The Big 12 men’s basketball coaches finally met as a group this week in Dallas.
The league’s inaugural coaches’ meeting included a dinner on Monday night followed by a five-hour session on Tuesday.
“We were kind of behind the times in getting them together,” Big 12 associate commissioner Tim Allen said. “We needed to talk about some housekeeping things and needed the camaraderie. We’ll attempt to do it more, in both social and business settings.”
The marathon session on Tuesday was a success, says Kansas University coach Roy Williams, who chaired the meeting.
“It was an introductory meeting. It was good to get together,” Williams said Wednesday.
Big 12 officials and two of the league’s athletic directors (KU’s Bob Frederick and Missouri’s Joe Castiglione) talked about scheduling, NCAA and conference rules and initial eligibility requirements.
“One of the biggest things we said we need to do is pull together to make sure it is one of the best leagues in the country,” Williams said. “We want it to be one, strong family. We do not want it to be split between us and them (North and South).”
Once upon a time, Williams was outspoken about the four Texas schools’ influence in the formation of the new conference.
“I thought we were doing pretty well and we invited them to join us. Now I hear it’s a Texas league and we’re going to change our name to the ‘Big Texas,'” said Williams in February 1995.
“I think Roy’s been roaming around the wheat field too long,” Texas coach Tom Penders replied at that time.
Those types of barbs are over and done with.
“I said (to the coaches) I’ve made some derisive comments, but it’s what I believed and I said what I believed. I said I think on one hand we’ve ignored certain segments,” Williams said. “I said now that we’re together, I’m willing to do what it takes to make sure this is a heck of a league.”
He stopped short of saying the coaches’ meeting was for “healing.”
“‘Healing’ means we were injured. I don’t think we were injured. ‘Coming together’ might be a way to describe it,” Williams noted.
