Sports

Somonauk grad doing well in NCAA

Jason Smith can hardly believe it. The 2007 Somonauk grad has met college coaches like Bo Ryan and Bruce Weber. But Smith mostly interacts with Baylor head men's basketball coach Scott Drew.

Smith, a Baylor freshman, is a student manager with the Baylor men's basketball team and will continue to do so for the next four years.

Smith spent this past season traveling with the team and was one of 18 managers to assist the team as the Bears made the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 20 years.

Smith said he wanted to help the team any way he could. And he did just that as a student manager.

He had to scout for upcoming games by breaking down film, get the team's uniforms ready for game time, picking up other coaches or players from the airport and essentially do all the behind the scenes work for the team.

“Everywhere I go, it's like one of those am I dreaming moments,” Smith said.

Smith's passion is coaching, which he will learn a lot under Drew.

Drew, who also did not play college basketball, started out as an assistant manager at Butler in the early 1990s.

Drew, however, went on to coach at Valparaiso and has revitalized the program at Baylor under unique circumstances.

While Smith was still in middle school, Baylor went through tough times about five years ago in July.

Junior center Patrick Dennehy was found dead in a gravel pit after being shot twice outside Waco, Texas. His teammate Carlton Dotson was charged with the murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison.

Former Baylor coach Dave Bliss was caught attempting to cover up improper tuition payments he had made to Dennehy and a teammate by attempting to have his players and assistants say Dennehy paid his tuition by dealing drugs.

Bliss resigned and Drew took over in August of 2003 with a struggling program and a school trying to establish pride in its program.

Drew took the struggling program, amidst these problems and NCAA sanctions, and took the Bears to the national spotlight during the 2007-08 season.

“None of (Baylor's problems) affected me,” Smith said when he was looking for colleges. “I liked it more because all was young and hungry coaches. We hardly talk about it.”

And for Smith, Drew's an inspiration.

“He's a down-to-earth guy,” Smith said. “He doesn't put a show on for the media.”

Scott Smith, Jason's father who lives in Waco, had Baylor season tickets. While they were struggling, brought his son down to watch Drew and the Bears. Jason visited the school six or seven times before enrolling at Baylor and e-mailing Drew about helping the team. Drew said he was interested that Smith was interested in helping out the Bears and wanted to help Smith in his dreams to become a coach.

“You always want to prepare for the future,” Drew said.

Smith already has a strong background in coaching.

It's from his father, Scott.

Like Drew's father Homer, the head men's basketball coach at Valparaiso, Smith's father, Scott, was a high school boys basketball coach in New York. Scott finished his coaching career 132-23 at Mynderse Academy in Seneca Falls, NY, and won a state Class C title in 1992 and finished a runner-up in 1994. And now, his son follows in his footsteps.

“As long as he wants to coach, I want to support him,” Scott said.

But Scott also said he doesn't want to put too much pressure on Jason, and knows he will be successful no matter what area of life he pursues.

While the Bears, who lost in first round of the NCAA Tournament, Smith and the rest of the team enjoyed a season of hard, successful work.

Smith said he stayed in a lot of restaurants and nice hotels. He also got to experience plenty of winning, except once when he wasn't on the rotation for the student managers. It was the ESPN Instant Classic five overtime game against Texas A&M in College Station, Texas.

Baylor won 116-110.

Smith listened to the live Internet radio broadcast in his dorm room on January 23 along with 30-40 other people that crowded around the room.

Smith could hardly describe the feeling. But he remembers about 3,000 students waiting until 3 a.m. and greeting the team after the win.

“That really sparked the second half of the season,” Smith said.

Smith said there's been a lot of ‘pinch-me moments' since he became an assistant coach this season. Smith has worked two camps at the University of Wisconsin and the University of Illinois. Smith said Wisconsin's Ryan is strict on the floor, and a friendly coach off the floor and said similar things about the Illini's Weber.

And now Smith is helping the Somonauk boys basketball team at the Plano YMCA.

But he's just trying to get as much experience as possible, and focusing the next year on Baylor men's basketball.

“I love it,” Smith said. “I got to keep pushing on.”

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