Frank Vogel wanted to be the Rudy Ruettiger of college basketball.
Vogel, an undersized point guard, wanted to turn his time on the basketball court into a coaching position.
There was only one place and one coach he wanted to do that for: the University of Kentucky and Rick Pitino.
Vogel, then a senior at NCAA Division III Juniata College in Pennsylvania, loaded his beat-up 1989 Dodge Colt and drove more than 600 miles to Lexington, Ky., in an attempt to walk on for the Wildcats.
Vogel never became the next Ruettiger, who walked on and made the football team at Notre Dame and inspired the movie "Rudy." But Pitino liked his determination and gave him his first opportunity to become a coach, hiring Vogel to be the school's video coordinator in 1994.
"I decided to chase my dream," said Vogel, who is the NBA's youngest coach at 37 after taking over as the interim coach of the Indiana Pacers. "I didn't have any guarantees that I would be part of the Kentucky program at any level. It worked out, and I owe it to Rick Pitino."
Question: What made you want to pursue your dream at Kentucky?
Answer: It was a two-part move for me. I saw if I stayed at the Division III level and tried to coach, I would have to be a volunteer assistant and make only $2,000 a year. That meant I would have to work a full-time job during the day and come in to coach during the spare time. I didn't want that. The whole story of how coach Pitino revamped that program and made it a powerhouse really inspired me to really want to play and work for him.
Q: What made you think you were good enough to go from D-3 ball to play for a powerhouse like Kentucky?
A: Because I wanted to compete against the best. That never came about, though, because when I got down there, they told me that only kids from Kentucky could walk on for them. It was devastating. I was borderline depressed that I had thrown away my senior year at Juniata. I was still hanging around the gym watching workouts and pickup games, so I decided to take coach (Pitino) up on earlier offer from when I met him at a camp where he told me if he could ever do anything for me let him know.
Q: Did you just walk into Pitino's office and ask for a job?
A: I went up to the basketball office and told them my name. (Jim O'Brien, the recently fired Pacers coach who was then an assistant at Kentucky) met with me and said he could use help in the video room. Obie talked to Rick and called me two days later saying they were going to give me a trial run working in the video room. I was also doing student manager duties, like picking up jock straps and mopping the floors. I did it all.
Q: So does that mean you owe everything to Pitino for where you are now?
A: I do. I called Rick as soon as I was named coach and thanked him for my inspiration and letting me get my start. He and Obie taught me everything I know. He called back a couple days later and said he's going to come up and see a game at some point this season.
Q: Is this a bittersweet feeling for you because your first head coaching job happened due to one of your mentors getting fired?
A: It's gut wrenching, because I know how much Obie wanted to help turn this team around. He put his life into this franchise for almost four years. To see a friend work so hard at something and not be able to complete it is very hard. But I'll say this, it's been easy for me cause he's made it easy for me.
Q: Lawrence Frank, who also never played in the NBA, took over New Jersey in the middle of the season (2003-04) and turned it into a pretty good head coaching career. Have you talked to him for advice?
A: He's obviously a trailblazer from the standpoint of having little NBA experience and stepping in and hitting a home run with the situation. I have not talked to him since taking over. He texted me congrats. What he did in New Jersey is what I'm hoping to do here. No question about it.
Q: Are you concerned players may not buy into what you're saying since you didn't play in the NBA?
A: There's some skepticism with players who don't know me. I think my job is easier now because these guys know what I'm all about. I know the game. I know what I'm talking about. If you know what you're doing, then respect comes easy. It could be different if they keep me and new guys come in down the road because they don't know me.
Q: Is it true that you're like former NFL coach Jon Gruden when it comes to long hours?
A: I'm not that bad, but he's one of my idols. I always joke there's no weekends or weekdays in my life during the season. There's game days and non-game days. Game day I'll be in the building four hours before shootaround in the morning. I start film work at 6 a.m. I've done that for 14 years. That's what Obie does. I followed his lead. Every game day for 14 years, I've taken a nap in the afternoon. But this year my wife is letting me stay Downtown and nap. I usually nap for about hour on the couch in our massage room, then get up and go back to work.
Vogel, an undersized point guard, wanted to turn his time on the basketball court into a coaching position.
There was only one place and one coach he wanted to do that for: the University of Kentucky and Rick Pitino.
Vogel, then a senior at NCAA Division III Juniata College in Pennsylvania, loaded his beat-up 1989 Dodge Colt and drove more than 600 miles to Lexington, Ky., in an attempt to walk on for the Wildcats.
Vogel never became the next Ruettiger, who walked on and made the football team at Notre Dame and inspired the movie "Rudy." But Pitino liked his determination and gave him his first opportunity to become a coach, hiring Vogel to be the school's video coordinator in 1994.
"I decided to chase my dream," said Vogel, who is the NBA's youngest coach at 37 after taking over as the interim coach of the Indiana Pacers. "I didn't have any guarantees that I would be part of the Kentucky program at any level. It worked out, and I owe it to Rick Pitino."
Question: What made you want to pursue your dream at Kentucky?
Answer: It was a two-part move for me. I saw if I stayed at the Division III level and tried to coach, I would have to be a volunteer assistant and make only $2,000 a year. That meant I would have to work a full-time job during the day and come in to coach during the spare time. I didn't want that. The whole story of how coach Pitino revamped that program and made it a powerhouse really inspired me to really want to play and work for him.
Q: What made you think you were good enough to go from D-3 ball to play for a powerhouse like Kentucky?
A: Because I wanted to compete against the best. That never came about, though, because when I got down there, they told me that only kids from Kentucky could walk on for them. It was devastating. I was borderline depressed that I had thrown away my senior year at Juniata. I was still hanging around the gym watching workouts and pickup games, so I decided to take coach (Pitino) up on earlier offer from when I met him at a camp where he told me if he could ever do anything for me let him know.
Q: Did you just walk into Pitino's office and ask for a job?
A: I went up to the basketball office and told them my name. (Jim O'Brien, the recently fired Pacers coach who was then an assistant at Kentucky) met with me and said he could use help in the video room. Obie talked to Rick and called me two days later saying they were going to give me a trial run working in the video room. I was also doing student manager duties, like picking up jock straps and mopping the floors. I did it all.
Q: So does that mean you owe everything to Pitino for where you are now?
A: I do. I called Rick as soon as I was named coach and thanked him for my inspiration and letting me get my start. He and Obie taught me everything I know. He called back a couple days later and said he's going to come up and see a game at some point this season.
Q: Is this a bittersweet feeling for you because your first head coaching job happened due to one of your mentors getting fired?
A: It's gut wrenching, because I know how much Obie wanted to help turn this team around. He put his life into this franchise for almost four years. To see a friend work so hard at something and not be able to complete it is very hard. But I'll say this, it's been easy for me cause he's made it easy for me.
Q: Lawrence Frank, who also never played in the NBA, took over New Jersey in the middle of the season (2003-04) and turned it into a pretty good head coaching career. Have you talked to him for advice?
A: He's obviously a trailblazer from the standpoint of having little NBA experience and stepping in and hitting a home run with the situation. I have not talked to him since taking over. He texted me congrats. What he did in New Jersey is what I'm hoping to do here. No question about it.
Q: Are you concerned players may not buy into what you're saying since you didn't play in the NBA?
A: There's some skepticism with players who don't know me. I think my job is easier now because these guys know what I'm all about. I know the game. I know what I'm talking about. If you know what you're doing, then respect comes easy. It could be different if they keep me and new guys come in down the road because they don't know me.
Q: Is it true that you're like former NFL coach Jon Gruden when it comes to long hours?
A: I'm not that bad, but he's one of my idols. I always joke there's no weekends or weekdays in my life during the season. There's game days and non-game days. Game day I'll be in the building four hours before shootaround in the morning. I start film work at 6 a.m. I've done that for 14 years. That's what Obie does. I followed his lead. Every game day for 14 years, I've taken a nap in the afternoon. But this year my wife is letting me stay Downtown and nap. I usually nap for about hour on the couch in our massage room, then get up and go back to work.
He went from the rock bottom all the way to the top. I applaud that.
Even though I couldn't stand O'Brien, I also applaud his dedication.
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