Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 5, 1995 TAG: 9507050067
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
So, why is locating Dave Braine so difficult? Braine, a fly fisherman of more than casual casting, isn't much different from one of those elusive trout.
Just try getting the Virginia Tech athletic director at the end of a line.
Since May 4, Braine has been, in order, to Phoenix, Pasadena, Calif., Jacksonville and Naples, Fla., Dallas, Boston and Las Vegas. He's been to bowl outings, conference meetings, NCAA committee meetings and an athletic directors' convention. He also has made more than a few fund-raising stops across the commonwealth.
He's even spent some time on campus, although not as much as he'd like. Ask Braine about his schedule, and he sounds like the coach he used to be. There's no place like home. As Tech's profile in athletics has become more prominent - thanks to conference affiliation, recent success in marquee sports and administrative credibility - Braine has grown roots in his own backyard.
Braine, 52, arrived at Tech 71/2 years ago and took over a program that was surrounded by more lawyers than the O.J. trial. He came from Marshall and Tech was a step up - barely. He really thought he was going places. Braine just didn't think he'd be wearing maroon when he got to the Gator Bowl, Big East football meetings and the NIT championship at Madison Square Garden.
``When I first came here, I had no idea I'd spend the rest of my life here,'' Braine said Monday in his campus office. ``We still weren't sure until about 18 months ago. Then Carole [his wife] and I decided, `Why go someplace else if we like it as much as we do?' Maybe I'll get fired tomorrow, but we're not looking to leave.''
The Pennsylvania native and North Carolina alumnus easily could have done that. The Iowa State job was his for the taking a couple of years ago. In the past year, since the Hokies have played their way into some national exposure, Braine has had inquiries about his interest in at least five other AD jobs, including vacancies at Virginia and Florida State.
They were intriguing and attractive, but Tech remains that, too. The architect's drawing for a proposed $6 million football wing is due Friday. Braine said fund raising for that project ``is going very well.'' He figures that facility will be completed for 1997 spring practice.
Ground-breaking is scheduled this summer for long-awaited additions to the Tech baseball park, and in the fall for the outdoor track and soccer complex. And within a year, a portion of Spring Road where Hokies now drive between Lane Stadium and Rector Field House should be a women's softball diamond in the rough.
``I had no idea what we could have here,'' Braine said. ``Perception is not reality, first of all. What I perceived from years of coming here while working at VMI, Richmond and Virginia, well, it wasn't anything what Virginia Tech and Blacksburg [are] really like. I didn't know it was half as nice as it is.
``I'd gone to Lane Stadium and Cassell Coliseum, but I'd never seen the campus. I had no idea the school was as academically challenging as it is. I didn't know much about the people, and they're the ones that make the place. Carole and I have never been to a place where people continue to say thanks over and over.''
It happens because Braine took Tech's program to the cleaners in a different sort of way.
Braine credits the Tech athletic staff for its grasp of responsibilities, and lauds Tech executive vice president Minnis Ridenour ``for having a five-year plan on how to get it done. It took us six years, but we've done a lot of good things, although we're still struggling somewhat with the growth of the program.''
Braine's presence on the NCAA Special Events Committee, which oversees the bowls, enhances Tech's name in athletics, too. The Hokies' AD said his first few Atlantic 10 Conference meetings, with Tech as one of five new members, have been ``very rewarding'' because ``nobody is pushing his own agenda. We have 12 schools working together, and at least we don't have to say we're in the Metro any more.''
Tech is approaching 13,000 in football season-ticket sales, and Braine says he'd be ``disappointed'' if the Hokies don't reach at least a record 15,000 after back-to-back bowl trips and high expectations again. The new A-10 affiliation will give the men's and women's basketball programs more exposure, too.
With Tech angling for more success, maybe Braine could take some time to go fishing. As a frequent flier and infrequent fly-tier, Braine has helped land a few big ones for Tech in recent years. The Hokies should be glad to know that when he does leave town, however, he intends to come back.
by CNB