fred Claire and ever since Wooden has been at the top of the desired guest list. “I began incorporating some “Woodenisms” into my lectures last spring and the feedback I got from the class was incredible,” Fellenzer said. “Now, we call it our weekly Wooden. Well, this one is the ultimate weekly Wooden because he’s here in person.” Wooden coached UCLA to 10 national championships in 11 seasons, including seven in a row from 1967-73 and led the Bruins to 88 consecutive victories–an NCAA record that still stands. He is the first of only three men to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach and mentored countless NBA superstars, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Walt Hazzard and Gail Goodrich. Now Wooden is revered as much for what he has done off the court as for what his teams achieved on it. He has authored several books, the latest being a children’s story called “Inch and Miles,” published last fall, and his “Pyramid of Success” has become a model for coaches and teachers all over the world. Last summer, Wooden was invited to the White House, where President George Bush awarded him the Medal of Freedom, the highest honor bestowed upon a United States civilian. Though he spent the majority of his coaching career at USC’s crosstown rival, the man affectionately known as the “Wizard of Westwood” is nevertheless greatly respected by Trojan faithful and he was warmly received at a pre-class reception. One of the first to arrive and last to leave was USC head football coach Pete Carroll, whose team won a share of the national championship in January. Carroll was as excited to meet Wooden as anyone in the room. “That was quite a year you had,” Wooden said as the two shook hands. “But I wish you’d cut it out.” Carroll laughed, then told a story of how adopting Wooden’s principles has contributed to his success at USC. “I’ve read a whole bunch of books looking for any little edge I could find,” Carroll said to Wooden. “A few years ago, just before I accepted this job, a friend of mine gave me the blue book (“Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections on and off the Court”) and I remember getting to the part that says you won your first national title in your 17th year. I found myself thinking ‘I’m never going to last 17 years here.’ But reading your book changed how I prepared for this opportunity.” Wooden’s advice to Carroll on how to keep the Trojans on top? “Like the alumni will tell you–that was yesterday,” he said. “You can’t live in the past. You have to live for today because it’s the only day that matters. Close the door on yesterday and throw away the key.” Wooden said he is proud of current USC men’s basketball coach Henry Bibby, one of his former players at UCLA, and that the program would benefit from an on-campus basketball facility instead of an outside venue like the Sports Arena. In addition to teaching at his alma mater, Fellenzer is founder of the Pete Newell Challenge, a preseason college basketball tournament in Oakland named after the popular California coach. Wooden, in fact, considers Newell to be the best he ever coached against. “Some of you may remember Coach Wooden throwing out the first pitch before Game 2 of the World Series at Anaheim Stadium two years ago,” Fellenzer said in his introduction to the class. Turning to Wooden, he added: “I thought you threw a pretty good fast ball.” “Actually, it was a slider Jeff,” Wooden corrected. “It hit the ground and slid all the way to the catcher.” Andy Hill, ex-Bruin and former L.A. City Player of the Year at University High, accompanied his former coach to the event. “As a game coach, he was good,” Hill remembered. “But in practice, there has never been anyone better than Coach Wooden. That’s really where the games were won.” Hill sat amongst the students as Wooden discussed a myriad of topics, including his dislike of showmanship in today’s game. “If one of my players dunked the ball I’d have him out of there before his feet hit the floor,” he said. Of NBA rookie sensation Lebron James, Wooden said, “I never saw anyone like him in a high school all-star game since Oscar Robertson. I’d like to see his birth certificate because he looks like he’s 25. If he can keep his feet on the ground, he’ll be a great one.” However, Wooden fears players like James, and Kobe Bryant before him, might be setting a dangerous precedent. “I don’t like to see players leave college early or skip it entirely to turn professional,” he said. “It’s a mistake in the vast majority of cases because the lifestyle in the pros is completely different.” Wooden cited the “back door” and “screen and roll” as his favorite plays and named David Robinson and John Stockton as two of his favorite players to watch. At UCLA. Wooden expected his players to abide by three simple rules: don’t use profanity, be on time and never criticize a teammate. He prefers to think of a coach as a teacher because “that’s what a coach really is after all” and he said the key to becoming a great leader is humility, saying “A great leader doesn’t light a fire under his players, but within them.” Asked to name the accomplishment he is most proud of, Wooden did not cite one of the championships he won or an honor he has received. “I’m most proud that in 29 seasons coaching college basketball (two at Indiana State, 27 at UCLA) almost all of my players graduated. That should be the first priority of every college coach.”

When Palisades High short stop Dylan Cohen was intentionally walked with two outs in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s Western League baseball game against Venice, Adam Franks stepped to the plate with one objective: make the Gondos pay. The Dolphins’ catcher did just that, lining a two-strike pitch to right field to score Alex Thompson from second base with the only run in a battle for first place at George Robert Field. ‘I can understand why they walked Dylan’he’s our best hitter,’ Franks said. ‘But it is a little personal, yeah. By doing that, they were basically saying they didn’t think I could come through with a man in scoring position. Even though I was behind in the count, my approach was the same’stay aggressive and look for a fastball I could drive.’ The 1-0 victory kept Palisades (10-3 overall, 5-0 in league) undefeated in league play and dropped defending champion Venice (3-2 in league) into second place. The teams meet again today at Venice. ‘That’s the way it’s meant to be,’ Pali co-coach Kelly Loftus said. ‘This was just a great game between two good teams. When both teams combine for only eight hits, you know there’s some good pitching going on. This was a true test of character for our team and we passed.’ Pali’s ace right-hander Geoff Schwartz pitched a three-hitter and retired the Gondos in order in each of the last two innings to earn his third win of the season. ‘We owed them from last year,’ Schwartz said. ‘We had to come out and prove we are the better team and we did.’ Thompson’s pinch-hit single with one out started the Dolphins’ last-inning rally. After a groundout, he stole second and, with a base open, Venice walked Cohen to set up Franks’ winning hit. Thompson slid past the catcher’s tag at home plate then was mobbed by his teammates in the dugout.

With the next day’s game against defending Western League champion Venice foremost on their minds, Palisades High baseball players showed up at practice Monday eager to get back in the swing of things after a week off for spring break. There to help the Dolphins do just that was former Los Angeles Dodger Reggie Smith, who told his attentive audience what it takes to be a good hitter. ‘According to [Boston Red Sox hall of famer] Ted Williams, being a good hitter requires three things,’ said Smith, who is now President of his own instructional center in Encino. ‘First is proper thinking. You have to go up to the plate with a plan as to what you want to do. Second, you have to be patient and get a good ball to hit. And third, you have to be quick when you get the pitch you want.’ Smith, a switch hitter whose 17-year major league career included stints with Boston, St. Louis, Los Angeles and San Francisco, played on the Dodgers’ World Series championship team in 1981 and served as the team’s hitting coach for two years upon his retirement in 1982. With a career batting average of .287, Smith had 2,020 hits and scored 1,123 runs. After addressing the Dolphins, Smith worked individually with PaliHi players in the batting cage, critiquing each player on his batting stance and swing. ‘We’re thrilled to have Reggie here helping us before a big game like this,’ Pali co-coach Tom Seyler said. ‘Hopefully, some of the kids can apply what Reggie has taught them here today against Venice.’ Asked what the hardest pitch to hit was, Smith answered any pitch that is changing planes. He had the team repeat a visualization drill in which he would hold up his hand like he was going to throw, then see if the players knew what pitch to anticipate. This eye-switch technique is aimed at getting hitters to recognize a pitcher’s release point. ‘As a batter, you’re constantly fighting for more time,’ Smith said. ‘You’re looking for any little edge you can find to give you more time to see the ball and swing. If you see the pitcher’s hand below the ball, you can anticipate a curve. If his hand is behind the ball when he releases it, expect the fastball.’ Short stop Dylan Cohen asked Smith about positioning in the batter’s box and how far apart his feet should be. When Smith suggested Cohen crowd the plate, the way he instructed his major leaguers to crowd Atlanta Braves ace Tom Glavine, Seyler expounded on Smith’s wisdom: ‘Remember what Reggie just said. Stand closer to the plate against these guys [Venice pitchers]. Make them throw it over the plate to get a strike.’

Palisades-Malibu YMCA swim team coach Adam Blakis took six swimmers to the YMCA Spring National Swim Meet April 5-8 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at the International Swimming Hall of Fame Aquatic Complex. Over 1,500 swimmers from 208 teams nationwide participated. This year, the meet’s theme was red, white and blue, and the swimmers showed their spirit by dressing in matching patriotic outfits for the opening ceremony. PALY’s team consisted of Cara Davidoff, David Nonberg, Katie Smith, Alexa Merz, Brian Johnson, and Samantha Brill. The YMCA Nationals are the championship meet that culminates the YMCA swimming short course season. Swimmers must qualify by making the national time standard. Merz, a 16-year-old junior at Harvard-Westlake High, took two silver medals in the 50- (23.82 seconds) and 100-yard (51.83 seconds) Freestyle events. She also swam the 200 Freestyle in 1:52.81 seconds (placing sixth) and the 100 Breaststroke (1:10.22 seconds). Davidoff, an 18-year-old Palisades High senior, took ninth in the 50-yard Freestyle (24.07 seconds) and 13th in the 200 Freestyle (1:53.78 seconds). She also swam the 500 Freestyle in 5:07.36, placing 24th out of 101 competitors), and the 100 Butterfly (1:00.00 seconds). Smith, a 17 year old senior at Notre Dame, swam the 100 Breaststroke (1:07.61 seconds), and placed 27th out of 173 swimmers. Nonberg, an 18-year-old junior at PaliHi, swam the 50 Freestyle in 23.12 seconds and later qualified for the YMCA Summer Long Course Nationals in the same event with a time trial of 22.94 seconds. Johnson swam the 200 Backstroke in 2:03.79 seconds. Swimmers Davidoff, Nonberg, Smith, Johnson and Brill also swam a number of best times in time-trial swims in their respective events. The 200 Freestyle Relay team of Davidoff, Merz, Smith and Brill finished 19th out of 75 teams in 1:40.14, the 200 Medley Relay was 30th out of 72 teams in 1:52.08, the 400 Freestyle Relay was 39th out of 72 teams in 3:41.01 and the 400 Medley Relay was 61st out of 75 teams in 4:10.99. Overall, the PALY women’s squad was 17th overall in total point standing among the 208 participating teams. The competition marked PALY’s largest team since the 1990s and reflects the commitment and hard work of head coach Adam Blakis and the swimmers, as well as the ongoing support of the YMCA and community. The Summer YMCA Long Course Nationals will be in early August in College Park, Maryland.

Wooden Legend Lives On

As a lifelong sports fan growing up in Southern California, I heard about John Wooden all the time. I read stories about him receiving this award or that, saw him interviewed on television or watching a UCLA game from his courtside seat at Pauley Pavilion. But I had never met him until last Wednesday, when Jeff Fellenzer invited me to sit in on his ‘Evening with John Wooden’ at USC’s Annenberg School of Journalism. In speaking with Jeff since the event, I learned that dozens of his students e-mailed him afterwards to express how much they enjoyed meeting Coach Wooden and how much they learned from him. One such e-mail Jeff was kind enough to share with me reads: ‘I just wanted to thank you for arranging Coach Wooden’s visit to class. I greatly enjoyed it and found myself thinking about him often this past week. I know that it was a lot for him to come all the way over here and I’m sure it wasn’t an easy task. And I hope he knows how much it was appreciated. I’m not sure the class really understood just who was sitting in the room. Sports stars of the past are of a greater caliber than they are today and I’m not sure they realize and appreciate the rarity of Mr. Wooden’s style. But I’d like to think they did. I know I did. Thanks again and send my regards to Coach.’ Another student told Jeff she had watched last weekend’s Wooden Awards and was amazed a man his age could have so much energy and enthusiasm. The sentiments expressed by these students and others were shared by all of us who were fortunate enough to be in that classroom with Coach Wooden. He was our teacher that night and in those three short hours he gave us new things to think about and reminded us of things we’d long forgotten. He rattled off ‘Woodenisms’ faster than my fingers could write them down but some of what he said was so profound that I know I’ll remember it for the rest of my life. One of his favorite sayings has to do with character: ‘Be more concerned with your character than your reputation because your character is what you are while your reputation is merely what others say you are.’ Another gem: ‘Sports is like a passion’it’s temporary. Education is like true love’enduring.’ He has hundreds more of these at the ready, a phrase or quote to fit every situation. The more I listened to him talk, the more respect I gained for him because I could tell what he was saying was sincere. He is a man who not only talks the talk but also walks the walk. Like the old E.F. Hutton commercial’when Coach Wooden speaks, you drop what you’re doing and listen because you know you’re going to learn something. I think what makes his advice so valuable is it’s simplicity. His concepts are not hard to understand and rarely do they require more than a simple change in attitude or action. He talked about one of the obstacles to happiness in today’s society being ‘too much emphasis on material things, when true happiness lies in things that can’t be taken away.’ He was the ultimate winner, yet he never talked to his players about winning. As I sat there observing, two things in particular impressed me. The first was his healthy sense of humor. The man is flat out funny and if laughter is indeed the eternal healer, it’s easy to see why John Wooden has outlived most of his generation. Just as remarkable to me is how humble he remains despite all that he has achieved in his life. Perhaps Jeff said it best when he described John as a teacher without being a preacher. People with that kind of character are a gift to the world. In his bestselling book ‘Wooden’ he defines success as ‘peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming.’ His now-famous ‘Pyramid of Success’ is a tool that shapes winners far beyond the basketball court, even beyond the athletic arena. And John Wooden is the living embodiment of that formula. He tells us to ‘make each day a masterpiece’ while he paints a Picasso with his. He says ‘Don’t try to be better than anyone else, just try to be the best you can be’ while he honors young student-athletes for their achievements and pays no attention to his own. Wooden saved perhaps his strongest message for last, quoting from Mother Theresa: ‘A life not lived for others is not a life.’ As those who have met him can attest, John Wooden is a special man living a special life who has a lot left to live for.

Daniel Edelstein, a fifth-grader at St. Matthew’s, just returned from Angel Fire, New Mexico, where he competed in the USASA National Snowboard Championships as a member of the Mammoth Mountain team. Edelstein took up snowboarding four years ago and tried out for the Mammoth team in December. He made the squad and is currently the youngest member of Mammoth’s Upper Development Division. All year, he has competed in the USASA/Vans Unbound Series Boardercross and Slopestyle events in Mammoth and June Mountain. Based on his total scores in Boardercross, Edelstein was selected as the leader to represent Mammoth in the Menehune Boys 10- to 11-year-old age division at the National Championships. He also plans to hone his skills this summer at High Cascade Snowboard Camp in Mt. Hood, Oregon.