Taking A Cut
March 28, 1999

Herb Sendeck
Mumme and the 1999 Cats

In 1984, while I was working for KDKA-TV and radio in Pittsburgh, I was told to keep my eye out for a young man named Herb Sendeck. At the time, Sendeck didn't even have a job in coaching. Shortly after I was tipped off to Sendeck, my source told me that he had turned down a job right out of college that would have paid in excess of $70,000. Sendeck decided to forget the business world and go into coaching. He got a job working for a young man named Pitino. The salary was less than $20,000. In 1992, as an assistant at UK, it was Sendeck who stayed up all night putting together the game plan against Duke. Ten years from now, many will still say it was one of the best games of all time. Today, Sendeck is rebuilding N.C. State.Never known for strong statements to the media, Sendeck told me that this years "Duke team is the best he's ever seen or been around." WOW ! My buddy Mike Major had a busy offseason. UK's outstanding defensive co-ordinator is always looking for a new angle. Major spent time with two NFL teams, the Giants and 49ers, and the Nebraska Cornhuskers. For you football nuts, he was checking out different philosophies on the zone blitz, man to man coverage's, and defensive line play. Major is excited about the upcoming season. Besides having more defensive players, besides having players who are stronger and faster, there is one other item that is often overlooked, that can make a huge difference in building a program. "We're starting to get defensive players that are not offensive transforms," says the head coach of the defense. When Major arrived, he picked up defensive players who weren't judged to have the ability to make it on offense. At that time he had no choice. Today, when you look at the defensive depth chart you will see more of his defensive recruits taking snaps. Find me a terrific coach and you will quickly discover that being an amateur psychologist goes with the territory. Keep your fingers crossed for Gordon Crowe. A tough Kentucky boy, he was one of the most impressive high school tight ends I've ever seen. Today, Crowe weighs 290 pounds, bench presses over 400 pounds, and runs 4.75 seconds in the 40 yard dash. Those numbers would impress any NFL team. Now a senior, Crowe is expected to do big things.

Don't let his size fool you. Even some of the biggest men need to be handled with kid gloves. Major loves him. "Gordon has a big old heart, but you don't holler at him. You have to give him a sense of encouragement." Crowe has the ability to be in the top five in the SEC in sacking the quarterback. Dennis Johnson also has that kind of potential. When is the last time you heard that about UK's starting defensive ends ? What's just as exciting is that their backups would have been starters for UK in most seasons in the past two decades. The key to really turning UK around is depth. UK isn't where Tennessee is, but at least they are honestly moving in the right direction. To Hal Mumme. I agree with 99% of what he does. Mumme is living proof that head coaches make a huge difference. But, his policy this spring with quarterbacks is silly. Mumme not only has them all off limits, the receivers have been instructed not to talk about them. Mumme says that "there is a lot of pressure on them." Obviously, replacing Tim Couch is impossible. If anyone reading this wants to say that I'm just another media person thinking of my story......fine. Experience tells me that it takes time getting used to the media. Mumme himself looks more comfortable today when dealing with the media then when he arrived at UK. When you are the Q.B. at a big time school like UK, dealing with the media is part of the job. In all parts of the job as "the man", the quicker you are relaxed, the better the odds are that you will be able to perform. Besides, most players deep down enjoy the publicity, and they deserve it. Think about this. The quarterback who ends up being third or fourth string this fall could end up being forgotten. Mumme doesn't switch signal callers and he has been lucky enough not to get them hurt. Part of not getting hurt has to do with his fast break offensive system. The publicity one of these quarterbacks would have received this spring might have helped one of them get a job after their days of holding a clipboard are over. Some corporate executive might see one of these kids on TV and say-------I like this kid, and keep their eye on them. Hey Hal, you're doing a great job.....loosen up ! Alan Cutler is an award winning TV sportscaster, radio sports talk show host in Lexington and Cincinnati, and a motivational speaker. Comments can be e-mailed to sportscut@mis.net . Choose to have a great day !

choose to have a great day alan s. cutler sportscut@mis.net www.alancutler.com