Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, April 9, 1991 TAG: 9104090198
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BLACKSBURG/
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"From what I hear, he's a good coach," junior Erik Wilson said of Foster, who is 431-247 in his 24-year career. "He's done some pretty good things with the teams he's had in the past.
"He's won games before, and that's what we need."
Ditto from guard Steve Hall, a transfer from the University of Washington who will be eligible next year.
"He's got good credentials," Hall said Monday, shortly after the team finished a brief afternoon meeting with Foster that Hall described as "an introductory type of thing."
For Hall, it is a case of dealing with his fourth college coach in four years. He will have two years of eligibility with Tech.
"It's been rough, but what can I do about it?" he said. "You just roll with the punches. Coach Foster and I both want to win, so, in that respect, we both want the same thing."
Tech has back basically the same team that finished 13-16 last year; it will add Hall and Allen's only signee, 6-foot-8 Jay Thompson of Hargrave Military Academy.
"I don't think the cupboard's necessarily bare, but there's a lot of work to be done or I wouldn't be here," Foster said. "I'm not coming from a bunch of have, have, have situations. I've had my back to the wall before."
He said he thinks there is enough talent on the roster to be competitive, barring what he called unforeseen problems. Sources say two key players - guard Rod Wheeler and swingman Dirk Williams - must perform well in summer school to maintain their eligibility. Foster alluded to that when he mentioned Tech had some players who need "to burn the midnight oil."
Braine said he is confident Foster can handle adversity and resurrect Tech's program. Braine said he first became aware of Foster as a prospective coaching candidate when Braine interviewed for the athletic director's job at Miami in January.
"I realized what he had to go through," Braine said. "It's a tough situation to win in, and what the guy had to go through there is impressive."
If reaction of some fellow coaches to Foster's hiring is any indication, few doubt the ability - both in recruiting and strategy - of the 25-year coaching veteran.
"I've known Coach Foster since I was here at Virginia," UVa coach Jeff Jones said. "He did a great job of establishing Clemson. The job he did at Miami, starting from scratch, was pretty remarkable and he probably hasn't gotten the recognition he deserves [for that]. That was not an easy job. What I remember is that his teams were patterned teams; they would play up-tempo and he had a lot of quality big men."
Foster recruited future NBA big men Larry Nance, Tree Rollins and Horace Grant to Clemson; he recruited unheralded forward Cedric Maxwell to UNC Charlotte, and Maxwell later became an NBA star. He took Clemson to the NCAA Tournament once and the National Invitation Tournament three times before going 39-48 in his final three years there.
Foster's hiring at Tech mildly surprised some in college basketball circles, including Foster's longtime friend Terry Holland and former Virginia Tech coach Don DeVoe, who was mentioned early as a possible candidate for the vacancy but said he never was contacted by the Hokies.
"That's interesting," DeVoe said when told who Tech hired. "He should be very strong in recruiting that area.
"I don't think it's a surprise that Bill is out of retirement; professionally, he's a coach. . . . I think every school [seeking a coach] is looking for someone who is very different from their former coach."
by CNB