
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 8, 1994                   TAG: 9404080102
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

EX-VMI STAR ELMORE PLEADING HIS CASE FOR BASKETBALL JOB

Gay Elmore, an attorney who has staged a grass-roots campaign for the basketball coach's job at VMI, was in Lexington on Thursday to plead his case, sources close to the institute said.

Elmore, a VMI alumnus who spent one year as a graduate assistant with the Keydets, met with athletic director Davis Babb and the search committee assembled to review candidates. He could not be reached Thursday for comment.

Elmore, a practicing attorney in Charleston, W.Va., led VMI in scoring from 1984-87 and is the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,423 points. He spent one season as an assistant to Joe Cantafio on the Keydets' staff while attending law school at Washington and Lee.

"I have had several calls from alumni supporting Gay," said Jeff Morgan, executive vice president of the Keydet Club, an organization that raises funds for athletic scholarships at the institute.

"It may seem like a shot in the dark to some, but obviously he has some qualities that some other coaches don't," Morgan said. ". . . Why not go against the grain and see what he can do with a very challenging program?"

Elmore, whose father was a high school basketball coach, is believed to be the fourth candidate interviewed to replace Cantafio, who became the head coach at Furman on March 21.

Bob Johnson, the head coach at Emory & Henry the past 14 seasons, confirmed Thursday that he was in Lexington on Wednesday to interview for the position.

"You're always interested in talking to people," Johnson said. "I've got a very good job right now, but they have an interesting situation up there."

Johnson, who has an overall record of 211-161 at Division III Emory & Henry, said he had not been offered the position and that Babb gave him no indication when the job would be filled. However, Babb has said several times in the past two weeks that he would like to have a coach hired by April 13, when the spring signing period opens.

Emmett Davis, an assistant at Navy, and Kevin Billerman, an assistant at North Carolina-Charlotte, also have visited Lexington for formal interviews.

Wyoming assistant Kevin Purcell met with Babb on Monday in Charlotte, N.C., and could be brought to campus this week. Purcell said he had sent his credentials to VMI at Babb's request and was awaiting a response.

Purcell, 38, graduated from Fork Union Military Academy in 1974 and spent one season as an assistant at The Citadel.

"I am familiar with the military environment, and it is something, personally, that I can sell because I believe in it," he said. "I think my personality, energy level and my age would all fit well."

by CNB