SPORTS best prospects from Alaska in the past five years. They also were heavily recruited by other colleges, but both chose to play for Weber State. The new coach says his style will fit his players, not the other way around. “I’d be a poor coach if I pushed my style on the players,” he says. “The style has to fit the talent.” Most observers describe Mr. Abegglen’s coaching as uptempo. He prefers man-to-man defense. “I like a fast, aggressive style,” he says. “This team has smaller players so we'll probably go for lots of presses and fast breaks, while we try to avoid turnovers.” According to Athletic Director Richard Hannan, the new coach is the right man for the job. “He’s a proven winner in a variety of circumstances, he’s got extensive contacts nationally because of the great Alaska Shootout,” Mr. Hannan says. “He’s a great motivator who works well with kids.” Mr. Hannan says he is pleased that Mr. Abegglen wants to improve the schedule with tougher opponents. The University of Minnesota, a Big Ten school, has ANTICIPATING AUTUMN — Coach Ron Abegglen says he plays “a fast, aggressive style.” basketball Coach H opes to Bring I by Dale Oberer 20 framed photograph of a darkened and empty Dee ». Events Center arena hangs over Coach Ron Abegglen’s desk. These days he is no doubt chomping at the bit to see those purple seats full of cheering fans and that court filled with scrapping players, all wanting to win as much as he does. If Mr. Abegglen’s 29-year coaching record is any indication, his University Wildcats could win—big. Mr. Abegglen (pronounced AAY-beg-luhn), a 54-year-old Vernal native, had been head coach at the University of AlaskaAnchorage for five years when he came to Ogden last April to interview for the position as head of the University’s basketball program. When the offer came, it didn’t take him more than a minute to make up his mind to return to Utah. “I went back to Anchorage, took about two days to pack, turned around and came back,” he says. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Alaska. A picture of an Anchorage sunset decorates another wall in Mr. Abegglen’s office, and he talks about the place with fondness. “It can really be beautiful there,” he says. And Alaska certainly liked him, too. In five seasons at AlaskaAnchorage, his teams compiled a won-lost record of 109-45. He took the team to the NCAA Division II finals four times. Five of his players were Division II All-Americans. In four of his five seasons his teams won 20 games. They were Great Northwest Conference champions three times. Some victories were especially memorable. In the Great Alaska shootout, Alaska beat Texas, Washington, Auburn and Miami of Florida. Another well-publicized victory occurred against the University of Michigan at the Ute Classic in Salt Lake City’s Huntsman Center during the 1988-89 season. “They should have beaten us by 40 points,” Mr. Abegglen says. Instead, his Alaska team beat Michigan, 70-66—the same year the Wolverines went on to become the NCAA Division I champions. But Utah is home, where Mr. Abegglen wants to be. He had applied twice before to coach the Wildcats. “This is a spectacular opportunity for my family and for me,” he says. “It’s a great career opportunity.” Mr. Abegglen’s three sons, father and seven grandchildren live in Utah. His basketball-playing roots are at Uintah High School and Brigham Young University, and his coaching roots are at Morgan High School and Snow College. Mr. Abegglen first played basketball in Vernal—“out behind the coal shed” —after his dad gave him a basketball for his sixth or seventh Christmas. He played for Uintah High, then tried out for basketball as a walk-on at BYU. “T was too small to be recruited,” he says. At BYU, Mr. Abegglen was a “short guard.” He played defense and ran the fast break. In fact, he credits Coach Stan Watts for the “fast-break philosophy” which is an important part of his own coaching now. ans been added to this year’s opponents. Mr. Abegglen has other goals for the team as well. He wants his players to develop pride and determination. “We need good athletes, but they need a good attitude, too,” he says. “Those two go hand in hand. They must be in basketball for the right reasons. It has to be fun.” Mr. Abegglen has personal goals for himself, too. Now that he and his wife, Nedra, a native of Moroni, Utah, and his 13-year-old daughter, Sara, have moved into a new home in Ogden, he hopes to find time to join his three sons in his other favorite sport—golf. Kirk is the golf professional at Palisades Lake near Manti; Kris is the professional at Carbon Country Club in Helper; and Kent is an assistant pro at Oakridge Country Club in Farmington. “They’re getting too good to let me play with them,” Mr. Abegglen says. Nevertheless, Mr. Abegglen’s team won the Jazz charity golf tournament in Salt Lake City last summer. He says time for golf is scarce but “it feels good when you get out there.” Now, of course, golf takes a AGGRESSIVE ACTION—Fans will see an uptempo style of play. back seat to Weber State basketball. “T’ve traveled a lot, and the Dee Events Center is the best facility I’ve seen,” Mr. Abegglen says. “From the top of the building to the Mr. Abegglen wants to bring fans to the arena. He says he will “play the kind of game that people want to watch.” @ ends of the court, I’ve never heard of a better one.” Dale Oberer is an instructor in the university's communication department. © Mr. Abegglen’s first coaching job at Morgan High began in 1962. He won 72 percent of his games— 232 victories in 13 years. In 1974, Morgan won the 2A high-school state championship after a 26-0 season. Mr. Abegglen moved on to college coaching at Snow College. In 10 years, his teams took six conference titles and compiled a record of 212-75. Mr. Abegglen left Utah for Alaska in 1985 to accept an assistant coaching position. Two years later he became head coach. His teams never won fewer than 19 games a year and he was named Coach of the Year of the Great Northwest Conference in 1988. In his last year at Alaska, his team played nine Division I teams. During the past-off season, Mr. Abegglen and his assistants—Jim Mosell, and Mark Coffman— recruited heavily. Two new recruits Mr. Abegglen points to with pride are Jeff Fentner (6-foot-8) and Jason Kaiser (6-foot-5). Both honor students, these 17-year-olds were the WSU Office of Cultural Affairs presents Monday, November 4 — 8:00 p.m. Reserved Seats: Val A. Browning Center for the Performing Arts $5 - $15 Austad Auditorium CHRISTOPHER Parken in S World-preeminent classical guitar virtuoso. Two Grammy nominations. Recognized heir to Segovia tradition. "One of most brilliant world guitarists." (Andrés Segovia) RSS A company of 90 performers The Regimental Band of Her sgn ach (OLDSTREAM GUARDS and the Pipes, Drums and Dancers of the QUEEN § OWN HIGHLANDERS© Dee Events Center Reserved Seats: $2 - $10 Seaforth and Camerons Dee Events Center Ticket Office Friday November 15 8:00 p.m. » Weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ¢ (801) 626-8500 21