It is one of the oldest recruiting tricks in the book, but it is nonetheless an effective one.
How do you know your coach is still going to be there?
Five years ago, as Indianapolis native Brandon McPherson weighed his college choices, that question took on particular resonance. Strongly considering Valparaiso University, he was aware that his would-be coach there, Homer Drew, already had retired once before returning after just one season away. What was to stop him from doing it again?
"I heard rumors he was going to be one-and-done," McPherson said. "He's big on respect, so I asked him straight-up: 'Are you going to be here?' He told me that he was going to be here through the time I graduated. And that he's a man of his word."
Second wind
In 2002, Drew stepped down as the head coach at Valpo. The timing was ideal.
The Crusaders had just won 25 games, the most in his 14-year tenure at VU. The season concluded with a Mid-Continent Conference tournament title and, as a 13 seed, a very respectable showing against Kentucky in the NCAA tournament's first round.
What's more, that game was played in St. Louis, giving Drew's life in basketball perfect symmetry. He had played at nearby Webster Groves High School and started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Washington University in the city.
For years, Drew had groomed his oldest son Scott as his replacement, and the time was right for the 32-year-old to take over. Homer Drew, finally utilizing his doctorate degree in education administration, moved into an administrative role as an assistant to the president of the university.
But that lasted just one year.
In the summer of 2003, an ugly scandal broke out at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. The murder of Patrick Dennehy by a teammate opened the window on a vast web of ugly cover-ups by then-coach Dave Bliss.
Some speculated that the NCAA would administer the death penalty to the program, as it had to SMU football years before. Instead, it spared the program, but applied heavy sanctions.
Where most up-and-coming coaches saw a mess they wouldn't dare touch, Scott Drew saw opportunity. Not yet 33 years old, he accepted the job. Without a clear idea of how long it might last, Homer Drew replaced his son on the Valpo bench, giving the program continuity after the surprising turn of events.
"We said we'd take it year to year," he said.
On Nov. 13, at Ball State, Drew begins year seven of his second go-around at Valparaiso.
How much longer?
The signs seem to indicate that current recruits may not get the same pledge that Brandon McPherson, a fifth-year senior on this year's team, received in 2004. Drew turned 65 years old this fall. His youngest son Bryce, after a six-year NBA career, joined the Valparaiso staff in 2005. In 2006, he was promoted to associate head coach, setting a line of succession from father to son for the second time in Homer Drew's tenure.
Not that coaching at the Division I level is ever an easy task, but it is considerably more difficult at Valpo than it once was. The Crusaders no longer dominate the Mid-Continent Conference. They play in the Horizon League, a mere half-step down, if that, from the power leagues of college basketball. After a respectable fourth-place finish in the conference two years ago, the Crusaders slipped to 9-22 last season, Drew's worst campaign since 1991-92. This year brings nonconference journeys to defending national champion North Carolina, as well as Final Four contenders Michigan State (ranked second) and Purdue (ranked seventh).
"It's exciting every year when a new team comes in," said Janet Drew, Homer's wife of 42 years. "It's new every year. When I see he's ready to move on, then we'll move on to other things. But I don't think he's ever going to be the kind of person who won't have something to do and won't be involved with other people."
At least one of Drew's closest friends in coaching believes that his 21st season at Valparaiso will be his last.
"I think he's done," said Mike Lightfoot, the head coach at Bethel College and a former player for Drew at that school. "That's just my gut feeling. This is his 40th year in coaching. Bryce is up for the challenge. I'd be surprised to see him come back."
If that's true, Drew isn't saying. More than 20 years ago, Homer Drew headed a "family forum" to decide if he would leave small-college basketball in South Bend for the burgeoning Division I program at Valparaiso. When it comes time to make his next move, whenever and whatever it may be, again he won't be making the decision alone.
"(Bryce) keeps saying, 'You've got to stay, you've got to stay, because I enjoy working for you,'" Drew said. "Whenever the time is right, we'll make that move."
HOMER DREW | A LIFE IN BASKETBALL
